3 And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ 5 So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. 6 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?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8 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.’ 9 And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius.
Matthew 20:3–9 (ESV)
Wow. V. 7. “Because no one has hired us.” They say. They are basically blaming the vineyard owner for not hiring them already. But notice, he’s already been out there a couple of times that day, and every time he went, he hired everybody. These dudes weren’t around. They were home asleep or off somewhere else playing.
Seriously.
But when asked “Why aren’t you working?” they blame the most capable, busiest person in the whole story.
Not all parables teach all things, but we already have a glimpse into the character of God. Even when we are lazy and don’t even show up, He pursues us. Even when we blame Him for our reluctance to follow or do anything with Him, He hires us. Even when we aren’t at all in the mood or interested in doing the great work He calls us to do, He keeps coming back to see when we’re ready.
And then He invites us.