So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
The verse closes the parable of a householder who hires laborers early for an agreed penny and again at later hours for what is right, then at evening pays beginning with the last even to those hired about the eleventh hour. Those who worked only one hour receive the same penny as those who bore the burden and heat of twelve hours, so the last are made first and the first last. The reward is not measured by length of service, amount of labor, or human merit, but by God's generous grace and by the faith and love in which the work is done. Those hired first murmur and bargain for more because their eye is evil at His goodness, and by that grasping, self-exalting spirit they become last, while those who trust without bargaining, serve humbly, and welcome others are exalted to be first. Many are called through the day, but few are chosen, for the chosen are those whose faith works by love and purifies the soul rather than those who claim wages for long service while complaining and exalting self.
Parable Story and Wording
The verse closes the story of the kingdom of heaven as a householder who hires laborers into his vineyard early in the morning for an agreed penny a day and again about the third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours with the promise of what is right. At evening he directs his steward to call the laborers and pay them beginning from the last unto the first. Even those hired about the eleventh hour receive every man a penny, the same sum as those hired first, so the last become first and the first become last. The saying that many are called but few chosen belongs to this conclusion.
Those hired first expect more when they see the payment given to the last. They murmur because those who wrought but one hour in the cooler part of the day are made equal to those who bore the burden and heat of the day for twelve hours. The householder answers that he does them no wrong since they agreed with him for a penny. It is lawful for him to do what he will with his own and to give to the last even as to the first. Their complaint shows an evil eye against his goodness, and warns against resenting another's equal reward while judging one's own service superior.
The owner represents God's dealings with the human family. The parable shows how God deals with His servants and the spirit in which they should work for Him. It is part of the parable of the householder and of the vineyard workers. Christ's kingdom follows God's standards and higher ways and thoughts, not human judgments and comparisons.
The parable of Matthew 20:1-16 presents God's free grace. It was given to correct the error taught by the rabbis that God's favor must be earned and the reward of the righteous gained by their own works. The Jews had almost lost sight of this truth of grace and worshiped from a grasping, mercenary spirit. Even Christ's disciples were not wholly free from that error, and the parable presents the right principles to correct it.
The parable presents the world as God's vineyard. The vineyard figure in the Saviour's parables is worth studying.
Reward Measured by Grace
God's gracious reward is not measured by length of service, but by the spirit in which service is given. In the vineyard the last hired receive the same pay as the first, while the first receive no more than their agreed wage. Reward is not determined by how much a person has worked, by amount of labor or visible results, or by human merit, but by the spirit of faith and love brought to the work. God's justice and generosity, not the world's standard or a claim based on labor, determine His treatment of His servants, and His judgment of service differs from human standards. Those who compare their labor with others' or serve for a promised reward may be last in His estimation, while those who trust Him to do what is right may be treated generously.
The householder's generosity overturns expectation of reward based on how long men worked, for workers hired late receive the same wage as those hired early. The last being first and the first last follows the early workers' complaint that they had borne the day's burden while the late workers had not. God's reward is given according to His generous purpose, not in proportion to amount of work or human merit, and those who trust His justice and accept opportunity to serve are rewarded by grace. Those who accept the truth and become workers even at the eleventh hour receive the same wages as those who worked the whole day.
The eleventh-hour workers trusted the householder without bargaining over wages, asked no questions about payment, and worked with love and thankfulness. As sinners who knew their unworthiness they asked only to be accepted, were grateful simply for opportunity to serve, and their faith and spirit of service rather than claims about wages or length of service mark their place among the first. The generous payment surprised them beyond what they expected and filled them with gratitude, illustrating gracious acceptance and compensation of the humble sinner. They were placed first because they trusted the householder's promise and served in faith, and those who worked all day would have remained first if they too had served with love and trust. Christ accepts penitent sinners who come to Him in humble faith even at a late hour and obey His commandments.
Being first called or serving longer gives no right to greater honor or reward, for the first and the last share the same eternal reward given by grace rather than earned as a right. Those first called should gladly welcome the last, since no one is privileged above another and no one has cause to boast or begrudge another's reward. They remain first only if they serve with love and trust, without seeking self-advancement. Those who rely on service and sacrifice, seek preference, and resent God's generosity to others reveal a jealous, complaining spirit that makes them untrustworthy, and those who resent another's reward forget that they themselves are saved by grace.
The equal reward exposes the grasping, mercenary spirit of those who resent God's generosity, and those who complain reveal themselves unworthy of increased wages or the highest place. Those called first must not count their service as more valuable or bargain with God for a stated reward, for the parable exposes the hireling spirit in believers who work for wages they hope to receive. Service in the vineyard is not a claim to a stipulated reward or grounds for resentment when others receive the householder's generosity, and workers who grumble over His treatment of those who came later show that their hearts need changing. The first laborers' selfishness kept them from recognizing the householder's liberality toward the workers hired at the eleventh hour, and those who serve with a hireling spirit — bargaining for a stated reward and judging their work more valuable than later servants' — are last in God's estimation despite being called first. Christ's servants must trust their Master rather than bargain for a fixed reward, for a purified heart sees the householder's action as liberality, not injustice, while those who look for faults in fellow believers and use them as grounds for complaint show that God's goodness has become an occasion for murmuring.
