Adrian
Old-Sunday Worship November 23rd, 2025
  • Glorify Thy Name
  • I Love You Lord

      • Luke 1:68–79ESV

      • Luke 1:68–80ESV

  • Breathe On Me Breath Of God
  • Doxology

      • Matthew 20:1–16ESV

  • Matthew 20. 1-6

    K. Adrian Scott
    November 23, 2025
    Context/Recap.
    Over the past two weeks I have attempted to give blatant illustrations letting you see what this text in St. Matthew 20 looks like in real life. I have used actual biblical characters in parable and real persons and their amazing lives from history. While thinking through the Matthew parable itself, we talked about Yahweh/God’s historic invitation to chosen Israel to be this nation’s chosen God and enter a relationship based on a promise, or a covenant. Israel indeed entered that relationship reluctantly, and why do I say reluctantly? Because God kept His promises, but Israel did not. Israel rejected that invitation to know the Messiah and then the door of opportunity opened to the Gentiles who received the once rejected Savior. Am I justified in comparing Israel to the first chosen? Indeed, I am because Exodus 4.22 says this about them, “Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me. Surely we see from this, Israel is the first, so we saw how through the Gentile (non-Jewish) nations acceptance “The Last (became) First, and the First Last.”
    Then we looked at the parable of the two sons in Luke 15 – one whose heart was cold as an iceberg, while the younger son, his heart was warmed by the love of the father and he came home, settled into a place of honor and privilege, while the older brother, the First, refused to go into the father’s house, but remained outdoors in the cold. The prodigal son, the last born, became in the position of honor and authority, while the older first-born brother became last because he rejected his father’s love and hospitality.
    Next was the story of two men. One a Pharisee and the other a Publican. One supposedly a saint and the other definitely a sinner by his own admission. However, as the story unraveled the Pharisee being an Israelite, was exposed to the loving call of God first, while the Publican, a self-confessed sinner, the one who was put down, ostracized, and even belittled by the Pharisee, genuinely took responsibility and confessed his sin and his prayer was heard/accepted by God, while the Pharisee who pretended he had no sin also prayed, but the Lord chose to not hear his prayer. This is another example of a reversal of positions in the eyes of God. The only pair of eyes that really matters! Surely in this parable, “the Last First, and the First Last.
    Then there is the story of Adam and Eve’s boys, Cain and Abel. In their circumstance Yahweh/God had obviously requested a sacrificial offering from each of them. Cain, the older, and the one whom we would think would know better about what God required since his parents experienced God giving them an example when the Lord clothed them with the skin of an animal and covered their naked shame. But Cain evidently did not pay attention, or he decided he would give God what he wanted God to have, so he gave an offering from his produce and God was not pleased, and Cain’s offering was not accepted by God. His younger brother, Abel, on the other hand, gave to Yahweh the best of his flock and made certain he also included the fatty parts of the animal, which proved Abel’s thankful heart and his generosity toward God, and the Lord was pleased with Abel’s sacrifice. Cain’s heart was not right with God because nowhere do we see Cain apologize or ask for forgiveness of God for his mistake but instead, he took his anger out on his younger brother by killing him. From then on, Cain was a ‘marked’ man in the eyes of God. Abel was righteous in the eyes of God, he was God’s choice, even though younger, but Cain, the oldest or the first, was rejected by God. “The Last First, and the First Last.”
    We then ended with the story of Joseph and his brothers, Genesis 37.
    Joseph was the youngest son of Jacob (Israel) and Joseph was the obvious favorite of his father which infuriated his older brothers to the point where they devised a plan to get rid of Joseph. They physically abused Joseph, ripped up that fancy coat his father had made for him, and they left him in a pit without food or water so he would die. But the brothers plan changed, and they sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites who in return sold Joseph to an Egyptian officer in the Pharaoh’s court. They felt like they had gotten rid of him forever. As time went on Joseph rose to great prominence in Egypt, even becoming second in command in the entire country and placed over the ministry of agriculture. Several years after having gotten rid of Joseph, a famine struck the land of Israel, and having heard there was grain in Egypt the older brothers went to Egypt to inquire about buying food so their families would not die due to the famine. Unbeknownst to the older brothers, the person in charge of the food bank in Egypt was none other than their younger brother whom they hated and thought they would never see or hear from again. Joseph, in mercy and forgiveness, provided plenty of food for the brothers to take back to Israel, and did not charge them for the food. According to their culture, the oldest son Reuben should have been in charge, but God shows us that God’s plans are far wiser than any plan a man or woman can make. And further, God shows us that He can do what He pleases; God does not have to obey cultural or societal rules, but God is above any person or culture and will do what He pleases and will accomplish it through whom God chooses! In the case, the firstborn sons were last and least favored, and the last-born, Jacob’s youngest son, Joseph, was made First!
    The Text – Telling the Story of David.
    The nation of Israel had decided they wanted a king like the other nations - “I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons. And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, "The Lord has not chosen these. 11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, there remains yet the youngest, but behold; he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, 'Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here. 12 And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, for this is he. 13Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah” (1 Samuel 16. 1b; 10-13).
    Israel now needed a king to replace Saul who had greatly displeased the Lord, and the Lord made things easy for Samuel the prophet when he told Samuel, “I have provided for myself a king” (v.1).
    Preaching Point.
