Lila Zane (Cecil) Fox, 89, of Junction, Texas passed away on March 2, 2020 at home. A gathering to celebrate her life will be held 3:00 PM, Sunday, March 8, 2020 at the First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall.
Scripture
Matthew 20:1-16
"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. [2] After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. [3] And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, [4] and to them he said, 'You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.' [5] So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. [6] 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?' [7] They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, 'You go into the vineyard too.' [8] 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.' [9] And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. [10] Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. [11] And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, [12] 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.' [13] But he replied to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? [14] Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. [15] Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?' [16] So the last will be first, and the first last."
Questions for Reflection
1. What is the most generous thing anyone has ever done for you?
2. Who was the central character in this parable? (20:1)
3. What wages were agreed upon by the landowner and his hired hands? (20:2)
4. How many additional times did the landowner go out and hire workers? (20:5-6)
5. What explanation did the last group of workers give when asked why they were standing around doing nothing? (20:7)
6. What happened to the last group of workers? (20:7)
7. What did the landowner tell his foreman at the end of the day? (20:8)
8. What wages did the workers hired at the eleventh hour receive? (20:9)
9. What did the landowner pay to the men who worked all day? (20:10)
10. How did the workers respond to the landowner’s system of payment? (20:11-12)
11. What rationale did the landowner give for his actions? (20:13-15)
12. How do our cultural values resist the idea of grace?
13. Why is it dangerous to compare your own situation with someone else’s?
14. What would happen if God gave each of us what we deserve?
15. How can focusing on God’s grace in our lives keep us from becoming jealous of others?