In the kingdom of heaven being first or last is not measured by how much work a person does or by visible results, but by the spirit brought to the work. God accepts and rewards people according to His gracious purpose, not their merit or the amount or visible results of their work, and service should be motivated by love for God and others, not by eagerness for compensation. The Lord Jesus, not other people, measures a worker's service and gives the reward due, and the reward is determined by the spirit and principles governing the work. An earnest desire to glorify God and purity of motive bring the same reward to a faithful worker who accomplishes little as to one who accomplishes more. Workers are honored according to faithfulness, not according to capacity or learning, for God has a place for every believer and uses different gifts in His work, calling for a consecrated spirit without pride in advantages, without expecting esteem or appreciation as a condition of service, and without compromise with self.
Reversal of First and Last
In the parable the laborers hired last are paid first and receive the same penny as those hired first, while those hired first receive no more than the wage they had agreed, so the last become first and the first become last and those who seem last may be placed first and those who seem first may be placed last. The householder does them no wrong because he gives what is his to give to those who agreed to their wage, and their complaint at receiving no more exposes resentment of his generosity and of another's equal reward while judging their own service superior. The reversal overturns expectation of reward based on how long and how heavily one has worked.
At the final judgment human rankings will be overturned, for many whom people place first will be placed last, while some whom people put lowest will be made first. Christ judges each case by what people cannot see, since even the most secret things are open to His sight, and His judgment is not based on human estimation. Those who value their own service highly and selfishly take more than their share may be counted least, while faithful unselfish workers who receive little may be rewarded most highly. Being called to work does not by itself guarantee being among the chosen, for covetousness and selfishness can disqualify a worker from the reward.
Those who humble themselves will be exalted and made first, while those who exalt themselves and seek supremacy will be brought low and made last. Those who count themselves least, lean on God in weakness, walk humbly like children, and serve without pride or concern for measuring reward will be put ahead, while those regarded as first will be put behind. Workers in the vineyard must not exalt themselves or devalue others, but serve in love and true dependence upon God, in unselfish cooperation with Christ, sharing His sympathies and labor and serving with joy. Those who put themselves and being first, live to please themselves, strive to control others and impose their own ideas, or let self-interest hinder God's work will be last and least. Self-pleasing and pride stand in the way of growth and of connection with God, for God cannot work freely through the proud and selfish, and if He worked through them they would claim the glory for themselves, putting human self in control in the character of Satan. God uses all kinds of workers to carry His great work forward, both those given the gift to act as organizers and those who work in retirement feeling little and unknown, with few to recognize their work and none to pity their mistakes or praise their victories, for no one person can fill every place, and in every age He has His workmen and at the needed time makes preparation for a person of talent and gift to come in, showing that He Himself supervises His work.
Ambition that complains of being overlooked reveals unfitness for responsibility, while faithful service in small duties and Christlike humility prepare a person for greater work. Advancement must not be pursued by pulling others down, by dishonesty and fraud, by disparaging associates, or by selfish ambition to be first and stand highest, for people are accountable for the way they use their abilities and will reap what they sow. Service is not valued by the worker's own judgment of its worth or by wages and praise, but by its spirit, and those united with Christ work for Him rather than to exalt themselves and share the joy of working with God. Those who give up trying to be first leave God to place people as He sees fit, because He knows whom people would wrongly elevate. At the near judgment, when every work and every secret motive stands before God in its true bearing, seeking to satisfy unholy selfish ambition, speaking to disparage associates, provoking and envying, will be made last, belonging to Satan and closing heaven and leaving the person humbled by God and without the holy city, while willingness to suffer something for Christ's sake and striving for spirituality, with holy ambition to excel and humbling under God, will be honored and lifted up by the Lord and rewarded according to works.
Long service and hardship do not entitle anyone to a greater reward or earn salvation, for eternal life is God's gift and time and abilities are entrusted by Him for service, so reward must not be treated selfishly as something earned by the amount of work done. Those first called who trusted their years of labor to earn more yet showed faultfinding, jealousy, and an unpurified, unchristlike, untrustworthy spirit are made last, while those who served less may receive the same generous gift. This is a warning against self-righteousness and the mistaken belief, seen in reliance on years of service as a claim to greater reward, that work earns salvation and a place in heaven. The men first called represent those who will not work without the wages they themselves stipulate, and at the close of the day they are made last, fixing their own destiny by their spirit of service, whereas every true self-sacrificing faithful worker who denies self, takes up the cross daily and follows Christ is accompanied by God's angels and enters the divine plan to be instructed and guided. Faithful service in every kind of work, done willingly and for God's glory without pride or concern for measuring reward, is honored by Christ, who will welcome and serve His loyal children at His table.
