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Elements of Grace: God’s Grace is Unfair

Pastor Scott Applegate 

Sermon Notes

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ 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.’ The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These 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.’ But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Matthew 20:1-16 NIV

  • Grace is the unmerited and un-earnable favor and forgiveness of God based upon the merits of Jesus Christ
  • Grace is God giving us the power to do what we could never do on our own

How to enjoy the “unfair” grace of God:
1. Be glad God is gracious rather than fair

  • God is not fair, He is good and just
    • The fairness principle is “equal pay for equal work”
    • The kingdom principle is “equal grace for equal need”

2. Be glad God is generous rather than fair

  •  “Unfair” is not the cry of the underpaid, but the ungrateful

3. Be aware of grace envy
“Love…does not envy…” 1 Corinthians 13:4b NIV

  • Don’t envy the perceived blessings of others
  • Don’t second guess God’s forgiveness of others
  • Don’t envy the gifts and talents of others

“In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well…” Romans 12:6 NLT

4. Be optimistic when life seems unfair, because God will get the last word
“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Matthew 20:16 NIV

5. Be grateful for what you have
“Didn’t God give you everything you have? Well, then, how can you boast, as if what you have were not a gift? Do you already have everything you need?” 1 Corinthians 4:7b-8a GNT