Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

Hey! Blake here. I am SO pumped to journeying through Holy Week with you this week.

Over the next five days, we will be walking through the final chapters of Matthew to reflect on what kind of kingdom Jesus came to bring and what kind of King He really is.

I’m going to go ahead and give you the spoiler alert now: Jesus doesn’t fit the mold.

You’ll notice something consistent in the way Jesus teaches and lives: He rarely praises the people we expect Him to.

Power players? He warns them.

Religious experts? He rebukes them. Hard.

But the overlooked? The last-minute arrivals? The ones who have nothing to offer but trust? They’re the ones who end up first in line.

Nowhere is that reality more obvious than in the story Jesus tells in Matthew 20.

A landowner goes out to hire workers for his vineyard. Some start early in the morning, some around lunchtime, and some barely squeeze in an hour of work. When the day ends, everyone gets paid the same.

Wait… what?

Those who worked the longest grumble, “That’s not fair!” And the landowner replies, “Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?”(Matthew 20:15)

Oof. That hits me hard.

Here’s the tension that so many of us, including myself, struggle with: The Kingdom of God runs on grace, not merit. And grace always messes with our sense of fairness.

We tend to assume, sometimes unconsciously, that God operates like a reward system. Show up early, put in the hours, read my Bible enough, and you’ll earn something more. But Jesus tells this story to flip that idea on its head.

Jesus isn’t interested in comparing résumés. He’s interested in whether or not we’ll trust the goodness of the landowner.

That’s why, just a few verses later, when the mother of James and John asks if her sons can sit at Jesus’ right and left in the kingdom (v. 20-21), Jesus doesn’t get angry. He just gently corrects the premise of the question: Greatness in His Kingdom looks like serving, not striving.

It’s so easy, y’all, even in our faith, to believe we have something to prove. That if we pray more, lead more, give more, or “do it right,” we’ll move up in line. But Jesus doesn’t work on a merit system. He works off mercy.

And that’s really, REALLY good news. Because He offers us an invitation. Not to be impressive but to be present. Whether you came early or just showed up, He’s paying in full. The only thing left to do, then, is say:

“I’m here.”

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Holy Week Reflection:

Pause and Reflect

• Is there any part of your spiritual life where you’re subtly trying to “earn” what God already wants to give you freely?
  
• Who do you compare yourself to spiritually, and how might Jesus be inviting you to let go of that scoreboard?
  

Worship and Meditate

• Read Matthew 20:15 again slowly. Let it remind you that God is not stingy with His grace. He’s so much more generous than what we expect or deserve.
  
• Listen to “Canvas and Clay” by Patt Barrett. Let the lyrics re-center your heart in God’s grace and craftsmanship.
  

Prayer

• “Jesus, thank You that Your Kingdom isn’t earned but received. Help me to live today from a place of grace, not pressure. I don’t want to fight to get to the front of the line. I just want to walk with You today in the vineyard. In Your name, I pray, amen.”
  

Take a Step

• Invite someone into your week who might feel like they “don’t belong” in the Kingdom. A text, a coffee, or a kind word might be the nudge they need to say yes to God’s grace.