Many Called Few Chosen
The saying that many are called but few are chosen stands as the conclusion of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard.
The invitation to work goes out through the whole day, yet to accept it in name is not enough to be among the chosen. The chosen are those whose faith works through love and purifies the soul. They work for Christ rather than to exalt themselves, keeping self hidden with Him and sharing the joy of working with God. Those who demand large wages for long service while complaining and exalting themselves show that they have no living connection with God, and by self-exaltation those who might have been first become last.
The parable gives no excuse for hearing truth and refusing to obey it, nor for refusing the first call because obedience would be inconvenient. The laborers called later had not been present when the householder first hired, and therefore had not refused that earlier call. Those who have refused and afterward repent do well to repent, but it is unsafe to trifle with the first call of mercy, for God will not be trifled with.
Many young men are called to be earnest, persevering laborers in warning sinners and winning souls, consecrating themselves unreservedly, exercising for God the mental powers they use in serving self and acquiring property, and studying the Scriptures to become intelligent in the things of the kingdom. Yet few are chosen because few do that acceptable work, most remaining wise in worldly and temporal things but not intelligent in spiritual knowledge, so that there are but few soul-winners where there should be many. People are called to take up burdens and responsibilities, but few respond when the service does not advance worldly interests, and gifts grow only through use. To be called to work does not guarantee to be among the chosen, since covetousness and selfishness can disqualify a worker from the reward. Those truly called bear the burden and labor to spread the message in new fields, while not everyone who can assist is called to serve wholly or to travel extensively as a chosen servant.
End-Time Fulfilment Foretold
The saying applies to the Jews, who were called first but became proud of their service, relied on years of service and hardship as a claim to greater honor and reward, and resented the Gentiles receiving equal privileges in God's kingdom. Being first called or serving longer gives no right to greater reward, and those who rely on service and sacrifice, seek preference, and show a jealous, complaining, unchristlike spirit reveal themselves as untrustworthy and make themselves last. They would remain first only by serving with love and trust without seeking self-advancement, for the warning guards against self-righteousness and the belief that human effort earns a place in heaven. The dying thief is represented by the eleventh-hour laborers who receive as much reward as those who labored many hours. At the last of Christ's work, at deepest midnight, the faith of a dying sinner laying hold upon a dying Saviour obtains full reward by asking in faith, patience, contrition, and earnestness, fully realizing Jesus can save, with hope mingled with anguish at being eternally lost without Him, casting the helpless soul and body on Christ.
The eleventh-hour laborers who receive their penny are many souls still to come out of the world and out of the churches, even the Catholic church. When the crisis and season of calamity comes over the law of God and religious liberty, they will come to the front, see the battle coming, give the trumpet a certain sound, gird themselves with the whole armor of God, exalt the law, hold the faith of Jesus, and maintain religious liberty. Their zeal will far exceed that of those who stood in rank and file to proclaim the truth heretofore, yet they receive the same penny. The parable of calling laborers at different hours applies with particular force near the close of earth's history, when Christ continues to call people to work in His vineyard. In the perils of the last day men and women will still be brought in late at the eleventh hour, and if earnest the Lord will accept them and work through them, enlarging their minds by higher education as they put on Christ so they give heavenly truth to others who in turn help and educate others, extending the work and blessing whole communities as each does his part with humble mind using all talents.
People who receive gospel light and opportunities but turn away from Christ may lose their place and have their crown taken, while others with fewer opportunities respond faithfully, consecrate abilities and means, and are brought in to occupy the vacant places. Those who enter the work at the eleventh hour may through grace be accounted first, receiving the reward because faithful to principle and duty. Workers who enter at the eleventh hour can remain faithful and receive their reward when others leave through apostasy or failure to be fitted for service. The reversal of last and first applies to the resurrection, when those subject to mortality and the tomb become first in the everlasting life to come. Even at the very late eleventh hour it is not too late to learn to believe Christ has forgiven sins and to have wrongs made right, learning the joy of calling and praising God here as the beginning of the shout of triumph when captivity is turned and mourning and tears are past and every root of bitterness is killed by the Holy Spirit never to bud again.
