The Workers in the Vineyard
September 2026
Call to worship: Let us come with joy to worship the living God
Hymn STF 57 H&P 10 Let all the world in every corner sing
Prayers: Living loving God, you have told us to look forward to a time when your kingdom will come and your will be done, A time when there will be an end to sin and evil, suffering and sorrow, when all your people will come together in peace and harmony when Christ will come again in glory. Come to us now. we pray. Living loving God, forgive us because we have lost our sense of expectation, content simply to get by, settling for things the way they are, failing to believe you can change lives and transform the world. Come to us now, we pray. Living loving God, open our eyes and widen our vision and help us to see the world shaped by your eternal perspective rather than our narrow horizons. Give us a new sense of expectation and confidence in the future reminding us of all you have done for us through Jesus and all you will do for us in the days to come. Make us ready to welcome him when he comes again. Come to us now as we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen
Hymn STF 479 H&P 69 The king of love my shepherd is
Reading Matthew 20: 1 – 16
Reflection: To readers in the 21st century this story might appear a little bit shocking and could well ask us the question, “Where are the trade union officials? Where is there any sense of fairness if you pay the last workers the same as the first?” We have to realise that in this story, Jesus isn’t commenting on the social life of his day.
Most scholars today think that Jesus is using the idea of the power of the rich landowner to say something about God. But what is he saying?
Let’s go backwards and look at the last people who were hired, the ones who were still in the market place with just one hour of work time left. Why hadn’t they been hired earlier in the day? Were they not there in the market place earlier? When the vineyard owner asked them why they weren’t working he received a telling answer. “Nobody’s hired us, nobody’s given us a job.” In other words, nobody wanted them. We don’t know why this was. Maybe they were the sort of people everybody tried not to hire. But the landowner did hire them and paid them exactly the same as the first workers hired early in the day.
As in many of Jesus’s stories the landowner/vineyard owner, (call him what you will) is standing for God and the workers represent God’s people Israel. In his commentary on this passage bishop Tom Wright suggests that the parable is a warning to the disciples about their own attitudes. They are supposing that Jesus is bringing in the kingdom of heaven and because they are his close followers they will become rich and famous in their turn. Jesus warns them that God’s kingdom isn’t like this. They may have set out with Jesus from the very beginning but others may come in much later and receive exactly the same reward, the regular daily wage for a manual labourer.
Jesus is saying that you can’t bargain with God’s grace or try to store it up. It’s not the sort of thing one person can have a lot of and someone else only a little bit. The point of the story is that what people get from serving God and God’s kingdom isn’t actually a wage at all. It’s not strictly a reward for work done. God doesn’t make contracts with us, as if we could bargain or negotiate for a better deal. God makes covenants in which we are promised everything from God and we are asked for everything in return. When God keeps his promises, we are not being rewarded for effort, but God is acting naturally from his generous overflowing nature which is love.
I quote the last paragraph of Tom Wright’s Commentary :
“There is always a danger that we may get cross with God over this. People in church circles can so easily assume they are the special ones. God’s inner circle. In reality, God is out in the marketplace, looking for the people everybody else tries to ignore, welcoming them on the same terms, surprising them (and everybody else) with his generous grace. The earliest church clearly needed to learn that lesson. Is there anywhere in today’s church that doesn’t need to be reminded of this as well?” Amen
Some questions to think about:
- Who would you perceive today as the last of the workers that would be hired?
- What do you think Jesus meant when he said, “The last shall be first and the first shall be last?”
- Do you think the treatment of the workers was fair?
Hymn STF 495 H&P 673 Dear Lord and father of mankind
Intercessions You may wish to put aside your offering at this point.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today.
Where there is pain and sorrow may the brilliance of your love bring ease and comfort.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today.
Where there is sickness and suffering may the light of your calm come after the storm.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today.
Where there is greed and corruption may your radiance scatter the shadows.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today.
Where there is hunger and bitterness may your brightness dispel the clouds.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today
Where there is war and injustice may the light of your peace and justice. illuminate the darkness of your world.
Jesus, light of the world, shine in our darkness today.
Lord Jesus Christ, light of the world, fill your church with the light of your presence and your life-giving grace and give us the strength to carry out our work in your service. We ask in your name. Amen
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn STF 504 H&P 739 May the mind of Christ my Saviour live in me
Blessing
May the blessing of God rest upon each one of us.
May the Spirit of God endow us with energy.
May the love of God make us generous to one another.
And the blessing of God, Creator, Son and Holy Spirit be with us now and always. Amen
Insight into Reflection Tom Wright Matthew For Everyone
Blessing Rosemary Wass
Worship prepared by Judith Winn