Family Worship (7) Title: "Workers in the Vineyard”
Bible:
Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?”
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first. And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ So the last will be first, and the first last.”
If anyone wishes to listen to the worship service in Japanese, click below.
Prelude:
Dad:
Today, your father and mother have made a simple picture-story show of this parable, and we'd like to watch it and think about it together.
James:
What? A picture-story show? That sounds interesting.
Sophia:
I wish I could have joined you.
Mom:
I'm sorry. I came up with the idea so suddenly that we didn't have time to invite you to join us.
Next time, let's make a picture story during summer vacation.
Grace:
Mom, you said you weren't good at drawing.
Mom:
You've caught on, haven't you? I was solely in charge of writing, and Dad was in charge of drawing.
Dad:
Are you ready to read?
All:
Yes!
Storyboarding and narration:
Sophia:
The master of the vineyard went out early in the morning to the plaza, where he gathered the workers. The master promised one denarius per day. All the people worked hard willingly.
Grace:
The master didn't have enough people, so he went out again around 9:00, 12:00, and 3:00 to find workers under the same conditions. After that, the master went out again around five o'clock, and he saw people still standing around and asked, "Why are you standing here all day doing nothing?" They replied, "Because no one will hire us." So he hired them, too.
James:
They all worked hard and got one denarius from their master when they finished their work, but the workers who had started in the morning began complaining.
"It is not fair because we have worked from morning until now. Master, you paid them the same amount as those who worked even for a short time.
The master replied, "Your reward was a promise of one denarius. I want to give the same to those who came later. It is my money, and it is reasonable that I should do what I want with it. I am not in breach of contract.
Dad:
Wow! All of you read very well. Thank you. I enjoyed it a lot.
Mom:
Thank you very much for your hard work. Now, I think this parable is difficult to understand.
James:
The characters are a little vague. The farmer is Jesus, but I am not sure if the hired laborers were the scribes and Pharisees or not. I guess the ones who were pleased to have a wage were the tax collectors and sinners.
Grace:
In chapter 19 verse 27, a disciple named Peter said, "As you see, we have left everything and followed you. What shall we receive?” So, I think the characters in this story are Jesus and his disciples. I think the workers who complained were not only the scribes and Pharisees as before but disciples of Jesus.
Dad:
I see. It is important to look at passages before and after the Bible story.
Sophia:
Well, I think it could go either way, but somehow I still think what happened in this story is unfair.
Mom:
I can understand why those who had worked for a long time would feel dissatisfied. They thought it was a reasonable complaint. How can we understand Jesus' way of thinking?
Dad:
Shall we step away from this story and remember what kind of person Jesus was?
Sophia:
He is the God who loves everyone. I don't think Jesus would show favoritism.
James:
He understands and cares about those who are weak or suffering.
Grace:
Jesus is God's only begotten Son who gave His life to save us.
Mom:
God is not a favoritism kind of God, but in this story, I also feel that the master is showing favoritism.
James:
The master went there around 5 p.m. and found people still standing around because no one had hired them. The master felt sorry for these people. I am sure that Jesus cared for them and helped them.
Sophia:
James! Your idea is so amazing!
Grace:
I think so too. I think Jesus warned his disciples that they were not the only chosen ones like the scribes and Pharisees thought.
Dad:
They say that one denarius is just enough wage for a person to work for a day. It is enough money for everyone to live for a day in peace, but it could mean God's kingdom and salvation in a parable. We could always remind ourselves that what Jesus gives us is eternal life.
Mom:
In the church calendar, we begin Passion Week on April 2; the day Jesus was crucified is the seventh, and Easter is the ninth. When Jesus told this parable, Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem and be crucified there. The disciples could not have imagined that such a thing would happen, but Jesus told them from time to time what would happen to him. I believe Jesus tried to tell His disciples about the most important thing in our lives.
We could think about other things, but that's enough for today. I want to ask Dad to pray.
Dad’s prayer:
Heavenly Father, today we have challenged ourselves with a parable that is difficult to understand. Thank you for allowing us to share our thoughts. Our knowledge and understanding of your will and plans is so limited and we can only grasp part of it. We cannot know your far-reaching plans.
Please give us wisdom so that we can know your truth. And please guide us in applying it to our lives. May the glory of Jesus appear in this world. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Postlude:"What A Beautiful Name"
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