The story of The Rich Young Ruler is one of the most well known episodes from the life of Jesus. One of the least known of Christ's parables is the one about the landowner who hired workers for his vineyard at various times throughout the day, but he paid them all the same. These two stories are connected.
The context begins at Matthew 19:3 ends at chapter 20, verse 16. Before looking at those, we need to consider the background passage in Matt. 18: 1 – 4.
In the background passage, the disciples ask Jesus who is the greatest in the Kingdom. He uses a child as an example.
Why a child? In verse 4, Jesus says, “Whoever then humbles himself as a child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” We don't often associate humility with children. We often think of childishness as a form of selfishness, but childlikeness as a form of virtue. What I see now is that children are transparent. When a child is being selfish, we can see it easily. Even when the child is pretending to be good while being bad, we can stil see it When a child is humble, he is truly humble.
Now in Matt. 19: 13-14, Jesus rebukes the disciples because they obstructed parents that brought their children to Him to have Him pray for the children. He adds, “for kngdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” How does a child receive a kngdom? The only way a child receives a kngdom is as an inheritance. He does not work for it. He does not borrow or save up to buy for it. He does not raise an army and go to war for it. The only thing the child can do is just receive it as an inheritance.
Next, we see The Rich Young Ruler, Matt. 19: 16 – 22, followed by discusssions on entering the kingdom (vs. 23 – 26) and a disciple's reward.
The key to understanding the story of The Rich Young Ruler is in how Jesus responded to the young man calling Him 'Good Teacher.' (Mark 10: 17 – 18) “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”
Was Jesus saying that He wasn't good? You better know better than that! No, what Jesus was saying is, “Do you realize that by refering to Me with a term that applies only to God, then you are recognizing Me as God?”
The Rich Young Ruler was focused on works, but he realized that something was missing. “What must I do to have eternal life?” he asks. Jesus tells him to keep the commandments. The young man replies that he has done that, but he know he needs to do more.
Jesus tests him further by challenging him to dispose of his material possessions and to become a disciple of Christ. What Jesus was saying is, “If you reocgnize My divinity, you will submit to all My instructions, even if it costs you all that you own.”
At this point, people might assume that the young man might have missed out, because the Bible says he went away saddened. However, two accounts in the NASB (Matthew and Mark) say that he was grieved. Grief is a sadness felt at a loss. We can feel sadness over many things, including things that don't directly affect yus, but grief is always assoicated with our own loss. Maybe this man realized he was losing out on the Kingdom. But then, maybe he left to dispose of his property, give the proceeds to the poor, and then return to follow Jesus. He would then be grieving over the loss of his property. His position of authority as a ruler was probably tied to his property ownership, so he could have been been grieving over giving up that as well.
This very well may be what The Rich Young Ruler did, for in the next passage, Jesus speaks about how difficult it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom. The difficulty lies not just in their attachment to their material things, in their pride in what they have accomplished or in the value of their stuff. For rich people to enter the Kingdom, they have to humble themselves and submit to the King. Jesus said it was difficult, not impossible.
Now, some would twist these passages into making poverty a virtue. Poverty is not a virtue. The Law of Moses and the book of Proverbs are very open about it being a result of sin and laziness. The only time that poverty does not come that way is as a result of being persecuted for righteousness' sake. Even then, the poverty is caused by the sin of the persecuter. Plus, Jesus speaks of the material rewards of discipleship in the next passage. In the Kingdom, what is important about material possessions is not what or how much you have, but how you got it, and what you're doing with it.
Finally, we come to the parable of the landowner and the vineyard workers. I have heard this presented from the perspective of the workers. But I want to look at this from the landowner's viewpoint.
The landowner saw nothing wrong with paying those who worked only one hour the same as he paid the ones who worked all day. He paid them what their labor was worth to him. Everyone who worked for him had an agreement as to what he would pay them, and he stuck to the agreed amount. “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?” he asks. Of coourse it is! His vineyard, his vines, his grapes, his money are for him to do with as he pleases. If he wants to those who work one hour the same he pays those who work eight hours, that's his business.
Now, let me ask this: Whose Kingdom is it? God's Kingdom is God's. We inherit the Kingdom only because we are His children. We enter into our inheritance by humbling ourselves honestly the way a child would, recognize that God's Kingdom is God's for Him to do with as He pleases, and to submit ot His instruction even if it costs us everything.
