11th Hour Faith

Today on Summit life with JD Greer listen if all Jesus ever did in your life will save you from L and then after that, everything else in your life was taken when we still not consider ourselves the recipients of incalculable levels of grace. Even the worst pain and the worst loss on earth be compared to the joys that you and I experienced an eternity but Jesus purchased for us we don't deserve life with pastor and author JD Greer. I'm your host Molly benefits culture week business by creating agreements or contracts so that it's clear we know what we're getting supposed to deliver the binding legal document meant to clarify a relationship between parties.

But consider this, how many of us extend that same mindset to our relationship with God. I'll do this you do that will deliver here you deliver their pastor Jenny Greer teaches about the dangers of meeting God actually was a something because of our actions.

The slippery slope for sure. It's time to get started with a message pastor, Jenny creatively titled 11 hours. Well, this is your unpacking some of the parables of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew. The series is called listen because that is the word that Jesus often used whatever he told these parables indicated that the real meaning in these parables was often hidden below the surface and so that only those of right disposition of heart right posture of heart would be able to perceive is meaning to beget your Bibles this weekend that I hope that you do take them out and open them to Matthew 20 or turn them on to chapter 20 and scroll down there. Let me see the warm glow of God's word, eliminating your faces like I love so much as you're turning their inner being able to listen and truly understand what is being said is a critical life skill in any context what I was a remind me of a story her when I was young about a couple of our redneck sewer out of the woods hunting together and also one of them grabbed his chest and fell to the ground and the way he was scarcely breathing even and I's eyes were rolled back in his head so the other redneck website is Nextel. It calls 911 the gas to the operator.

He says I think Bob is dead but was there. What do I do to the 911 operator on the other end of the line responded in a very calm and measured voices is okay sir, but before we do anything we need to make sure that he's dead but it was a moment of silence and allowed shotgun blasts the rednecks voice came back in a lot, it's at all right now what now I'm positive that story is not true, but the point is the point is sometimes you listen not to.

Not just the words that are being said, you listen to what is being met by the words that are being said there were ever a place that that was true. It's going to be the parable that we are going to encounter today. Today this story Jesus tells is going to get at the heart of one of the most fundamental elements of our worldview and that is our sense of justice. There are few things that are ingrained into us as much as our sense of justice. Whether you are religious or irreligious. Whether you consider yourself conservative or liberal, young or old you have a deep-seated need for justice that resonates deep in your heart for the phrases that I never had to teach any of my kids was that phrase that's not fair to know where they heard it from you, your kids, maybe, but they never learned for me, but they just instinctively know that's not right now not being treated fairly. Justice makes us feel like there is an order in a meaning to life gives us a sense of control. It makes us feel at peace.

Thus, one of the most frustrating thing for us in faith is when God doesn't seem to be operating according to our rules of justice Jesus addresses this frustration head on in this parable and this teaching that is going to get us all confusing and there I say frustrating. Many bewildering at first, is critical and learning to trust God and learning to be at peace with what he's doing in the world. Put it this way. If you have ever asked God if you ever looked toward the heavens and said God why are you letting this happen to me.what you let this happen to me what you let this happen to them.it's not fair that questions ever come up in your heart and Jesus told the story for you. This parable I will tell you has the potential to be an absolute game changer for many of you, and will probably do more to help you trust God and be at peace with what he's doing in your life in the world that maybe anything that I've ever taught from a peer Matthew chapter 24. The parable is one of the start that story with the last verse of chapter 19 because the story in chapter 19 sets out the reason that Jesus told the parable in chapter 20. Unfortunately sometimes the chapter breaks in the Bible, the wrong place.

They were part of the original thing that Matthew wrote. We added them later and usually they're in good places, but occasionally like this one.

It totally breaks up contacts so that you don't connect what Jesus is saying what he just said, and this is illustration we got understand the story leading up to this one. Understand the meaning of the parable by the story in chapter 19 is of Jesus is encounter with a guy that we now refer to as the rich young ruler for the rich young ruler was as his name implies, he was a young successful morally upright community leader. Evidently he had it all yet money yet power, he was probably good-looking. I'm sure everybody was jealous of him.

One afternoon he comes to Jesus in the asked Jesus, Lord, what else do I need to do to inherit eternal life that you got handed to them the least realizes that all of his accomplishments in life if he dies and does not go to heaven that they are all ultimately worthless.

The problem was that the whole basis of his question was wrong.

There is nothing that we can do to earn eternal life.

If there had been something that we could do to earn eternal life.

Jesus wouldn't have needed to come as a baby and grow up and live the life or to live and die the death we were committed to die. He could have instead just sent out an instruction manual that told us what we needed to do right, but instead Jesus had to come and do something we couldn't do so.

