You are saved by grace through faith, and not by your works.
Did you hear about the Lutheran pastor who died and went to heaven? He got a Chevy Impala from Saint Peter. Most people have to walk in heaven, but because he served so faithfully on Earth, he gets a perk in heaven, a car! Well this was great until the next day he saw the Catholic priest, Father O’Malley driving a Mercedes Benz. Well this isn’t fair, he thought. So St. Peter explained that the priest didn’t have the joy of being married or having a family of his own, so he gets an extra perk. This was okay until the next day the pastor saw a Lamborghini driving very fast. He did see inside enough to identify a Rabbi inside. This didn’t seem fair at all since the rabbi also had a family. So the pastor asked St. Peter. St. Peter said, well, the rabbi may not have earned it, but he is related to the boss, and so he has connections.
So what makes this joke funny? The joke playfully questions what a person has to do to get into heaven. Some people think that you must do certain things to get into heaven. The joke, however, questions if perhaps a person can get into heaven not because they deserve it, but simply because they have connections. The joke also points to a more negative thought present in our minds, which is if the Jewish people are included within God’s covenant of salvation. Yes they are.
Your Work Won’t Save You
Jesus tells a parable about a vineyard owner and some hostile tenants. They have previously entered into a business relationship with the owner that they no longer wish to follow. The deal was this: the workers get to care for the vineyard, they can profit from their labors, but the owner expects to receive a portion of what has been produced. The workers decide that they don’t like this arrangement so they attack all of the representatives of the owner: his slaves, and his son. They kill the son.
Some people have read this parable and tried to argue that it is about God ending the covenant with the Jewish people. That is a false interpretation which is not biblical. This interpretation is false for lots of reasons. Jesus warns that the vineyard will be taken from the workers who did not give the proceeds to the owner. This is a warning not directed at a religion or ethnic group. It is a warning directed at you and me, and every human being that walks the earth. It is a warning against works-righteousness.
Saved by Grace
Works Righteousness says that you are responsible for earning God’s blessings by your actions. The rebellious and hostile vineyard workers have been lured into works righteousness. They feel that they have earned and deserve all of the vineyard. They have a hard time accepting that it all belongs to someone else. They think that they can further secure their wealth and well being by becoming the owners. You and I make this mistake when we think that we can earn our salvation, and run things better than God.
So what is an alternative? What is a better way to think? It is that you are saved by grace through faith and not by your works. Your salvation is a free gift from God. God saves you. God loves you unconditionally. God makes your livelihood and existence possible. God makes the grapes to grow, the sun to rise, the rain to fall, the soil to nourish plants. God owns the land. God owns the stones in the wall and the watchtower. The pit to crush the grapes rests in God’s earth. Your body belongs to God. Your soul belongs to God. Your life belongs to God. Your family belongs to God. Everything belongs to God. God’s work is forever and eternally greater than we are. God alone can save you, and heal the world.
Live by Faith
After World War Two, Edith Eger returned to her home town in eastern europe. She and her sister Magda survived Auschwitz, and a death march. When Edith arrived at Auschwitz she was already so thin that a soldier refused to tattoo her arm because he felt it was a waste of ink. When they returned to their home they miraculously found their older sister who had escaped the SS because she was a musical prodigy who was away from home studying. The parents of the three girls did not survive Auschwitz. The three young women reunited and moved back into their apartment in what was Hungary. One thing that troubled them was that their beloved family piano was gone. It had been taken during their absence. This was painful because music was central to their life as a family. They would sing and play music together daily and nightly.
One day one of the girls discovers the piano in a coffee shop not far from the apartment. She asks the owner of the coffee shop to return the piano but he denies the connection. So the young woman tells her sisters and they decide to try to find the old man who used to tune the piano. He is found and goes to the coffee shop. He opens the lid of the piano and checks the serial number. It is the same number registered in his records as the one that belonged to the family. The proof is undeniable. He calls for workers to help him, and on the spot a group of men assemble around the piano and carry it down the block and up into the apartment of the three young women. They are the rightful owners. Edith feels a mixture of joy and despair. She marvels at how simple it was to lift up the lid of the piano and check its serial number. She wishes that things would be so simple for her. She wishes that there was some place in her body where she could be identified and restored to her proper place in the world. Instead she has to live one day at time. She has to struggle to find her place in a world recovering from the trauma of war. She has to live by faith.
Edith Eger does have an identification. She is related to the king of the universe, not only because she is Jewish, but because she is made in the image of God. Having faith in that give the power to do the work we are called to do. The key to serving God and working in the vineyard is to have faith. Believe that everything will be okay. Believe that God will take care of you. Live by faith. Amen.
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