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Announcements

Annual Back to School Prayer Walk
August 12th @ 9:00a
The Bridge Church Reno
Please consider joining us on the morning of August 12th at 9am.  We will send teams of 2-4 people out to several school campuses in our area to pray.  We will pray for the students, teachers, and administrators for the upcoming 2023-2024 school year.  This is a great opportunity to come together as a church and ask God to provide safety, wisdom, and his leading for the upcoming school year.
 
Young Adults Small Group Interest Meeting
August 13th @ 11:45a
The Bridge Church Reno - Learning Center
We are interested in starting a young adults small group this fall, so if you are between the ages of 18 and 30 we would love for you to join us for an interest meeting.  We will discuss what days and times work best for everyone to meet weekly for studying God’s word and having fun and fellowship together.’’
 
Worship and Tech Team Volunteers
The Bridge Church Reno
The Bridge Church Worship and Tech team is looking for musicians, and vocalists.  As well as people interested in running tech equipment behind the scenes.  If you or someone you know is interested, please use the connection card to let us know.  We will be in touch with you about these opportunites. https://thebridgereno.com/connect  

Message Notes

Workers in the Vineyard

August 6, 2023

Scripture for this morning: Matthew 20:1-15

Jesus is comparing two things.

This is a parable.  And the word para means alongside.  So he is placing two things alongside each other.

The comparison is the kingdom of heaven and workers or “day laborers” for a vineyard. Farming was very prevalent in that culture and area so everyone would understand this easily.

The landowner goes out several times looking for people to work in his vineyard.  Because God The Father is always seeking out more people to be in his kingdom.

He gets to the last part of the day and he is still willing to hire more people. He finds people that are still looking to work and he chooses them.  Even though they have not been hired by anyone else.  Most likely because they are not the strongest fastest workers.

God is calling you to be part of His kingdom.  Don't let your response be “but I don't have anything to offer, I have made too many mistakes in the past, I am in the middle of an addiction.” That's not what God is asking. He goes into the marketplace at the end of the day to the lost and forgotten, to the picked over, to the misused, the abused, the failures, he's going to the burnouts and dropouts and he's giving them a chance. And he says go and work in my vineyard, be a part of my kingdom.

The landowner tells his foreman to pay everyone.  But start with the workers who were hired last. He pays ALL the workers a days wage.

Was it fair for the landowner to pay the last workers a denarius for one hour of work? Well I guess that depends on who you are in the story. If you're the person that only worked for an hour it's more than fair, in fact it's extremely generous. If you're the person who worked 12 hours through the heat of the day well then it doesn't seem fair.

Three things we can learn from this parable:
  1. The message of the gospel is for everyone.  The landowner sought out workers over and over again. And he didn’t just take the strong ones.  He took everyone.  Just like God the Father who offers his son Jesus for salvation to everyone.

  2. God is always fair. God cannot do wrong. He cannot make a mistake, therefore he is always fair.  No matter what he does that we don’t like he is still fair.  Psalm 24 verse one says the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. That's it. He owns it all, it is all his and he can do whatever he wants with it. But what is it exactly that he wants to do with it? He could keep it all to himself he could have it all for himself and that would be right and just and fair. But what does he do with it? At the end of the day when he pays the workers, what does he do? He gives it away. He shares it. Even with those that don't deserve it.

  3. God gives out of need not greed. God is extremely generous in providing exactly what we need. The landowner (God) knew that all these workers needed money, so he paid them according to their need rather than greed. No one received less than he deserved, but all received what they needed for themselves and their families. All those workers went into the marketplace that morning hoping to make a day's wage to provide for their families and that's just what the landowner provided to each one, a day's pay, exactly what they needed.
Previous Messages Can Be Found Here

Small Groups Talk About It

Watch the latest Message Summary:

Discussion Questions:
  1. Have you ever worked a job and never got paid for it?  Or have you ever worked a job and got paid way more than you were expecting?  Share those stories.
  2. Who is the most generous person you know.  Explain what they did/do to have the reputation with you.
  3. Read Matthew 20:1-15. What two things is Jesus comparing?  Why does the landowner go to find more workers several times? What does this teach us about the kingdom of god?
  4. How did the landowner interact with the last group of workers? What agreement did they come to when it came to them working in the vineyard? What was the difference in the agreement for pay between all the groups?
  5. Why do you think the landowner paid the last group first? What principles can we learn from the fact that they were all paid equally? Did they all deserve equal pay?
  6. Do you believe that God treats everyone fairly? Why or why not? Has God always treated you fairly?
  7. What does this parable teach us about God?  What does it teach us about man?
  8. Read Matthew 20:16. In light of the parable what do you think Jesus was trying to teach the people with this statement.
Previous Messages Can Be Found Here