There had been something that we needed to do. Jesus would've gone so instead in order to obtain eternal life. You got to admit that there's nothing you can do and you gotta give up control of your life to Jesus so that he can do it for you. We have to admit that all of our riches. Whether were talking monetary riches are the riches of our talents or even our spiritual riches that they're all ultimately worthless before God and we got receive eternal life in God's favor as an undeserved gift of grace.

This is what Jesus explains to this young man but sadly he walks away because his possessions are just too many and his sense of worthiness is too great that he just could not let those things go in Jesus and that whole encounter by saying verse 30 chapter 19 see many who are first to be last and the last, we first and then he tells this parable starting in the next verse, there verse 120 kingdom of heaven is like a master went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. Now this is a work situation right here is not super common today where basically you have a group of laborers that would gather various parts of the city and on construction crews are farming crews. Whatever will come along and pick up the labor that they needed for the day is higher than for the day. It is actually quite common in many parts of the world where I live in Southeast Asia not far from our house was a little place where all the guys of community would gather who didn't have jobs and people come along to come up got to be picked up early as I got it picked up millions of guys never get picked up. I do know there are still a few places even in Raleigh-Durham where they still haven't. I know that because one of our on staff members. Her husband draws at 155 city had winter tires flat so we pulled over this on in the city and on the side road to try to change his tire as you change a tire. Here's this commotion looks up at a bunch of guys with built on a certain hop in the back of his truck and try to find them. I got someone on your form to change my tire of residual in itself, but consort still happens but was really common in those days and so is telling a story that everybody would've understood Her agreeing with the laborers for the merriest day he sent them into his vineyard there yesterday was the day right back then it was a standard wage was fair. It was predictable. Everybody was happy to give you the nares you work for 12 hours going about the third hour. This master saw others standing idle in the marketplace. Now they measure their hours from 6 AM to start a workday after third hour would've been, of course, not a.m. and he sees discussion on the marketplace and he said to them, you go to the vineyard. Also, whatever is right, I will give you. Now here's the thing to notice here they don't agree on a price that there's no controversy will enter into a contract, you work 12 hours a give you in areas these people you promise them anything. He just says just trust me, I'll do what's right by you and they believe the master they trusted his goodness. They trusted his promise to take care of them and they go going out about the six hour, six hours from 6 AM is noon and night. Our 3 PM. The master does the same again. No contract. Next verse about the 11th hour, which would be 5 PM from 6 AM to 5 PM. It went pretty much as I get off work around 11. Now he goes out and found other sitting around them.

Are you sitting here idle all day I said to him there's nobody tired us.

He said to them, what you go also into my vineyard and my vineyard also didn't notice. No contract, only the very first guys get a contract. Everybody else just trust them. The goodness of the master and trust his promise to take care of in verse eight, and when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said was foreman call the laborers and pay them their wages start with the last stop of the God with heart an hour ago and lead up to the first and when does he hired about the 11th hour came, each of them received the merriest now Windows hired first came they thought they would receive more than at the Marriott because they know working well over the other guys but each of them also received in areas that are received and they grumbled at the master of the house, which is understandable saying, these last worked only one hour and you have made them equal to us were born. The burden of the day of the scorching heat.

Now here's what's happening just in case you lost their master the end of the day the landowner lines them all up with the more recently hired workers at the front of the line and the earliest workers you been working 12 hours at the rate back alive and he opens up his bag of coins and he says all right 5 PM guys where you mail step forward. They of course there they're fresh in their energetic they still smell nice. There's no sweat marks under their arms, their manicures are still impeccable, their shirts are still tucked in the master says I promised you guys. I take care of you right so here's of the nares for you in a dinners for you. You get in the merriest and you get it in areas you get it in areas and on down the line TCE source go what the guys who been working there all day away at the end of the line, but they can see what's going on. So they start to get excited is a lie will man this is crazy generous he's given people who work for an hour, I did various imagine what is going to give to us.

They start counted on the fingers and the toes of their pretty excited, but finally when he gets to them who work for 12 hours.

The master says antigen areas for each of you, at which point they respond way, no fair were get the same thing. They got verse 13 but he replied to them, friend, and my I am doing you know wrong.

Did you not agree with me to work for a day for the merriest am I not allowed to do what I choose what belongs to me, or do you begrudge me my generosity. I just imagine all the when the master said that, I think some of them probably felt yes actually I do begrudge you your generosity.

Honestly I would rather have justice.

I understand justice.

Justice is quantifiable. It is predictable. It feels fair, it's comfortable. I want to deserve what I did and I want to get what I deserve and I imagine that is probably when Jesus got a twinkle in his eye and said it really, really you really want justice you want to talk about what you really deserve. I don't think you want to go there.

