Required Engagement

For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.’ So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’ So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen. Matthew 20:1-16

To whom much is given much will be required.

The laborers who were hired in the first hour had to work the entire day regardless of how long the others had to work. While we are in the vineyard, we are to be working with our hands. It doesn’t matter how long we were working before the master comes; if we are not found working when the master comes, it will not be good for us. If someone in the vineyard is not working, it is better for them to be outside of the vineyard so they can be “re-hired” instead of sitting around in the vineyard thinking they will get paid for not working. (1 Corinthians 5:5). God expects us to be actively, continually working for His kingdom.

God wants to take you on an adventure, will you go?

The most exciting thing we can do in our life is to follow the adventures God has for us. We are easily distracted by other adventures that look exciting but end up disappointing us. We can decide to follow His amazing adventure or we can choose our own adventure. If we choose our own adventure, we will look up after wasting time in the weeds and want to return to God's adventure. So we might as well turn away from the glamor of choosing our own adventure and seek to find God's adventure. The more time we spend watching the crabgrass grow, the less time we will have to nurture the plants that bear fruit.

This show doesn't last forever.

Since we only have a limited amount of time to tend the garden, we should spend that time on plants that matter. Since we know that this show doesn’t last forever, we should make sure that we make it a good one. Since we know how this show ends, we can put the rest of the story in order so that it leads to the story’s end. And when the show is over, the only thing that matters is how much glory the show gives to the Author and Director of the show. What matters is that we play our role in the show to the best of our ability. We get to stand on the stage God has made and perform in the show He has written. He just wants us to keep moving on stage so He can build the story around us.