The “Reward” of the Christian Life: Homily for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

In the parable of the workers in the vineyard, Jesus is teaching us what being His disciple is all about. Ultimately, we are not supposed to have a business relationship with God where we give Him our hard religious work and He gives us our pay of blessings and graces. It is true that our “reward” for being faithful to God is eternal life with Him in heaven after we die. But that reward of life with God is meant to start here and now. Heaven is not a place of earthly comforts and riches. Heaven is simply being united with God in the fullness of His presence forever. Laboring in the Lord’s vineyard of the Church now by living a life of holiness and service is itself the beginning of our “payment.” We get to live our life now with God, having Him in our life and working by His side. We miss the whole point of Catholicism, the whole point of being a worker in the Lord’s vineyard when we think about it simply in terms of what we will get at the end of the day.

The workers in the vineyard should have realized that their reward was their relationship with the landowner. The workers who started earlier had the opportunity to spend their whole day working with and for the master. That is where they are meant to find their joy and happiness! This is similar to the parable of the prodigal son, when the older son is angry because his sinful younger brother is given a party when he finally returns home, while the older son has been home the whole time. The father tells the older son: “My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.” The Father’s heart is wounded by the older son’s anger, because the Father loves simply being with his children. Everything that is his belongs to his sons. He hoped that they loved just being with him as he loved just being with them. Anything else is of little importance.

Instead of complaining about your brothers and sisters who come late to the Lord’s vineyard, give thanks to God if you are like one of the workers hired early in the morning, and you have spent your whole life as a faithful Catholic, coming to Mass every Sunday. You have had the privilege of beginning heaven on earth, living life with God here and now. Jesus came to save us from eternal hell, but also to save us from hell on earth. Hell is simply life without God. Do not envy those who have already experienced the hell of life without God on earth. Let us pray that everyone would come to the Lord’s vineyard in this life and in the next. As we partake in the heavenly banquet of this Mass, let us give thanks to God for the life we get to live with Him in His vineyard now and the life we hope to live with Him in heaven.