Justice is a dead end. Literally it is that it you see that's where we zoom out from the story to the larger picture of the New Testament, and here's what we realize first. If God gives any of us what we deserve. We are all Bible says in Romans 623 that the wages the award, the penalty, what we earn through sin is death. That means working to get technical about it. That's what we deserve anything more than death and separation from God forever in hell is sheer undeserved grace and mercy to what stop talking about what we deserve. Instead, it is better to have the relationship of the master but the 11th hour guys have were you just go with him, trusting in his goodness and his promises to take care of you right back to today's in just a moment but first let me tell you about our latest resource created exclusively for our summit like listeners to attend a devotional that follows our current teaching on the program from the parables of Jesus, only way to know God more is to spend more time getting to know him happens by reading his word, praying and ending time with other believers, whenever that study looks like we'd like to encourage you to reserve your copy today by calling 86 thanks 335-5220 can visit us online. JD Greer.com. Thanks for being with us today. Now let's get back to the final limits of today's message anything for just a minute if you will of the one who is telling the story, according to the New Testament, Jesus is really the one who worked all day and we all sat around and did nothing and then at the end of the day. Not only did Jesus not get what he deserved. He was punished for our laziness. The wages that he was due or given to us and the punishment that we deserved was placed on him. He lived a perfect life and then died the sinners death on the cross, he was beaten and whipped and crucified and tortured for sin not for his sin for our sin. We, by contrast, we let the sinners life, and we reap. Instead, the reward of the righteous. You sometimes I read a business book and there's a discussion that appears in a bunch of different forms of these business book of what's more motivating to people do it to an employee is it that the carrot or the stick right at the stake as the threat of punishment like a mule you know you be the sake of their not going around that the carrot is you know what you reward them with and it's not what business is it better to threaten people with punishments if they don't do what's right or is it better to reward them if they do what's right and it's always your interesting theories and they decide, but truly interesting when you think about what God patted God motivate us to the gospel with the carrot and stick to question both. We took the stick of justice and be Jesus when it and then he offered us the carrot that Jesus deserved and that is the reward.

He gave it to us as a free gift you want to talk about fair. Really, I don't think you want to go there to fair, but incredibly Jesus has offered us grace and when you see what Jesus was willing to go through to obtain that grace for you. Surely you could trust him and just go with him. Like the 11th hour guys did write and trust him to do what's right in your life.

It's interesting to me, would you consider that the master this parable could've avoided this whole controversy simply by paying the guys in order that he hired and he paid the first guys first given them to their denarius and set them on the way they would've been happy and that would've been on the wiser. Yet he insisted on paying them in reverse order so that the first guys who work 12 hours see the guys who only work one hour to get the same thing that they got.

It's like he's trying to pick a fight right it's like is easy deliberately creating controversy, but he's doing it this way to make a point and the point lesson.

The point is not to advocate some new Marxist Christian business philosophy where everybody get paid the same regardless of how much they work. Nor is Jesus trying to say that there's going to be no degrees of reward in heaven right there plenty of places in the Bible that say there will be degrees of reward in proportion to our sacrifices and to our faithfulness is not some flat your reward that we all get up there. The key to this parable. As with all parables is context in the context of this parable is Jesus is responding to the rich young ruler and other people like him who think that they can earn eternal life or that they can deserve the blessings of God and his point is you don't want to be in a contract relationship with God, stop talking about what you deserve. You don't want to receive what you deserve better is just to follow the master and trust in his grace and his goodness and his promise to take care of you like the 11th hour guys did it work out a whole lot better for you. The incident parable the same way that he started with literally the exact same verse last for the parable 2416 mL the last of the first the first will be last. Better to be last in life, trusting in God's grace than first getting what you think you deserve.

Listen y'all so many of our spiritual problems and so much of our spiritual unrest comes from having a contract mentality with God in the contract mentality with God. I mean, believing that God owes something to us and that we want God to give us what we deserve. When he give you five sides of you. The remainder my time to give you five signs that you are in a contract relationship with God, most of which you see right here in the story. There is number one bitterness bitterness is the first sign. Here's what the diagnostic question. Am I bitter because God has withheld some blessing for me, that I think that I deserve in the story.

The 12 hour workers are better and I getting more because they think they deserve more. But again, what Jesus is getting at is really really really wants what you deserve. Everything good that you receive in life beyond death and hell is a gift of grace.

A lot of times you and I will say to God why God why is this bad thing happening to me. We talk about we call the problem of evil.

The problem of evil is the problem that evil things happen to us really really good people right and so we say why is this happening to me why this bad evil thing happening to me for such a good person. Jesus presents a different perspective and what you hear this okay just Jesus said it not me.

