Vintage labourers

Sermon for Septuagesima

What is the Kingdom of Heaven like?

Our Lord gives us

the parable of the

Workers in the Vineyard

to describe the 

Kingdom of Heaven.

But does this mean 

that we work ourselves 

into Heaven?

If we are the labourers 

waiting around for work

to receive our wages,

then perhaps Pelagius is right:

we can earn our place

in the Kingdom of Heaven.

[PAUSE]

it's worth trying to

see what prompts

Our Lord to speak this parables.

First, we see that he is

surrounded by people

giving Him their children to bless.

We see a rich young man

ask Him about the 

Kingdom of Heaven

only to be told that 

he must give up all that he has.

And St Peter reminds Our Lord

that the disciples have given up

so much to be with Him.

The Lord tells him

that whatever he gives up

in order to walk with Him

will be given back 

many times over

in the Kingdom of Heaven.

And this is where we come in.

[PAUSE]

Our Lord shows us

that our life with Him

will be hard work.

Labouring in a vineyard

is painful and tiring,

with lots of digging,

pruning

and harvesting.

And yet it is work

that is worth doing:

people are willing to wait

even to the eleventh hour -

the last hour -

to work for God,

especially when the wages

are a Roman Soldier's 

daily wage -

very generous.

This wage is given

regardless of when

we begin the hard work

of being a Christian.

It is not something that we earn

but rather something that 

we are offered, 

right at the beginning

when Our Lord says, 

"follow me."

It is an expression 

of the generosity of God

in recognising our situation.

[PAUSE]

Our salvation,

Our ability even to enter

the Kingdom of Heaven

can only be entered

through the cross of Christ.

But once inside

then we are given so much.

Our judgement is 

not just a judgement of our sins

but also a judgement of 

what we have given up

to be with Christ.

What we have lost 

will be restored plenteously.

Those who look at what 

others get and complain

miss the whole point.

Their hearts are not set on Christ

 but see their worth as being

superior to others

because they have worked longer.

It's not how long you have laboured,

it's that you have laboured.

It's because you come to Christ

in your own circumstances,

working out your faith 

with the Holy Ghost working

with you and in you.

We go through labours

because we love Christ

and the world does not.

We struggle within

our own selves

to love the Lord our God

with all our heart and soul

and mind and strength,

and our neighbours 

as ourselves.

And God meets our struggles

and matches them

with both justice and generosity

as individuals

regardless of what others

may think of that generosity. 

[PAUSE]

We have so much work to do

and the Lord is clear

that this is hard labour

to walk the Christian life

but He promises us that

it will be more than worth it.

We should not despair

of the mercy of God.

Neither should we despair 

of his generosity. 

He loves us

and that is so much more

than we can desire or deserve.