Matthew 20
Last and First
"So the last will be first, and the first will be last." (Matthew 20:16)
The parable of the workers in the vineyard. Some worked all day. Some worked three hours. Some worked one hour. Everyone got paid the same. The ones who worked all day were furious.
The landowner said: didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?
That question lands hard. Are you envious because I am generous? The complaint of the all-day workers wasn’t that they received less than they agreed to. They received exactly what they agreed to. The complaint was that someone else received the same without earning it the same way.
Grace makes people like that uncomfortable. Because grace doesn’t follow the rules of merit. And people who have been working hard and following the rules can quietly develop a resentment of those who arrive late and receive the same welcome.
James and John’s mother asked Jesus if her sons could sit at His right and left in the kingdom. The other disciples were indignant when they heard this. Jesus said: whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.
The same lesson. Different angle. In the kingdom, the math runs backward.
