Are You Resentful Because I'm Generous?

Jesus is really meddlin' now.

This might be one of those parables we know well, but think of as little rarely as possible. Some thoughts:

Equality is not the same as fairness. In the vineyard owner’s world, everyone ends up with the same wage, no matter how long they’ve worked. The pay is equal. The work is not. And so it hardly feels “fair” to the early arrivals who bore the brunt of the day’s work.

This parable isn’t only about people who give their life to Jesus at the last moment before death, though it can be read that way. It’s also a picture of the Kingdom where the owner (God) has full authority over what is his. The wages are the owner’s to give, and the generosity is his to extend, regardless of whether it makes sense to us. The story pushes us to accept that God is not bound by our sense of proportion or merit.

Of course, this isn’t a blanket defense for human “vineyard owners” who lie, cheat, or break their agreements. This parable assumes an owner who honors commitments, keeps his word, and still chooses generosity. That kind of justice-plus-grace is rare, but it’s exactly what the Kingdom embodies.

It’s much easier to read this story and cheer for the latecomers when you yourself are not among the ones who arrived early. But when you are the one who’s been sweating since dawn, the owner’s generosity feels like injustice. This tension may be exactly why Jesus told the story—to confront the hidden resentment that arises when God’s goodness seems to land more heavily on others than on us.

This is not a recipe for world economics, except that it is a description of how things work within the Kingdom and a schematic for God’s people. This is an important distinction, particularly these days. If Christians worked as hard to create a particular economy within the Church as much as they do in the politics of the world, we might be able to make some significant differences.

Matthew 20:1-16

“The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. After he agreed with the workers to pay them a denarion, he sent them into his vineyard.

“Then he went out around nine in the morning and saw others standing around the marketplace doing nothing. He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I’ll pay you whatever is right.’ And they went.

“Again around noon and then at three in the afternoon, he did the same thing. Around five in the afternoon he went and found others standing around, and he said to them, ‘Why are you just standing around here doing nothing all day long?’

“‘Because nobody has hired us,’ they replied.

“He responded, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’

“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the workers and give them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and moving on finally to the first.’ When those who were hired at five in the afternoon came, each one received a denarion. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more. But each of them also received a denarion. When they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, ‘These who were hired last worked one hour, and they received the same pay as we did even though we had to work the whole day in the hot sun.’

“But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I did you no wrong. Didn’t I agree to pay you a denarion? Take what belongs to you and go. I want to give to this one who was hired last the same as I give to you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or are you resentful because I’m generous?’ So those who are last will be first. And those who are first will be last.”

Psalm 145:8-13

The Lord is merciful and compassionate, very patient, and full of faithful love. The Lord is good to everyone and everything; God’s compassion extends to all his handiwork!” All that you have made gives thanks to you, Lord; all your faithful ones bless you! They speak of the glory of your kingdom; they talk all about your power, to inform all human beings about God’s power and the majestic glory of God’s kingdom. Your kingdom is a kingship that lasts forever; your rule endures for all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all that he says, faithful in all that he does.

Prayer

God,

Help me understand your justice. The world does not operate as you do.

At the risk of overly-humanizing you, it seems that your heart kind of rules over your head. This can be a dangerous way for a human to live, or so I’ve been told. What do you think? How can we be so generous and yet make things work over the course of time? How do we avoid laziness and live into the beauty and value of working for something and contributing to the greater good?

Basically, help me to understand your differencing of equality, fairness, justice, and righteousness. Lead me to know your heart according to what you determine to be right. I’m sure I’ll disagree sometimes. So help me out with that, too.

By your Spirit & in Christ,
Amen.