Lesson 5
Last Workers in the Vineyard
PURPOSE
To reveal who the 11th hour workers are and their work
INTRODUCTION
Why speaking in parables? Matt. 13:10,11/DA 495/COL 17-20 – Christ spoke in parables to use natural and social things of the earth to teach the spiritual, also to avoid unnecessary opposition and to encourage inquiry in those who are serious.
“For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man [that is] an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, [that] shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them [their] hire, beginning from the last unto the first.”
Prayer Thought
"So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny." {COL 396.4}
The householder's dealing with the workers in his vineyard represents God's dealing with the human family. It is contrary to the customs that prevail among men. In worldly business, compensation is given according to the work accomplished. The laborer expects to be paid only that which he earns. But in the parable, Christ was illustrating the principles of His kingdom--a kingdom not of this world. He is not controlled by any human standard. The Lord says, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways. . . . For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8, 9. {COL 396.5}
NOTE: There are 5 calls of workers who work 3 hours each, apart from the last which work only for 1 hour that is cut from the 3 hours of the 9th hour group. For us to understand these calls, we should first understand the meaning of the symbols used:
DAY: Gen 1/Psalm 119:105/John 11:9/ GC introduction p.V – Time with the written Bible.
The Two Nights: 1st Night leading to the “early morning”… From Adam to Moses, the time before the written Bible. The 2nd Night – Time from the world’s close of probation to 2nd Coming of Jesus -when the Bible can no longer save anyone who is not saved by that time of close of probation (Amos 8:11-13/Rev. 22:11).
Labourers: -Luke 10:1-3/1Cor. 3:9 – Believers and doers of Present Truth.
*Vineyard: -Col. 396-397/6T. 24 –The word where the church works but; Isa.5:7/COL. 214,70,282 – Refers to the church as the vineyard (orchard) or Field (Farm). All Present Truths first come to the church and thus the church becomes a place to labour, and then those who are matured by the truth, take it outside the church to the world.
Market Place: - AA 110-111/5T 203 – refers to the Church only.
Standing Idle: - AA 111/DA 232/GC 312, 609/COL 399 – means they are laymen and women in the church, therefore 3rd and 11th workers are mostly laymen/women.
Penny:- Counsels on stewardship 339 – Eternal Life. THE CALLS
First call – Early Morning
COL 398 or 400: - “The Jews had been first called into the vineyard…”Covenant (agreement) – Psalm 105:8-11/ Haggai 2:5. The kingdom in the land of Canaan. New Message- Sacrificial System. Failure – 2Kings 17/18 – Apostasy and idolatry, the 10 tribes carried away into captivity by Assyria in 721 BC. And the 2 tribes, by Babylon in 587BC. The two tribes returned from Babylon, after 70 years, but they later rejected and crucified Jesus. Then it was time for the next call.
Second Call –Third (3rd)Hour
Mark 15:25/Act2:15 – Jesus crucified at 3rd hour, and the Pentecostal power fell on the disciples at the 3rd hour. The messengers …Jesus and the Early Christian Church. Message: Acts 2:22-36/Acts 4:10-14.. The good news, the crucified and risen Saviour, whom the sacrifices pointed to. Failure – GC 384-385 – The decline of the Early Christian Church by lowering the standards and a flood of unconverted, took over the church until the Papacy took over in 538 AD. The reformers tried hard to revive the Early Christian Church doctrines, but not bringing any new messages. But finally a new message came:
Third Call-Sixth (6th) Hour
GC 335-358 – “A great religious awakening under the proclamation of Christ’s soon coming is foretold in the prophecy of the first angels’ message of Rev 14… it announces the opening of the judgment…this message is part of the gospel which could be proclaimed only in the last days.”
Messengers – the Millerites – They preached the 1st and 2nd Angels’ Messages (Counsels to Writers and Editors p. 26-27). Failure – They thought the judgment was at the 2nd coming of Jesus to the sanctuary
–the church; but when He didn’t come, there was a great Disappointment and disintegration. Many abandoned the message, Matt 20:5 combines two calls in one sentence meaning the calls and their messages were closely related-in the same year 1844, where one failed, the next call took over the same message.
