One of my favorite parables is that of the vineyard workers (Matthew 20:1-16), as it provides a great lesson on faithfulness. In it, Jesus tells how a landowner goes to the marketplace early in the morning and hires several workers, agreeing to pay them a denarius for the day’s work. The landowner goes back to the marketplace three times throughout the day, and a last time at 5:00pm to hire additional workers.
His only promise of wages to any of those was he would pay them “whatever is right.” At 6:00 he instructs his agent to call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last hired and moving backwards to the first. Those hired last received a denarius, so when those hired first came to collect their wages, they were thinking they would get more. However, they also received a denarius.
Those who worked the longest grumbled against the landowner, saying it wasn’t fair. They had worked harder and longer than everyone else. In fact, those hired last spent less than an hour in the fields. In this lesson we learn about the economy of Heaven. These men were told up front what the reward would be for their toil (one denarius). They received what was promised, and what they had every right to expect. They thought working longer would result in greater rewards, and this is often true in the economy of this world. But things don’t work like that within the holy halls of Heaven.
What we learn from this parable is that it isn’t about how hard or how long you work for the Kingdom that matters to God. What matters to Him is your faithfulness in what He gives you to do (1 Corinthians 4:2). Some get big, visible jobs to do in the Kingdom, and others will receive small and what seem to be insignificant assignments (Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 3:5-9). It’s not the size or prestige of the task that matters; it’s the faithfulness with which we work (Luke 16:10).
You can have the biggest platform, financial blessings, or even great respect for your belief in Christ, but if you aren’t faithful to what He calls you to do, you’ll end up last in line (Matthew 20:16). What matters to God is how you serve Him in the place you are and with the gifts at your disposal (Colossians 3:23-24). Your role may be to stand fast at work or school when everyone else is embracing things contrary to God’s Word (1 Corinthians 16:13). You may never have a greater mission than that. There’s no shame if that’s the case. Every effort for God is monumental in His sight, and He will reward you according to your faithfulness (2 Corinthians 5:10).
Some serve Christ for decades; others accept Him a week (or less) before they die (Luke 23:42-43). How long we serve is not the point. It’s about how faithful we are to Jesus in the time we have (Ephesians 5:15-16). Every moment is a test of our faithfulness. We will serve Jesus, or we will satisfy our selfish lusts and desires (Galatians 5:16-17). No matter how big or small your sphere of influence is, the call for each of us is the same: be faithful in what God gives you to do (Matthew 25:21). We know God is faithful in all things (1 Corinthians 1:9; 2 Timothy 2:13). The question is, how great is your faithfulness to Him?