Discussion questions

1. What is grace? How would you define it in light of this passage?

2. Consider the following two statements:

“Grace will always seem unfair since it’s given to the undeserving.”

“Grace is motivated not by what is in the recipient but what is in the giver.”

How are these statements both comforting and challenging? If you cannot earn God’s grace, how can you best position yourself to receive it?

3. Someone might wonder, “If I could still get a whole day’s wage, why wouldn’t I just start working at the 11th hour?” How does this reveal a wrong perspective about sin and reward?

4. It’s easy to sympathize with the grumbling of those who worked all day. Could that reveal how loveless and unmerciful we are compared to God? How and where does this passage challenge you to reflect God’s character?

5. This passage is a warning for people who have been serving God hard for a long time. Where are some places you have started to think you deserve a wage for your sacrifice? How can you reorient your perspective to give your all for the master of the vineyard?