Jaime Delgado (center) with his parents Pedro Sr. and Ximena after his baptism!
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. “He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’ But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
This parable is about the amazing grace that God has for in store for all who respond to His call to serve Him. The different times that the individuals are approached throughout the day really depict the stages in one’s lifespan. When God invites you to come and work in His vineyard, don’t turn Him down. When Jesus calls someone to follow Him, the timing is perfect.
Matthew 4:17-20
“From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘ Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.’ As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ‘ Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘ and I will make you fishers of men. ‘ AT ONCE THEY LEFT THEIR NETS AND FOLLOWED HIM. ”
If we trust God’s timing and respond to His call, we will avoid so much more damage caused by the continuous sins that will plague our life. And if we decide not to respond to His call, we gamble with the fact of never being called again, or worse, not recognizing the call of God when it comes again. Our heart can become more and more hardened and cynical from our sin and the sins of others inflicted upon us.
Proverbs 4:23 says; “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”
GOD GIVES US AN OFFER WE SHOULDN’T REFUSE
“First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not forget this one thing, dear friends:
WITH THE LORD A DAY IS LIKE A THOUSAND YEARS, AND A THOUSAND YEARS ARE LIKE A DAY. THE LORD IS NOT SLOW IN KEEPING HIS PROMISE, AS SOME UNDERSTAND SLOWNESS. HE IS PATIENT WITH YOU, NOT WANTING ANYONE TO PERISH, BUT EVERYONE TO COME TO REPENTANCE.”
WHAT KIND OF WORKER ARE YOU?
Ephesians 6:7-8—”Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”
Be wholehearted for God!
Jesus came to seek and save who is lost. Do you have the lost on your heart like Jesus?
Psalm 84:10—”Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.”
Be super grateful!
Luke 17:7-10—“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do’? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’”
Never forget who you are and who God is! Fix your eyes on Jesus and don’t compare yourself with others.
DON’T MISS THE GRACE OF GOD
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
If you are harboring bitterness in your heart against anyone, you are in danger of missing the grace of God. God has enough grace to soften your heart in order for you to forgive the all persons. God is very clear that if we don’t forgive a person from our heart, He will not forgive us.
“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
There is never a recession in God’s vineyard. The question is, will you take God up and serve Him in His vineyard? God’s grace is always overflowing to all who receive it. Living with and for our amazing God and Father is what the meaning of life is all about.
John 10:10
Jesus said; “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Life is short, and then we get to go to heaven,
Love in Christ,
Chris Chloupek
