Today's Readings: New Testament -
Matthew 20:1-16
Hebrews 12:1-13
Old Testament -
Proverbs 29:1-14
Isaiah 56-58
Click on Text Links to Read Online
Focus Verses: Matthew 20:12-16
12 'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.' 13 "But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?' 16 "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."
Insight:
Although they were paid a fair and previously agreed upon wage for their work, the first people to be hired protested the amount of their paychecks at the end of the day. These first hires had done more work and had labored through the heat of the day. They complained to the master that giving an equal paycheck to those hired last was unfair. It's doubtful that they were as vocal about their concern for equal hiring opportunities earlier in the day.
The master did not argue the point of fairness. Instead, he explained that his "unfair" payment plan flowed out of his generosity. His benevolent nature made him much more interested in seeing people get a chance to work than in comparing paychecks. The master understood that people aren't equal when it comes to opportunity, skills, and circumstances. He knew the gross inequities and discrimination those hired last were already enduring at the hands of society. Perhaps his generosity was his attempt to counter the unequal treatment they were suffering.
Response & Action:
I wonder how many injustices in the world are continually perpetuated by appeals to "fairness." "Fairness" from one point of view may be "unfair" to someone else. And fairness is NOT the highest good. I acknowledge that I want something more than "what is fair" when it comes to my needs. I don't want fairness; I want grace, generosity, love, forgiveness, and redemption.
I cannot be gracious and loving toward others if I am more concerned with what is fair. I don't want equal treatment; I want whatever is redemptive and life-giving for everyone. I must be careful not to let fairness be a guise for selfishness. Instead, I want to be radically "unfair" about loving and helping others. Just as I hope to receive more grace than I deserve, I want to give more grace than anybody deserves.
O God, you have been "unfair" with me. You have given me more than I deserve. Thank you! Please help me to be generous like you. Help me to value the things that save and restore more than I value fairness. Make me a vessel of your goodness and give me a heart that rejoices whenever I see your inequitable blessing and grace lavished on others. Amen.
Spiritual Formation Verses: 1 John 3:1a
1a How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
Resources:
Gracism: The Art of Inclusion
by David A. Anderson