Fourth Call-Ninth (9th) Hour
Rev. 10:10 – symbol of the 1844 Disappointment. Their sweet message became bitter-the small book is the book of Daniel. Rev 10:11 – the following night of the Disappointment, a small group met at Elder Edison’s home for prayers to know the reason why Jesus did not come. Message:
Following morning Edson was shown a vision of the Heavenly Sanctuary and saw Jesus as a High Priest in the Holy of Holies. Ellen G. Hormone (White) had already been shown the same vision also. So the heavenly Sanctuary Truth revealed the Sabbath and Judgment of the Dead by the visions Message. This group became the Seventh-day Adventist Church-with the restoration of the Law and Testimony (Spirit of Prophecy) in their midst - which are the writings of E.G. White.
Problem/Failure
5T 217. “The Church has turned back from following Christ her leader and is steadily retreating towards Egypt…Doubt, and even disbelief of the testimonies of the Spirit of God, is leavening our churches everywhere. Satan would have it thus, Ministers who preach self instead of Christ would have it thus. The testimonies are unread and unappreciated…”
COL. 315-316 – “daily, the Church is being converted to the world.”
6T. 408 – “To those who are indifferent at this time Christ’s warning is : Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold or hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.’ Rev. 3:16. The figure of spewing out of His mouth means that He cannot offer up your prayers or your expression of love to God. He cannot endorse your teaching of His word…”
IT 608 – “In the last vision given me, I was shown the starting fact that but a small portion of those who now profess the truth will be sanctified by it and be saved. Many will get above the simplicity of the work. They will conform to the world, cherish idols, and become spiritually dead. The humble, self sacrificing followers of Jesus will pass on to perfection, leaving behind the indifferent lovers of the world.”
Lukewarmness, worldliness, rejecting the Spirit of Prophecy, the 3 Angels’ message and the 4th Angels’ message - all amount to resignation from God’s Present Truth and His Favour - to be spewed out finally: This leads to the purification of the Church (Ezek.9) and birth of the 11th Hr workers:
THE 11TH HOUR WORKERS
Matt. 20:6-7 “And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, [that] shall ye receive.”
Read Mal 3:1/Mal 4:5 and Rev 18:1 – EW 277 – “I saw another mighty angel commissioned to descend to the earth to unite his voice with the third angel and give power and force to his message….The work of this angel comes in at the right time to join in the last great work of the third angel’s message, as it swells to a loud cry.”
6T 60 – “In the Revelation John says of the heavenly messenger who unite with the third angel” (Rev 18:1 quoted).
TM 475 – “Prophecy must be fulfilled…somebody is to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, and when he appears, men may say, ‘you are too earnest, you do not interpret the scriptures in a proper way. Let me tell you how to teach your message.”
Messenger-Elijah’s Message, the 4th Angel’s Message – the message of the Judgment of the Living, Which brings the 1st fruits (144,000), and 2nd fruits (the Great Multitude) of Rev 7:1-9.
TYPE & ANTITYPES
MOVEMENTS COMPARED
We can now compare the movements of the Day time, with those of the Night time, and discover the similarities – in types and antitypes:
The Judgment/2nd Advent - 6th Hour – day and night
Enoch’s and Miller’s -are misunderstood to be the 2nd coming - but more pointing to 1844 when Christ came in the Holy of Holies with the names of 10 thousands of His dead saints to investigate them.
Miller’s called Midnight Cry: EW 277 -pointing to the type – Enoch at Midnight.
The 9th Hour.
Noah & E.G. White
Each preaching the end of the world in their own generations (Matt.24:36-39) when the world reaches the highest levels of apostasy.
The two Israel
11th and 12thhr (night) . Moses - Old Israel after the flesh failing their Kingdom setting in Palestine. But 11-12thhr day - 144 000. Israel after the spirit fulfilling the mystery of God and setting the Kingdom of Glory, in Palestine (Isa11:6-1515, Isa.14:1-3/Zech 2:5, 10-12 /Micah 4:1-2).
The number Three: night and day; is prominent – 3 being the no. of Christ. All labourers are associated with working 3hrs periods, meaning Christ is the controlling power in the 2 testaments or night and day parts.
The Conclusion
The 11th hour workers are the 144,000 - they are the mustard seed or nucleus of the Kingdom of glory - they shall finish the work in 1 hour only:
RH MARCH 9, 1905
“LET US STRIVE WITH ALL THE POWER WHICH GOD HAS GIVEN US TO BE AMONG THE 144000.”
TO GOD BE THE GLORY!
THE END