The Opportunity of the 11th Hour (Pages 2-3)

After four such invitations, the owner decides to go back to town once more to recruit workers for his vineyard.  This time it’s the eleventh hour. The eleventh hour is the moment of unprecedented opportunity.  It’s the last call of the day.  Interestingly, he promises to pay each worker what is fair; this turns out to be the same amount as what he gives those who have labored the entire day. 

In Kenya, where I grew up, the sun sets on or near 6:00 PM everyday.  The variation throughout the year is usually less than half an hour.  In Swahili, just as in Aramaic, the language of the New Testament, 6:00 PM is known as the 12^th hour.  Once its 6:00 PM people understand that they only have minutes before the sun totally disappears and darkness engulfs the African horizon.   Traditionally, people don’t work past the 12^th hour- it’s too dark. Wild animals and burglars emerge. People scurry home to safety.   In Jesus’ time there would have been no electricity.  So when the sunlight disappeared it was time to call it a day. 

 In the parable, the vineyard owner sees that the day is nearing the 12^th hour.  Just one hour of daylight is left.  Yet, there is still work to be done in the vineyard. He knows that past the 12^th hour, there will be no more opportunity to participate in the harvest. So he recruits one last group of workers to bring in the crop.  In the11^th hour there is one more appeal.  One more call.  And one more summons.  I can almost hear him pleading with the men of that day and that town: “Go to my fields! There’s still work to be done, but time is of the essence.”

He is passionate.  The harvest has such great value.  The owner of the vineyard doesn’t want any of the valuable crop to be wasted! Now is the time.  He has been purposeful and intentional systematically recruiting laborers throughout the day.  Now, though, his voice is full of passion and energy.  His call reverberates with purpose.  

Across the globe, Jesus is calling to this generation to participate in His glorious plan of global redemption.  The unique aspect of a call is that there are really only three options:  it can be ignored, declined, or accepted.

When I was little we lived on a large college campus comprising 7 acres.  My brother and I would go play for hours with our friends.  The possibilities were endless: basketball, tennis, soccer, kick the can, capture the flag, badminton, chess, darts, army, bicycling, table tennis, etc…

Mom would call, “dinner time, Stephen, Adam, dinner time.”

 At 12 years old the last thing you want to do is eat dinner when you can be shooting imaginary bad guys or pretending to be the next big name in athletics.   We often chose to ignore the call.  We always knew we were in trouble when mom or dad came looking for us.

“Why didn’t you respond?” mom would always ask.

We often stretched the truth just a little pretending that we didn’t hear them. The solution to the problem was simple.  Dad bought a bell.  It was loud and could be heard distinctly. Everyone within a square mile knew when the Kuerts were having dinner!

Many in this hour have ignored the call of the King for years or even decades. They have been absorbed in their own pursuits and agendas.   I remember preaching in Warner, Oklahoma a few years ago.  A gentleman in his fifties came running to the altar after I concluded; he was weeping uncontrollably.

 After the service, he told me that in his late twenties God called him to full time ministry, but he decided he would be miserable in the will of God so he decided to join a motorcycle gang instead. This lifestyle lead him farther and farther away from the purpose on His life.  I will never forget his voice full of regret that night, “I’ve wasted my life.”

 Fortunately, the message for that dear brother and the message of this book is this: “There’s still time! The King is calling one more time.” It’s the 11^th hour.  And this call isn’t just for a few people in occupational ministry.  The call is for everyone who claims to be a believer, or is considering becoming one.  Jesus is mobilizing His people for the final harvest.