It's kind of rash statement. Jesus made it look every 13 evidently in Jerusalem. There had been a tower of building that collapsed and killed 18 people 1.right and so the question the people presented Jesus with was. They said well Jesus were those 18 people just more wicked than everybody else and that's where the tower fell on them like maybe God saw altogether the same place at the same time. Now's my chance makes it out of a lot and she's actually now that's creative thinking. But that's not what happened.

And then Jesus gives the most politically incorrect statement in the entire New Testament. He says, but I tell you the truth, unless you repent you will all likewise perish towards the question is not why did that tower fall on those people question is one of the tower, not the one you you want to talk about what you did or what they did to deserve it. You all deserve to have a tower fall on you every single day that you get up in a tower had ball on you is a day of grace. The fact that I woke up this morning and there was no tower on my house.

The fact that I woke up this morning was sunshiny. The fact that I woke up with breath of my lungs is a gift of grace and I do not deserve, because what I deserve is death and separation from God. So I should stop talking about what I deserve and I should thank God for grace and that will change my perspective on everything. Listen, if all Jesus ever did in your life. If all he ever did was save you from hell.

And then after that, everything else in your life was taken when we still not consider ourselves the recipients of incalculable levels of grace grace that we did not deserve me think about what would what would even the worst pain and the worst loss on earth. What would that be compared to the joys that you and I experience in eternity that Jesus purchased for us that we don't deserve no matter what you go through on earth, try to minimize your payment, no matter what you go through on earth, don't you think you'll still be singing in eternity that last verse of amazing grace when we been there 10,000 years, bright shining as the sun with no stasis in God's grace and his praise than when we are first begun to when you say to God, God, you told me that blessing you're trying to get back into a contract relationship with God.

And I promise you that is not where you want to be. I know I know a couple of our churches struggle for many years with why God has not blessed them yet with children and they sent our children a blessing from the Lord in the Bible say that why hasn't God given us that blessing, why and listen that that's a normal struggle and it's a very real question is something that that that that we grieve over and it's perfectly legitimate question, but the husband told me recently said that quite often for us.

We have slipped into the mentality that God owes us this and it's made us bitter and angry toward God and he said when we do that. It's like we are disqualified ourselves from the grace that God is given to us. None of us wants to demand that God gives us what we deserve. None of us wants that and the greatest blessing that God could ever give us his forgiveness of sin, and eternal life, and forever fellowship with him and because God is given us those things in grace.

We know that we can trust him with this issue of children and we will stay still say when we been there 10,000 years, bright shining as the sun even if we never have children on earth with no less days to sing his praise him when we first begun number two. Here's a second sign that you are having a contract relationship God jealousy future diagnostic question and I jealous of good things that others have that I want am I jealous of good stuff that other people have that I want.

Jealousy is you're mad that that you'll have that resentment means you're mad that they have is, two-edged sword there, you're mad at them and you're there, you know you like while mad that I will have it in the store. These workers are jealous of what the later workers got because they think that they are more deserving than the other laborers were right, in the sole basis of it.

We deserve that they got it.

We should have were like that.

Also, Army don't we look around.

How often have you looked around the miss granny civil why did they get that opportunity wired their bodies so good-looking and healthy. Why not the one who's getting sick all the time they get the job wanted to get the promotion. Why did they get that honor. I deserve those things more native the basis of jealousy missing. Don't you see how that again has put you in the mentality of a contract. Is that really where you want to be is everything good that you have received isn't it a gift of grace and has an Jesus promised that he will take care of you and has any promise you that you'll do what's right and hasn't been as you can trust your for the first time that we are contract relationship with God. Don't miss the conclusion here on Senate life with Katie Greer. Every month we offer a brand-new resource and our current offer is a handy devotional guide cub listen at an interactive devotions from the parables of Jesus and Ginny.

I know you have a specific aim in mind with this study what you hope listeners will take away as they work their way through this, but no Molly using an interactive devotional like this will help you take just a little time each day to better understand some of Jesus's important teachings. The parable times what this will do is take those things in and drive them deep in your heart so your life changes as your learning each of the sections is going include a Bible-based devotion.

A couple of reflection questions and then a prayer prompt to get you started praying the Scriptures with the goal of creating this is a habit for you every day to study God's word and talk to God want you to take a look at this.

I think you find it really helpful. JD grid.com and find out how you can reserve your copy today after ascertaining the donations day $35, give us a call at eight 663-3552 training and remember to devotional that never again 335-5220. You can get interclass online Katie Greer.com I Molly benefits. We continue setting in her teaching series right here on Senate life changing your ministry