Call to Labor Earnestly
Every Christian in the full sense, every church member and every accountable person, has appointed work in the Lord's vineyard and must be a worker there, warning the world and laboring zealously, self-sacrificingly, earnestly and perseveringly for the salvation of others, with no idlers left unemployed. That labor is presenting truth to those in darkness for the salvation of fellow men, to be done in unison with God and angels and heavenly messengers who are moving on hearts and consciences in other nations, instead of sleeping while honest souls troubled by the signs of the times and the unsettled state of the nations ask what the end of these things will be. It follows the Saviour's example of self-denial, sacrifice, and faithful earnest labor, is not to be chosen for personal enjoyment or gain, but is to be done wherever needed to the fullest ability, as fellow laborers with God whose self-sacrificing work outside regular lines can win souls. The heaviest obligation rests on those with greatest means and opportunity, for today is a day of trust and opportunity before a coming reckoning, and each is responsible in proportion to entrusted talents, since God does not require what was not given but expects interest, and the smaller vessel is not expected to hold as much as the larger.
The vineyard call sends workers to new fields through personal effort rather than concentrating on churches that already have much light and many advantages. The Master calls laborers to enter the cities and work with God to win souls, and those who have delayed must redeem the time and respond wholeheartedly to that call. Those trained to share truth among foreigners are to begin promptly and persevere, and God will reward their work with souls. The destitute Southern field is to be worked and the way prepared even by going directly to the people when those in responsibility neglect appeals, home service in helping and instructing younger children is valuable service and not inferior to attending higher schools, and the vineyard includes missionary letter-writing to friends and strangers, distributing tracts and papers to neighbors, and mailing literature to willing readers, all done with humble heart connected with God, with prayer before approaching others, without seeking self-exaltation but presenting truth in simplicity.
Men last hired from the marketplace become first workers, so ministers must apportion parts of the vineyard to idle men, let them start even if they blunder, correct mistakes and set them to work again rather than hinder them, for ability is learned by using ability in trading upon talents. Those who improve talents where they are while walking in the light will be blessed with teachers sent of God and with heavenly intelligences cooperating, without needing to journey to a central place for education, and they will do good work as missionaries in dark parts of the earth and in home work in large cities, towns, highways and hedges, calling and bidding men to come to the marriage supper because all things are now ready. Christ sees qualifications in people whom others overlook, doubt, or find discouraging, and as they learn and receive the Spirit's power He fits them for work suited to their abilities and prepares them to serve in His vineyard. Entering the ministry is labor in that vineyard for which God accepts men of real ability, who owe Him cultivation and improvement of entrusted talents by education that disciplines the mind, develops its powers and directs them to advance His glory, including common branches, present truth and lectures upon the prophecies, so that even a few months' instruction greatly benefits able men called to the ministry, while God also uses organizers and retired unknown workers who feel little and unknown with few to recognize their work, trains worthy youth, and prepares humble beginners who keep learning, since no one person can fill every place and He Himself supervises His work.
Whole-hearted labor means working to the utmost without setting the highest estimate on one's services, refusing pride and exact measurement of every hour, and counting efforts as those of unprofitable servants compared with the Saviour's work. True workers are marked by humility, faith, energy, perseverance, decision, prayer, self-denial and consecration that centers hopes and affections in God, and their lives show the power of the truth they share. Each member of Christ's household has a task and all who profess Christ should work, persevering in seeking greater usefulness since daily effort increases ability to labor effectively and bear fruit to God's glory, using abilities diligently and faithfully while families help prepare character for the higher life. The vineyard reward belongs to those who faithfully do the appointed work and not to those who merely wait or loiter, for grace does not remove the need for human effort, and the fruit borne reveals the character of the work. Such faithful work gives energy, efficiency, respect and good influence and finds reward in knowing one does right and in joy when labor ends, while perverting abilities for selfish gain makes one selfish, penurious, overbearing and harmful.
Stewardship of the vineyard requires making Christian books available widely even at low prices so their light can reach more people, alongside the lesson that the last hired receive the same wage as those who worked all day and the first and last exchange places. God's claims on entrusted means come first, for being an heir or child does not entitle one to them, and parents should put surplus wealth to work advancing His cause while alive rather than assuming a will is enough, which brings satisfaction now and reward hereafter. Resources and care are not to be concentrated selfishly in one place like Battle Creek but shared equitably so other parts of the vineyard receive what they need, for those truly converted care equally about God's work everywhere and help wherever help is needed rather than seeking advantage for interests they oversee. God is ruler, counselor, guardian, confidence and power over every part of His vineyard, with men in all places whom He teaches, leads and guides, so burdens are to be divided and planted in many places under His rule to make the light far-reaching, without binding all to one center by human contracts or having institutions attach others to themselves and carry burdens He has not given. Dealings are to be fair on right principles by not cutting pay without consent and understanding, conducting arrangements as sacred transactions with open dealing when means are short, and avoiding the evil of high wages and desire for more that spoils spirituality by examples of self-denial.
Those beginning new work are not to act as an independent whole but to receive help from workers with experience in both failure and success. All, high and influential as well as lowly, have a part to act and can work in perfect harmony without being bound with human cords to one great center and power.
