What Do We Think We Deserve?
The Parable of the Vineyard workers comes on the heels of Jesus' interaction with the Rich Young Man. Jesus ends both sections with this phrase:
"many who are first will be last and the last first."
The dynamic reordering of the kingdom declares the laborers hired first who bore the burden in the heat of the day received what was promised. The laborers found last and hired received the same.
When the first-hired laborers got their due, they grumbled. To me, it's a simple case of bad assumptions. They assumed they deserved better.
We do the same.
We should notice, the master of the house made the first move with each set of laborers. None of them would have a job without His initiation.
But the real story is this - after just one day of working, the first-hired laborers already have in mind what the master should be doing. Isn't that like us? We get saved by grace, and then we unconsciously leave grace for works, thinking we have arrived and we deserve better.
And where is the Master in the story? Always out looking for more workers. That's the heart of God. We like our church the size it is, we like our family the way it is... and God is busy reaching out for more members and more laborers.
The last set of workers hired respond to the master in a telling way: "no one had hired us." It wasn't that they were lazy, it was they were unwanted. We need to remember that about those far from God. They are unwanted by all but God.
PRAYER:
Father forgive me for the many times I feel I deserve better because of my faulty self-perception. I am simply a laborer you found. Thank you. Help me to see those not yet in the work force... and to embrace them.
"many who are first will be last and the last first."
The dynamic reordering of the kingdom declares the laborers hired first who bore the burden in the heat of the day received what was promised. The laborers found last and hired received the same.
When the first-hired laborers got their due, they grumbled. To me, it's a simple case of bad assumptions. They assumed they deserved better.
We do the same.
We should notice, the master of the house made the first move with each set of laborers. None of them would have a job without His initiation.
But the real story is this - after just one day of working, the first-hired laborers already have in mind what the master should be doing. Isn't that like us? We get saved by grace, and then we unconsciously leave grace for works, thinking we have arrived and we deserve better.
And where is the Master in the story? Always out looking for more workers. That's the heart of God. We like our church the size it is, we like our family the way it is... and God is busy reaching out for more members and more laborers.
The last set of workers hired respond to the master in a telling way: "no one had hired us." It wasn't that they were lazy, it was they were unwanted. We need to remember that about those far from God. They are unwanted by all but God.
PRAYER:
Father forgive me for the many times I feel I deserve better because of my faulty self-perception. I am simply a laborer you found. Thank you. Help me to see those not yet in the work force... and to embrace them.
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