Matthew 20

Matthew 20
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
1"For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
3"About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' 5So they went.

"He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?'

7" 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered.
"He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'

8"When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.'

9"The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. 10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.'

13"But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? 14Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

16"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Jesus Again Predicts His Death
17Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, 18"We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death 19and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"
A Mother's Request
20Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.
21"What is it you want?" he asked.
She said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom."

22"You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?"
"We can," they answered.

23Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father."

24When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. 25Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Two Blind Men Receive Sight
29As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. 30Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!"
31The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!"

32Jesus stopped and called them. "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked.

33"Lord," they answered, "we want our sight."

34Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.


*** As a mom I can certainly understand where James & John's mom was coming from. She was all excited about Jesus being the Messiah - finally Israel would have freedom from everyone, especially Rome! I'm sure she had been insisting that James & John ask Jesus what their standing would be in His kingdom and since they had not asked she would! CEO & CFO? Vice Presidents? What would be their job titles after the Messiah ushered in His kingdom?
I have a friend from college who was engaged to be married to this guy from her hometown several years ago. He left his position as the pastor's assistant so I asked what he was going to do for a job. She said, "Something in leadership." Unfortunately, I often speak what's on my mind before thinking how it might sound. So I said, "Is he holding out for management?" (In case you didn't catch the line it is from Nat'l Lampoon's Vacation referring to cousin Eddie.) Anyway, she kept talking about how he liked leadership and felt called to leadership... All this to say, the mom of the sons of Zebedee wanted to know her two boy's future.
Jesus used the opportunity to talk about what we can do besides worrying about the future. We can serve others! Let us trust God for what will come and in the meantime let's serve others. If James and John had known what was to come they might have walked away. Acts 12:1-2 tells us of the death of James. John lived much longer - long after the other 12 had gone on to be with Christ. He also suffered much, including hard labor on the Isle of Patmos as an old man.
Pray for opportunities to serve. And pray your eyes will be opened to see the opportunities! "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself." Matt 6:34 ***