The verse closes the parable of a householder who hires laborers early for an agreed penny and again at later hours for what is right, then at evening pays beginning with the last even to those hired about the eleventh hour. Those who worked only one hour receive the same penny as those who bore the burden and heat of twelve hours, so the last are made first and the first last. The reward is not measured by length of service, amount of labor, or human merit, but by God's generous grace and by the faith and love in which the work is done. Those hired first murmur and bargain for more because their eye is evil at His goodness, and by that grasping, self-exalting spirit they become last, while those who trust without bargaining, serve humbly, and welcome others are exalted to be first. Many are called through the day, but few are chosen, for the chosen are those whose faith works by love and purifies the soul rather than those who claim wages for long service while complaining and exalting self.
Parable Story and Wording
The verse closes the story of the kingdom of heaven as a householder who hires laborers into his vineyard early in the morning for an agreed penny a day and again about the third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours with the promise of what is right. At evening he directs his steward to call the laborers and pay them beginning from the last unto the first. Even those hired about the eleventh hour receive every man a penny, the same sum as those hired first, so the last become first and the first become last. The saying that many are called but few chosen belongs to this conclusion.
Those hired first expect more when they see the payment given to the last. They murmur because those who wrought but one hour in the cooler part of the day are made equal to those who bore the burden and heat of the day for twelve hours. The householder answers that he does them no wrong since they agreed with him for a penny. It is lawful for him to do what he will with his own and to give to the last even as to the first. Their complaint shows an evil eye against his goodness, and warns against resenting another's equal reward while judging one's own service superior.
The owner represents God's dealings with the human family. The parable shows how God deals with His servants and the spirit in which they should work for Him. It is part of the parable of the householder and of the vineyard workers. Christ's kingdom follows God's standards and higher ways and thoughts, not human judgments and comparisons.
The parable of Matthew 20:1-16 presents God's free grace. It was given to correct the error taught by the rabbis that God's favor must be earned and the reward of the righteous gained by their own works. The Jews had almost lost sight of this truth of grace and worshiped from a grasping, mercenary spirit. Even Christ's disciples were not wholly free from that error, and the parable presents the right principles to correct it.
The parable presents the world as God's vineyard. The vineyard figure in the Saviour's parables is worth studying.
Reward Measured by Grace
God's gracious reward is not measured by length of service, but by the spirit in which service is given. In the vineyard the last hired receive the same pay as the first, while the first receive no more than their agreed wage. Reward is not determined by how much a person has worked, by amount of labor or visible results, or by human merit, but by the spirit of faith and love brought to the work. God's justice and generosity, not the world's standard or a claim based on labor, determine His treatment of His servants, and His judgment of service differs from human standards. Those who compare their labor with others' or serve for a promised reward may be last in His estimation, while those who trust Him to do what is right may be treated generously.
The householder's generosity overturns expectation of reward based on how long men worked, for workers hired late receive the same wage as those hired early. The last being first and the first last follows the early workers' complaint that they had borne the day's burden while the late workers had not. God's reward is given according to His generous purpose, not in proportion to amount of work or human merit, and those who trust His justice and accept opportunity to serve are rewarded by grace. Those who accept the truth and become workers even at the eleventh hour receive the same wages as those who worked the whole day.
The eleventh-hour workers trusted the householder without bargaining over wages, asked no questions about payment, and worked with love and thankfulness. As sinners who knew their unworthiness they asked only to be accepted, were grateful simply for opportunity to serve, and their faith and spirit of service rather than claims about wages or length of service mark their place among the first. The generous payment surprised them beyond what they expected and filled them with gratitude, illustrating gracious acceptance and compensation of the humble sinner. They were placed first because they trusted the householder's promise and served in faith, and those who worked all day would have remained first if they too had served with love and trust. Christ accepts penitent sinners who come to Him in humble faith even at a late hour and obey His commandments.
Being first called or serving longer gives no right to greater honor or reward, for the first and the last share the same eternal reward given by grace rather than earned as a right. Those first called should gladly welcome the last, since no one is privileged above another and no one has cause to boast or begrudge another's reward. They remain first only if they serve with love and trust, without seeking self-advancement. Those who rely on service and sacrifice, seek preference, and resent God's generosity to others reveal a jealous, complaining spirit that makes them untrustworthy, and those who resent another's reward forget that they themselves are saved by grace.
The equal reward exposes the grasping, mercenary spirit of those who resent God's generosity, and those who complain reveal themselves unworthy of increased wages or the highest place. Those called first must not count their service as more valuable or bargain with God for a stated reward, for the parable exposes the hireling spirit in believers who work for wages they hope to receive. Service in the vineyard is not a claim to a stipulated reward or grounds for resentment when others receive the householder's generosity, and workers who grumble over His treatment of those who came later show that their hearts need changing. The first laborers' selfishness kept them from recognizing the householder's liberality toward the workers hired at the eleventh hour, and those who serve with a hireling spirit — bargaining for a stated reward and judging their work more valuable than later servants' — are last in God's estimation despite being called first. Christ's servants must trust their Master rather than bargain for a fixed reward, for a purified heart sees the householder's action as liberality, not injustice, while those who look for faults in fellow believers and use them as grounds for complaint show that God's goodness has become an occasion for murmuring.
