The Eleventh Hour Miracle

“And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, “Why have you been standing here idle all day?” They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.” (Matthew 20:6-7, NKJV).

The eleventh hour is the latest possible time for an event to occur. It is the last hour or the dying minutes up to an opportunity. The eleventh hour miracle is predicated on the parable of the workers in the vineyard which Jesus told in Matthew 20. A parable is a story that is used to illustrate and elucidate a spiritual truth and principle. In this parable, a land owner was hiring workers to work in his vineyard. This land owner was operating a 12-hour work schedule from 6 AM till 6 PM. And his pattern was that every three hours, he went out to recruit laborers from the marketplace. He recruited laborers at 6 AM, 9 AM, 12 PM,  3 PM, and 3 PM was realistically meant to be the last time for recruitment. But somehow, he went back to the market place at 5 PM (i.e. the 11^th hour of the 12-hour schedule) to recruit more laborers.

The import of this parable was that the landowner broke the pattern of recruiting after every 3 hours. At the end of the 12-hour work schedule, he paid all the laborers a denarius which is one day’s wages. So he paid those who worked the entire 12 hours and the 11^th hour laborers who had worked for just 1 hour the same wages. Jesus was clearly pointing out here that there is an 11^th hour miracle which is purely a matter of grace. Eleventh hour miracle usually happens when people have given up hope of a divine intervention. Lazarus was raised at the 11^th hour. In this 11^th month of the year, it is certain God is going to release 11^th hour miracles! To activate and provoke an 11^th hour miracle, the following is imperative:

Don’t give up and walk away: The 11^th hour laborers were still hoping and waiting at 5 PM (i.e. 11^th hour) even when they knew it was unlikely anyone would hire them since work schedule ends at 6 PM. The Bible says in Lamentations 3:25-26, “The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” Someone said when God comes late, He comes big. Man’s extremity is always God’s opportunity to show up. Jesus deliberately delayed and waited 2 days after he heard that Lazarus was sick; He waited to allow him (i.e. Lazarus) to die.  It is vital that we remain in God and not seek solutions from alternative sources.

Engage in heartfelt praise: The truth is that praising God intensely over a time can cause spiritual upheavals and earthquakes. A spiritual earthquake always brings about dramatic breakthrough and deliverance (Acts 16:25-27). When praises go up, Heaven responds by raining down blessings. When the sweet aroma of praises from Spirit-filled believers, washed in the blood of Jesus, rises to Heaven, God moves. And when He is mobilized, He does the impossible. The Israelites after crossing the Red Sea and seeing the wonders of God sang that God is glorious in holiness and fearful in praises (Exodus 15:11). Prolonged and heartfelt praise is an invitation God cannot turn down.

Sow sacrificially: This is one spiritual principle few people engage in. Deliberately and prayerfully giving to God what costs you something can provoke an 11^th hour miracle. Common sense tells us if you have been adopting the same strategies over time and not getting your desired result, evaluate and do things differently. Noah sacrificed and God released a blessing on the earth (Genesis 8:20-22). Solomon sacrificed and the Lord visited him that same night in the dream (2 Chronicles 1:6-12). David sacrificed and God ended the plague that was released on Israel (2 Samuel 24:10-25). Abel sacrificed and God respected (and approved) his offering over that of Cain (Genesis 4:3-5). A sacrifice can turn things around and provoked an 11^th hour miracle.  In Old Testament days, they sacrificed animals and burnt offerings. These days we sacrifice the fruit of our labor, that is the income we have earned.

CONCLUSION: The 11^th hour principle is a spiritual reality. May the 11^th hour miracle that is a manifestation of grace and divine favor be released on us in this month of November in Jesus’ name.