    Here is a person who is not rejected; Young David was not even considered! He was not even in the position to be rejected because he was not among those considered for the job! Has that ever happened to you? It has to me. But you must know who you are in Christ, and by all evidence, be convinced the hand of God is upon your life. David’ competition was his older brothers. David was not only their youngest brother, but he was only a young boy, a teen most likely, and he had the job of being the family shepherd. It was the oldest profession in the Bible, and it was terribly boring because all the sheep did was roam the grasslands and eat, then drink water when the shepherd lead them to a place to drink. The shepherd was with the sheep night and day, and he was also responsible for protecting the sheep from predators. The sheep knew their shepherd’s voice, and the shepherd also smelled like the sheep because he was always with them. So, when Samuel asked Jesse about his sons to see which one of them the Lord had chosen, David was not even allowed to interview for the position. Jesse had his first seven sons pass before Samuel and the elders of the city, “And Samuel said to Jesse, "The Lord has not chosen these. 11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here? And he said, there remains yet the youngest, but behold; he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, 'Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here. In the mind of Jesse, it was unthinkable that Samuel and the elders could have David in mind for such a position. But the Lord God was thinking the unthinkable!
    v. 12-13; “And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he. 13Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst ofhis brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward.”
    The older brothers may have had age and life experience in their favor, but young David, lacking both of those virtues, had the favor of God upon his life! My friends, when God has His righteous and power anointing upon your life, there is no better preparation for whatever task God has called you or me to do! David rose to become the mightiest king in the history of the nation of Israel, and to this day, the official symbol of the nation of Israel is the ‘star of David.’
    Last, Jesus of Nazareth – Luke 1. 26-33.
    Here is Jesus, conceived by a young and humble virgin girl named Mary through the agency of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1.35). She was pledged to marry a man by the name of Joseph, who also was of no notoriety, but he was of the family of David (1. 27). The surroundings of his birth were at least modest if not poor, seeing Jesus was born in the animal’s stable rather than a more suitable and sterile place for the birth of a child.
    As Jesus grew, he was known as “the carpenter’s son.’ Although there was nothing wrong with that, but that title certainly did not put Jesus on the top of the list for invitations to country club balls or other fancy events. He started His ministry with for the most part, rough and uneducated men and with none of Galilee’s wealth to finance His work. In fact, Jesus’ personal finances were such that the Bible said, “And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (Matthew 8. 20).
    Peaching Point.
    Jesus never owned His own home, or his own business. He did not wear tailored clothing or signature sandals. He did not eat at the finest restaurants in the cities and villages where He ministered, but His ‘dining out’ consisted of eating with close friends like Mary, Martha and their brother, Lazarus, or even eating with towns people, sinners, as the town’s religious people would call them. Jesus was never given a plaque for His services, granted special status by the town council; was never given a rank in Israel’s army nor did he command chariots. Clearly, Jesus did not have the blessings of Rome or privilege of wealth or family influence, but like David, Jesus had the favor of God upon Him! Often, the only way Christ’s disciple’s and those He was ministering to had food to eat was when Jesus performed a miracle; when empty nets became filled with fish or another time when a little boy’s two fish and five loaves of bread was mysteriously sufficient to feed more than five thousand women, men and children.
    During Jesus’ ministry, He was accused of being a demon, eventually falsely accused of insurrection, tried by a rigged jury, found guilty by a mock trial, and sentenced to hang, not by the judicial authorities, but by the influence of a rioting crowd of citizens of whom the court was afraid. So, he hung, not in a special place for former dignitaries, but He was hung between two thieves, as if he was one also, clearly showing what the arresting authorities really thought of Jesus.
    Jesus nor His family had no burial arrangements for Him, so a rich man, Joseph of Arimathea, signed for Jesus’ body and they buried Jesus in a borrowed tomb. In his life, Jesus lived a life of modesty and in His death, He died a death of mockery.
    Yet, when He gave up the ghost, when Jesus willingly breathed His last breath and cried out, “It is finished” (John 19.30) the entire universe experienced a breakthrough. The Temple curtain which had hidden the visible presence of the Spirit of God was completely torn in two, the sacred and formerly secretive presence of God was now revealed; Christ’s death assured the world that there was no effective separation between God’s Spirit and human beings. Jesus’ death said, ‘God has come out even as we are invited into God’s presence through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ!’ The death of the One who knew no sin certified all the sin of the repentant has been taken upon His shoulders and nailed to the cross just as His hands and feet were. God is now friendly with humankind because of Jesus! And Christ’s claim of being the Savior of the world was verified when after three days He was raised from Joseph’s new tomb which said, all who trust in Christ will too be raised spiritually and from their natural graves as well to be joined with Him. Jesus opened and secured the passageway for the forgiven to move from death to life because of His perfect sacrifice on Calvary’s cross. He was laid low in the ground but lifted high on a cross!
    The Close.
    Truly, in the case of the Savior of the world; the hero of the Church, as well as Abel, Joseph, David, Gentiles, Prodigal Sons and daughters, and Publicans, “The Last will be First, and the First Last!

      • Matthew 20:1–6ESV

      • Exodus 4:22ESV

      • Luke 15ESV

      • Genesis 37ESV

      • 1 Samuel 16:1bESV

      • 1 Samuel 16:10–13ESV

      • 1 Samuel 16:12–13ESV

      • Luke 1:26–33ESV

      • Matthew 8:20ESV

      • John 19:30ESV

      • Romans 5:8ESV

      • Luke 7:48ESV

  • How Great Is Our God

      • 2 Corinthians 13:14ESV

Adrian
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