MONTHLY DEVOTIONAL FOR 20 AUGUST
August 20, 2025
FEAST OF SAINT PIUS X POPE – 21st AUGUST
August 21, 2025
TODAY’S GOSPEL READING
20 AUGUST, 2025
Matthew 20:1-16
Jesus told his disciples this parable:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a landowner
who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard.
After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage,
he sent them into his vineyard.
Going out about nine o’clock,
he saw others standing idle in the marketplace,
and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard,
and I will give you what is just.’
So they went off.
And he went out again around noon,
and around three o’clock, and did likewise.
Going out about five o’clock,
he found others standing around, and said to them,
‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’
They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’
He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’
When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman,
‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay,
beginning with the last and ending with the first.’
When those who had started about five o’clock came,
each received the usual daily wage.
So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more,
but each of them also got the usual wage.
And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying,
‘These last ones worked only one hour,
and you have made them equal to us,
who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’
He said to one of them in reply,
‘My friend, I am not cheating you.
Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage?
Take what is yours and go.
What if I wish to give this last one the same as you?
Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money?
Are you envious because I am generous?’
Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD!
REFLECTION
This parable of the laborers in the vineyard reveals the generous heart of God, whose grace is not measured by human standards of fairness but by His boundless love. The landowner, representing God, pays each worker the same wage regardless of how long they labored, teaching us that entrance into the kingdom of heaven is not earned by merit but given as a gift of grace. This challenges our human tendency to compare and grumble, reminding us that God’s generosity should not be a cause for envy but for gratitude. In this passage, Jesus invites us to trust in the Father’s goodness, to rejoice in His blessings to others, and to focus not on what we receive but on who gives it—our gracious and merciful God.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your boundless grace that surpasses human understanding. Forgive us when we compare ourselves to others or feel entitled to more than what You have lovingly given. Teach us to rejoice in Your generosity and to trust in Your perfect wisdom. Help us to embrace humility, gratitude, and joy as we labor in Your vineyard, knowing that it is not our effort but Your grace that saves us. May our hearts always rest in Your mercy, and may we live as true witnesses of Your abundant love. Through Christ our Lord. Amen