In the kingdom of heaven being first or last is not measured by how much work a person does or by visible results, but by the spirit brought to the work. God accepts and rewards people according to His gracious purpose, not their merit or the amount or visible results of their work, and service should be motivated by love for God and others, not by eagerness for compensation. The Lord Jesus, not other people, measures a worker's service and gives the reward due, and the reward is determined by the spirit and principles governing the work. An earnest desire to glorify God and purity of motive bring the same reward to a faithful worker who accomplishes little as to one who accomplishes more. Workers are honored according to faithfulness, not according to capacity or learning, for God has a place for every believer and uses different gifts in His work, calling for a consecrated spirit without pride in advantages, without expecting esteem or appreciation as a condition of service, and without compromise with self.
Reversal of First and Last
In the parable the laborers hired last are paid first and receive the same penny as those hired first, while those hired first receive no more than the wage they had agreed, so the last become first and the first become last and those who seem last may be placed first and those who seem first may be placed last. The householder does them no wrong because he gives what is his to give to those who agreed to their wage, and their complaint at receiving no more exposes resentment of his generosity and of another's equal reward while judging their own service superior. The reversal overturns expectation of reward based on how long and how heavily one has worked.
At the final judgment human rankings will be overturned, for many whom people place first will be placed last, while some whom people put lowest will be made first. Christ judges each case by what people cannot see, since even the most secret things are open to His sight, and His judgment is not based on human estimation. Those who value their own service highly and selfishly take more than their share may be counted least, while faithful unselfish workers who receive little may be rewarded most highly. Being called to work does not by itself guarantee being among the chosen, for covetousness and selfishness can disqualify a worker from the reward.
Those who humble themselves will be exalted and made first, while those who exalt themselves and seek supremacy will be brought low and made last. Those who count themselves least, lean on God in weakness, walk humbly like children, and serve without pride or concern for measuring reward will be put ahead, while those regarded as first will be put behind. Workers in the vineyard must not exalt themselves or devalue others, but serve in love and true dependence upon God, in unselfish cooperation with Christ, sharing His sympathies and labor and serving with joy. Those who put themselves and being first, live to please themselves, strive to control others and impose their own ideas, or let self-interest hinder God's work will be last and least. Self-pleasing and pride stand in the way of growth and of connection with God, for God cannot work freely through the proud and selfish, and if He worked through them they would claim the glory for themselves, putting human self in control in the character of Satan. God uses all kinds of workers to carry His great work forward, both those given the gift to act as organizers and those who work in retirement feeling little and unknown, with few to recognize their work and none to pity their mistakes or praise their victories, for no one person can fill every place, and in every age He has His workmen and at the needed time makes preparation for a person of talent and gift to come in, showing that He Himself supervises His work.
Ambition that complains of being overlooked reveals unfitness for responsibility, while faithful service in small duties and Christlike humility prepare a person for greater work. Advancement must not be pursued by pulling others down, by dishonesty and fraud, by disparaging associates, or by selfish ambition to be first and stand highest, for people are accountable for the way they use their abilities and will reap what they sow. Service is not valued by the worker's own judgment of its worth or by wages and praise, but by its spirit, and those united with Christ work for Him rather than to exalt themselves and share the joy of working with God. Those who give up trying to be first leave God to place people as He sees fit, because He knows whom people would wrongly elevate. At the near judgment, when every work and every secret motive stands before God in its true bearing, seeking to satisfy unholy selfish ambition, speaking to disparage associates, provoking and envying, will be made last, belonging to Satan and closing heaven and leaving the person humbled by God and without the holy city, while willingness to suffer something for Christ's sake and striving for spirituality, with holy ambition to excel and humbling under God, will be honored and lifted up by the Lord and rewarded according to works.
Long service and hardship do not entitle anyone to a greater reward or earn salvation, for eternal life is God's gift and time and abilities are entrusted by Him for service, so reward must not be treated selfishly as something earned by the amount of work done. Those first called who trusted their years of labor to earn more yet showed faultfinding, jealousy, and an unpurified, unchristlike, untrustworthy spirit are made last, while those who served less may receive the same generous gift. This is a warning against self-righteousness and the mistaken belief, seen in reliance on years of service as a claim to greater reward, that work earns salvation and a place in heaven. The men first called represent those who will not work without the wages they themselves stipulate, and at the close of the day they are made last, fixing their own destiny by their spirit of service, whereas every true self-sacrificing faithful worker who denies self, takes up the cross daily and follows Christ is accompanied by God's angels and enters the divine plan to be instructed and guided. Faithful service in every kind of work, done willingly and for God's glory without pride or concern for measuring reward, is honored by Christ, who will welcome and serve His loyal children at His table.
