RE News

With Sharee Thomas

LESSONS OF THE KINGDOM - Matthew 20:1-16

In the Gospel this Sunday, Jesus moves from Galilee to teach in Judea where he is sought out by great crowds and tested by the Pharisees. Jesus spends time teaching one of his main mesages, the first will be last and the last will be first through the parable of the workers in the vineyard

On the surface, the parable appears to be an offense to common sense. Those who work a longer day ought to be paid more than those who work just an hour or two. When viewed in this way, the landowner seems unfair. That is because we are reading into the parable our own preconceived notions of how fairness and equality should be quantified.

A close read shows us that the landowner paid on the terms that were negotiated. The landowner, it seems, has acted completely justly. The parable goes beyond that, however, and we come to see that the landowner is not simply just, he is exceptionally just. He is radically just. He has given those who labored in the field for a full day their due pay. But he has also given a full-day's wage to those who worked only a single hour. No one is cheated, but a few receive abundantly from the landowner just as we receive from God more than what is merely justifiable or due. God, like the landowner, is radically just and abundantly generous.

The parable reminds us that although God owes us nothing, he offers abundantly and equally. We are occasionally tempted to think that our own actions deserve more reward, more of God's abundant mercy, than the actions of others. But God's generosity cannot be quantified or partitioned into different amounts for different people.

When reflecting on the weekends Gospel, it struck me that the workers in this parable sound very much like me sometimes, squabbling children, comparing what they have each been given and making complaints about it being unfair. Sometimes with our children there is a tendency to equate love with gifts and material things. This tendency can devolve into a spirit of entitlement, which runs counter to the spirit of gratitude. Any effort we make to overcome this tendency, to keep love from being entwined with gifts and possessions, will enable our children to accept completely the love that God gives freely and generously.

This week as a family take notice of these complaints and have a conversation about whether or not they are helpful. Remind your children that love cannot and ought not to be measured, but felt.

Have a great week!