The Last Shall Be First

INTRO

In chapter 20, Jesus, the King, instructed His disciples regarding the right attitude for service. In a word, Jesus instructed them to become Christ-like.

TEACHING

Matthew 20:1: began with a parable about a landowner needing workers. The first word “For” connects this parable to the end of chapter 19 and to Peter’s question in verse 27. Jesus continues His response to Peter from Matthew 19:28-30 with this parable. This parable is bracketed with the statement, “the first will be last, and the last first” (Matthew 19:30; 20:16).

Matthew 20:2-7: The harvest needed to be gathered quickly, and these verses express the typical urgency surrounding the harvest. The landowner continued to return to the market to find more workers, promising to pay them “whatever is right.” The workers hired later in the day would have expected to receive considerably less pay than a full day’s wages. In Jesus’ time, the work day was roughly 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and the hours were numbered one through 12.¹That means the third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours were 9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m., and an hour before sunset, or 5 p.m., respectively. The landowner agreed to pay each worker a denarius for a full day’s wage. It’s important that we are careful in our attempts to discern who these full-day workers, or any of the other groups of workers, represented (such as those who have known Christ most of their lives, or have been especially faithful opposite those who are not so faithful).

Matthew 20:8-12: Jewish law mandated laborers had to be paid the same day they worked, and wages were often only ample for that day’s needs (Deuteronomy 24:14-15). When the work day ended, the landowner instructed his foreman to pay the workers, beginning with the last hired and ending with the first hired. Those hired last received a full day’s wage––one denarius. When the workers who had begun at 6 a.m. received one denarius, they complained that they had been paid the same as those who had come much later.

Honest evaluation: How many of us would be happy if we worked all day and someone who worked just the last hour received the same pay that we did? The workers complained that it was not fair that those who came later had been paid the same.

“These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day and in the burning heat!” (v. 12). Their complaint shows both comparison and entitlement, and it’s like Peter’s statement in Matthew 19:27 which basically says “What about us? This isn’t fair.”

Matthew 20:13-16: Myron Augsburger says that “friend” was an expression Jesus used three times in Matthew, and each time, the person addressed was wrong (Matthew 22:12; 26:50).²The NASB version translates verse 15 as, “Or is your eye envious because I am generous?” Jesus used it to show the root of the problem was the workers’ perspective. It was wrong because they had made an agreement for the rate of pay in advance. Wiersbe says, “We should not serve Him because we want to receive an expected reward, and we should not insist on knowing what we will get.”³If we serve Christ only for the benefits (temporal and eternal), then we will miss the best blessings He has for us. Augsburger explains that the points in a parable must support and clarify the primary intent, and they must move to that conclusion: (1) The calling to service is in direct relation to the need; (2) the reward for service is a gracious meeting of our needs; and (3) the integrity of service will respect the integrity of grace in meeting needs equally.⁴

Matthew 20:17-19: Jesus foretold His death and resurrection to His disciples. The title “Son of Man” associates the Messiah with suffering. He would be “mocked, flogged, and crucified” (v. 19). The Greek tense of all three verbs showed that it was an anticipated fact.

Matthew 20:20-28: Wiersbe identifies the “mother of Zebedee’s sons” as Salome.⁵The is that Salome was the one behind the request, promoting her sons. In Mark 10:35-45, the brothers make the request. She asked that her sons would be placed at Jesus’ right and left in His kingdom. They dared to believe the promise Jesus had given about sitting on thrones (Matthew 19:28) so their act was one of faith.⁶While Jesus spoke of a cross, they were interested in a crown and special thrones.

Wiersbe notes several things that were wrong in the request. First, it was born in ignorance, because they didn’t understand what they were asking. James was the first disciple to be martyred, and John would endure hard times on Patmos. Second, it had a lack of heavenly direction, and was based on worldly and selfish thinking, seeking glory for themselves. Third, the request was of the flesh, motived by pride, reminiscent of Satan’s offer to put Jesus on his throne (Matthew 4:8-11). Jesus responded by predicting their martyrdom.⁷The reaction of the other disciples gave Jesus a teachable moment about leading by serving one another.

Salome was at the cross when Jesus was crucified and shared His sorrow and pain. Instead of two thrones on His right and left, she saw two thieves on crosses. It takes an infusion of the Divine heart into the human heart for us to begin to see what the kingdom of God is all about.

Matthew 20:29-34: These verses hold the last compassionate healing before Jesus entered Jerusalem. Jesus demonstrated His expectations to His disciples as He became a servant to two rejected, blind beggars. They asked Him for healing, and they were specific in their request (James 5:13-16).

In our tradition, we anoint and pray for healing until one of the following occurs: (1) They get healed in this life; (2) Jesus returns; or (3) they are healed in heaven. In Jesus Shaped Life, Mike Breen said that if healing does not happen, at least when Jesus returns, He will find us doing what He told us to do. It is a declaration of war! The Messianic significance of this miracle is its fulfillment of Isaiah’s prediction (Isaiah 29:18-19; 35:5-6).

CLOSING

Wiersbe says this chapter contains things that are difficult to receive and to practice:

• If we love the things of this world, we cannot love God supremely.
• If we are not yielded completely to His will, we cannot obey Him unreservedly.
• If we seek glory for ourselves, or if we compare ourselves with other believers, then we cannot glorify Him.

We cannot acknowledge Jesus as our King unless we love Him supremely, obey Him unreservedly, and glorify Him completely. The King instructed His followers then, and now, regarding the right attitude for service. And Jesus is not done–– tomorrow He enters Jerusalem as a King riding on a donkey on the very day the Passover lamb is selected to be sacrificed (Matthew 21).