Heaven and Hell: Parable of the Vineyard
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ So the last will be first, and the first last.” -Matthew 20:1-16
If you’re wondering what heaven is going to be like, then you’re not alone - so are we. But the bible gives us a few insights. In this case, Jesus is the one speaking about heaven. He says that the above parable is, at least somewhat, what heaven will be like.
What can we understand about heaven from this parable?
1. First, you have to be invited by Jesus to get in. If the master had not let them in, they could not have gotten there. Jesus is the only way to heaven. Not good works. Not Allah. Not the Hindu pantheon. Not reason. Only Jesus.
2. Second, everyone gets the same reward, no matter how early or late they get in. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been saved for 30 seconds or 30 years, you still get the reward of eternal life.
These are two of things we find out about heaven from this parable. Want to know more about what heaven will be like? Then you’ve GOT to read Matthew 13:24-52.