Many Called Few Chosen
The saying that many are called but few are chosen stands as the conclusion of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard.
The invitation to work goes out through the whole day, yet to accept it in name is not enough to be among the chosen. The chosen are those whose faith works through love and purifies the soul. They work for Christ rather than to exalt themselves, keeping self hidden with Him and sharing the joy of working with God. Those who demand large wages for long service while complaining and exalting themselves show that they have no living connection with God, and by self-exaltation those who might have been first become last.
The parable gives no excuse for hearing truth and refusing to obey it, nor for refusing the first call because obedience would be inconvenient. The laborers called later had not been present when the householder first hired, and therefore had not refused that earlier call. Those who have refused and afterward repent do well to repent, but it is unsafe to trifle with the first call of mercy, for God will not be trifled with.
Many young men are called to be earnest, persevering laborers in warning sinners and winning souls, consecrating themselves unreservedly, exercising for God the mental powers they use in serving self and acquiring property, and studying the Scriptures to become intelligent in the things of the kingdom. Yet few are chosen because few do that acceptable work, most remaining wise in worldly and temporal things but not intelligent in spiritual knowledge, so that there are but few soul-winners where there should be many. People are called to take up burdens and responsibilities, but few respond when the service does not advance worldly interests, and gifts grow only through use. To be called to work does not guarantee to be among the chosen, since covetousness and selfishness can disqualify a worker from the reward. Those truly called bear the burden and labor to spread the message in new fields, while not everyone who can assist is called to serve wholly or to travel extensively as a chosen servant.
End-Time Fulfilment Foretold
The saying applies to the Jews, who were called first but became proud of their service, relied on years of service and hardship as a claim to greater honor and reward, and resented the Gentiles receiving equal privileges in God's kingdom. Being first called or serving longer gives no right to greater reward, and those who rely on service and sacrifice, seek preference, and show a jealous, complaining, unchristlike spirit reveal themselves as untrustworthy and make themselves last. They would remain first only by serving with love and trust without seeking self-advancement, for the warning guards against self-righteousness and the belief that human effort earns a place in heaven. The dying thief is represented by the eleventh-hour laborers who receive as much reward as those who labored many hours. At the last of Christ's work, at deepest midnight, the faith of a dying sinner laying hold upon a dying Saviour obtains full reward by asking in faith, patience, contrition, and earnestness, fully realizing Jesus can save, with hope mingled with anguish at being eternally lost without Him, casting the helpless soul and body on Christ.
The eleventh-hour laborers who receive their penny are many souls still to come out of the world and out of the churches, even the Catholic church. When the crisis and season of calamity comes over the law of God and religious liberty, they will come to the front, see the battle coming, give the trumpet a certain sound, gird themselves with the whole armor of God, exalt the law, hold the faith of Jesus, and maintain religious liberty. Their zeal will far exceed that of those who stood in rank and file to proclaim the truth heretofore, yet they receive the same penny. The parable of calling laborers at different hours applies with particular force near the close of earth's history, when Christ continues to call people to work in His vineyard. In the perils of the last day men and women will still be brought in late at the eleventh hour, and if earnest the Lord will accept them and work through them, enlarging their minds by higher education as they put on Christ so they give heavenly truth to others who in turn help and educate others, extending the work and blessing whole communities as each does his part with humble mind using all talents.
People who receive gospel light and opportunities but turn away from Christ may lose their place and have their crown taken, while others with fewer opportunities respond faithfully, consecrate abilities and means, and are brought in to occupy the vacant places. Those who enter the work at the eleventh hour may through grace be accounted first, receiving the reward because faithful to principle and duty. Workers who enter at the eleventh hour can remain faithful and receive their reward when others leave through apostasy or failure to be fitted for service. The reversal of last and first applies to the resurrection, when those subject to mortality and the tomb become first in the everlasting life to come. Even at the very late eleventh hour it is not too late to learn to believe Christ has forgiven sins and to have wrongs made right, learning the joy of calling and praising God here as the beginning of the shout of triumph when captivity is turned and mourning and tears are past and every root of bitterness is killed by the Holy Spirit never to bud again.
