I am the eleventh hour.
June 21, 2010
In order to digest this whole post I would suggest you pick up your Bible (or your friend's Bible) and read Matthew 20:1-19; the parable of the vineyard workers. This might require wiping the dust of that old thing, but trust me it's worth it.
(this is a summary for those who decide not to read the story)
In the parable He talks about a vineyard owner who goes out to find workers early in the morning for a days work. He does so and promises these men a days wage. Later he goes out and collects more and so on and so on- at 9, 12, and 3 (v.3-5)- until it comes to 5 o' clock. It says that the vineyard owner finds men who are just standing around the market and offers them the job (FOR ONE HOUR).. they go and work. At the days end, the owner gathers all of the workers and gives them the promised wage. What you'll notice is that the workers who come in at 5 o' clock get the same exact wage as the people who start working at 6 in the morning. Obviously, some of the men get a little steamed about this and start to complain.
What is so beautiful about this parable is that it is a clear picture of us!
A few weeks ago Mark Henry, a pastor from Fellowship Bible Church, gave a message preached on this passage and before hearing it I never realized how awesome this passage is to open our eyes to what kind of people we are. There are a number of ways to apply to us today but one of the greatest (and simplest to understand) is that of the men who come to work at 6 o' clock and those who come to work at 5 o 'clock.
The men who were hired at 6 are those of us who have been following Christ for a long time. And those men who were hired at 5 in the afternoon are those of us who have only been following Christ for a short time. The tendency of some who have been following Jesus for longer than others, is to immediately turn up their noses at the thought of the "new-comers" getting as much reward as themselves.
For example.. there is a Christian teenager who has been following Jesus for four years and another Christian teenager who has been following Jesus for a few months. As soon as the new Christ-follower gets a chance to speak in front of the whole youth group, the older Christian might have some grumblings.. "Why does he get to talk? I've been a Christian longer than he has. I've read more of the Bible than he has. I deserve more attention than he is getting." And the complaints go on and on.. isn't it true! We are just like that! We can get so mixed up that we don't realize that it doesn't matter long someone has been following Jesus, what matters is that they are indeed following Him! Where have we gone wrong?
Obviously there are many other examples of how the older Christians can complain and why they complain. For anyone who finds themselves stuck in that sin (which I'm sure there are plenty), wake up! Get out the Word and read about how terrible we as people are. Pray that Jesus will remind you how much we desperately need Him to live. We are not good enough to live on our own! Without Christ, we would be NOWHERE and we need to constantly remind ourselves of that.
And with that, we come to the people who were hired an hour before they were paid. These are the people who indeed see how dependant they are upon Christ. These are the brothers and sisters who wake up everyday and thirst for Jesus because they KNOW they need Him. They still have that excitement about the death and resurrection, and that they get to walk with Jesus each day.
As a church, we collectively have to have the attitude and mindset of those new comers. We have to breathe the air they breathe each day. I pray that the message of Christ and it's richness will never grow stale and bring boredom to us. Each of us are the eleventh hour (the people who came at 5 in the afternoon). If we remember that we have to have Jesus to live and we keep the mindset of the late comers, wow.. we will live like true Christ-followers. We will live our lives to the full, just as Jesus promised in John 10:10. We will live radical, real lives dedicated to glorifying Jesus with everything we have and everything we are.
I am the eleventh hour.
You are the eleventh hour.
We are the eleventh hour.
Once and for all Eternity. Hallelujah.
(this is a summary for those who decide not to read the story)
In the parable He talks about a vineyard owner who goes out to find workers early in the morning for a days work. He does so and promises these men a days wage. Later he goes out and collects more and so on and so on- at 9, 12, and 3 (v.3-5)- until it comes to 5 o' clock. It says that the vineyard owner finds men who are just standing around the market and offers them the job (FOR ONE HOUR).. they go and work. At the days end, the owner gathers all of the workers and gives them the promised wage. What you'll notice is that the workers who come in at 5 o' clock get the same exact wage as the people who start working at 6 in the morning. Obviously, some of the men get a little steamed about this and start to complain.
What is so beautiful about this parable is that it is a clear picture of us!
A few weeks ago Mark Henry, a pastor from Fellowship Bible Church, gave a message preached on this passage and before hearing it I never realized how awesome this passage is to open our eyes to what kind of people we are. There are a number of ways to apply to us today but one of the greatest (and simplest to understand) is that of the men who come to work at 6 o' clock and those who come to work at 5 o 'clock.
The men who were hired at 6 are those of us who have been following Christ for a long time. And those men who were hired at 5 in the afternoon are those of us who have only been following Christ for a short time. The tendency of some who have been following Jesus for longer than others, is to immediately turn up their noses at the thought of the "new-comers" getting as much reward as themselves.
For example.. there is a Christian teenager who has been following Jesus for four years and another Christian teenager who has been following Jesus for a few months. As soon as the new Christ-follower gets a chance to speak in front of the whole youth group, the older Christian might have some grumblings.. "Why does he get to talk? I've been a Christian longer than he has. I've read more of the Bible than he has. I deserve more attention than he is getting." And the complaints go on and on.. isn't it true! We are just like that! We can get so mixed up that we don't realize that it doesn't matter long someone has been following Jesus, what matters is that they are indeed following Him! Where have we gone wrong?
Obviously there are many other examples of how the older Christians can complain and why they complain. For anyone who finds themselves stuck in that sin (which I'm sure there are plenty), wake up! Get out the Word and read about how terrible we as people are. Pray that Jesus will remind you how much we desperately need Him to live. We are not good enough to live on our own! Without Christ, we would be NOWHERE and we need to constantly remind ourselves of that.
And with that, we come to the people who were hired an hour before they were paid. These are the people who indeed see how dependant they are upon Christ. These are the brothers and sisters who wake up everyday and thirst for Jesus because they KNOW they need Him. They still have that excitement about the death and resurrection, and that they get to walk with Jesus each day.
As a church, we collectively have to have the attitude and mindset of those new comers. We have to breathe the air they breathe each day. I pray that the message of Christ and it's richness will never grow stale and bring boredom to us. Each of us are the eleventh hour (the people who came at 5 in the afternoon). If we remember that we have to have Jesus to live and we keep the mindset of the late comers, wow.. we will live like true Christ-followers. We will live our lives to the full, just as Jesus promised in John 10:10. We will live radical, real lives dedicated to glorifying Jesus with everything we have and everything we are.
I am the eleventh hour.
You are the eleventh hour.
We are the eleventh hour.
Once and for all Eternity. Hallelujah.
Posted by Chris Tuttle
My heart is broken, and it always will be. My heart is broken for this world and how the love of Jesus Christ is real and there for the taking, and so many people don't catch on. My heart is broken because people don't see the beauty of the gift our Savior gives. I am here to write about the love He has given me and wants to extend to everyone out there. I write to give glory to God.
