Gospel: Matthew 20:1-16
(Jesus told his disciples this
parable) 1 The kingdom of
Heaven is like a landowner going out at daybreak to hire workers for his
vineyard. 2 He made an agreement with the workers for one denarius a day and
sent them to his vineyard. 3 Going out at about the third hour he saw others
standing idle in the market place 4 and said to them, "You go to my
vineyard too and I will give you a fair wage." 5 So they went. At about
the sixth hour and again at about the ninth hour, he went out and did the same.
6 Then at about the eleventh hour he went out and found more men standing
around, and he said to them, "Why have you been standing here idle all
day?" 7 "Because no one has hired us," they answered. He said to
them, "You go into my vineyard too."
8 In the
evening, the owner of the vineyard said to his bailiff, "Call the workers
and pay them their wages, starting with the last arrivals and ending with the
first." 9 So those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came forward
and received one denarius each. 10 When the first came, they expected to get
more, but they too received one denarius each. 11 They took it, but grumbled at
the landowner saying, 12 "The men who came last have done only one hour,
and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day's
work in all the heat." 13 He answered one of them and said, "My
friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? 14 Take
your earnings and go. I choose to pay the lastcomer as much as I pay you. 15
Have I no right to do what I like with my own? Why should you be envious
because I am generous?" 16 Thus the
last will be first, and the first, last.'
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Reflection:
Can we
measure the breadth and width of God’s love for us? No, because God’s love for
us is not bound by any form of measurement. God loves us infinitely no matter
who we are and no matter the sins that we have committed.
The
landowner in our gospel which represents God solicitously invited in so many
instances workers to work in His vineyard. He did not care about the time that
they present themselves for work what was important for God was they respond to
His invitation to work for Him in His vineyard.
The love
of God for us is so immense that He wants us to go to Him irrespective of who we are. He continuously invites us to a new
life with Him. We are precious to God we are dearly loved by God that’s why
His invitation is always there for us, it’s ours to take anytime!
Many of
us may say that we are not anymore worthy of this immense love of God because
of our sinfulness. No, the more sinful we are the more that we become worthy of
this great love of God. We must therefore respond to this invitation of God for us to go to His vineyard so that we could renew our lives and walk away from all of our sinfulness.
Will you
respond to this invitation of God? - Marino J. Dasmarinas
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