Call to Labor Earnestly
Every Christian in the full sense, every church member and every accountable person, has appointed work in the Lord's vineyard and must be a worker there, warning the world and laboring zealously, self-sacrificingly, earnestly and perseveringly for the salvation of others, with no idlers left unemployed. That labor is presenting truth to those in darkness for the salvation of fellow men, to be done in unison with God and angels and heavenly messengers who are moving on hearts and consciences in other nations, instead of sleeping while honest souls troubled by the signs of the times and the unsettled state of the nations ask what the end of these things will be. It follows the Saviour's example of self-denial, sacrifice, and faithful earnest labor, is not to be chosen for personal enjoyment or gain, but is to be done wherever needed to the fullest ability, as fellow laborers with God whose self-sacrificing work outside regular lines can win souls. The heaviest obligation rests on those with greatest means and opportunity, for today is a day of trust and opportunity before a coming reckoning, and each is responsible in proportion to entrusted talents, since God does not require what was not given but expects interest, and the smaller vessel is not expected to hold as much as the larger.
The vineyard call sends workers to new fields through personal effort rather than concentrating on churches that already have much light and many advantages. The Master calls laborers to enter the cities and work with God to win souls, and those who have delayed must redeem the time and respond wholeheartedly to that call. Those trained to share truth among foreigners are to begin promptly and persevere, and God will reward their work with souls. The destitute Southern field is to be worked and the way prepared even by going directly to the people when those in responsibility neglect appeals, home service in helping and instructing younger children is valuable service and not inferior to attending higher schools, and the vineyard includes missionary letter-writing to friends and strangers, distributing tracts and papers to neighbors, and mailing literature to willing readers, all done with humble heart connected with God, with prayer before approaching others, without seeking self-exaltation but presenting truth in simplicity.
Men last hired from the marketplace become first workers, so ministers must apportion parts of the vineyard to idle men, let them start even if they blunder, correct mistakes and set them to work again rather than hinder them, for ability is learned by using ability in trading upon talents. Those who improve talents where they are while walking in the light will be blessed with teachers sent of God and with heavenly intelligences cooperating, without needing to journey to a central place for education, and they will do good work as missionaries in dark parts of the earth and in home work in large cities, towns, highways and hedges, calling and bidding men to come to the marriage supper because all things are now ready. Christ sees qualifications in people whom others overlook, doubt, or find discouraging, and as they learn and receive the Spirit's power He fits them for work suited to their abilities and prepares them to serve in His vineyard. Entering the ministry is labor in that vineyard for which God accepts men of real ability, who owe Him cultivation and improvement of entrusted talents by education that disciplines the mind, develops its powers and directs them to advance His glory, including common branches, present truth and lectures upon the prophecies, so that even a few months' instruction greatly benefits able men called to the ministry, while God also uses organizers and retired unknown workers who feel little and unknown with few to recognize their work, trains worthy youth, and prepares humble beginners who keep learning, since no one person can fill every place and He Himself supervises His work.
Whole-hearted labor means working to the utmost without setting the highest estimate on one's services, refusing pride and exact measurement of every hour, and counting efforts as those of unprofitable servants compared with the Saviour's work. True workers are marked by humility, faith, energy, perseverance, decision, prayer, self-denial and consecration that centers hopes and affections in God, and their lives show the power of the truth they share. Each member of Christ's household has a task and all who profess Christ should work, persevering in seeking greater usefulness since daily effort increases ability to labor effectively and bear fruit to God's glory, using abilities diligently and faithfully while families help prepare character for the higher life. The vineyard reward belongs to those who faithfully do the appointed work and not to those who merely wait or loiter, for grace does not remove the need for human effort, and the fruit borne reveals the character of the work. Such faithful work gives energy, efficiency, respect and good influence and finds reward in knowing one does right and in joy when labor ends, while perverting abilities for selfish gain makes one selfish, penurious, overbearing and harmful.
Stewardship of the vineyard requires making Christian books available widely even at low prices so their light can reach more people, alongside the lesson that the last hired receive the same wage as those who worked all day and the first and last exchange places. God's claims on entrusted means come first, for being an heir or child does not entitle one to them, and parents should put surplus wealth to work advancing His cause while alive rather than assuming a will is enough, which brings satisfaction now and reward hereafter. Resources and care are not to be concentrated selfishly in one place like Battle Creek but shared equitably so other parts of the vineyard receive what they need, for those truly converted care equally about God's work everywhere and help wherever help is needed rather than seeking advantage for interests they oversee. God is ruler, counselor, guardian, confidence and power over every part of His vineyard, with men in all places whom He teaches, leads and guides, so burdens are to be divided and planted in many places under His rule to make the light far-reaching, without binding all to one center by human contracts or having institutions attach others to themselves and carry burdens He has not given. Dealings are to be fair on right principles by not cutting pay without consent and understanding, conducting arrangements as sacred transactions with open dealing when means are short, and avoiding the evil of high wages and desire for more that spoils spirituality by examples of self-denial.
Those beginning new work are not to act as an independent whole but to receive help from workers with experience in both failure and success. All, high and influential as well as lowly, have a part to act and can work in perfect harmony without being bound with human cords to one great center and power.