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Once Upon a Time … In Real Life. Parables of Jesus Kingdom Rewards (Matt 20:1-16) ---- --------------------------------------------------- In the parable of vineyard, only the first worker group was told a wage. The later groups were told that they would be paid what was right. They were all paid the same amount, whether they worked all day or only an hour. The early workers didn’t think that the pay was fair because they bore the burden of the work. This is a worldly view of the situation. This parable is about heaven. We need to be careful not to treat God like unappreciative children (asking “why?”, or saying “This is not fair!”) Consider that the master didn’t need to hire any of them. We can trust God to treat us better than we deserve. He already has, because Jesus bore the burden of our sin. There is ALWAYS an opening in God’s kingdom, even at the final hour. (Do we who came to Christ early in our lives resent those who came to know Him later in life?) We should fall on our faces in awe of His incredible gift. We get to go to heaven and spend eternity with God, where there will be or sickness or dying, The Bible describes heaven as the most valuable things on earth being used for mundane things (like roads of gold). God has better things for us than we can imagine. (I Cor 2: 8) The thrill will never be gone. I Peter 1:3-4 says that we will receive an inheritance that is imperishable, incorruptible and unfading. God is MORE than fair to us. Jesus is the foundation, and nothing else (I Cor 3:11-15). In the parable of the talents, it is obvious that the steward who only had one talent didn’t really know the master. (He was on the outside). His master gave his talent to the one who had done the most with the talents. (to those who handles a lot is given more responsibility). We might not think it is fair, but remember, it was never the stewards stuff. It was always the master’s stuff. Likewise, all we have is God’s stuff. The REWARD is to hear the master say “Well done my good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your master.” We want the Lord to smile because He is proud of us. We don’t know exactly what our heavenly rewards will be, but God will do so much more than the best we can imagine. We need to trust God. He is already better to us than we deserve. He has done the most important work, and He isn’t even finished yet! Application Points -- Trust God’s promise of eternal life when you surrender your life to Jesus. -- Rejoice whenever someone does surrender their life to Christ. -- Work for the joy of Jesus; His praise is the greatest reward. We need to enter the joy of our Master.