Fair

April 26, 2023

“It’s not fair!” Sooner or later, every parent hears that plaintive cry emanating from the mouth of their child. I don’t know how parents today respond, but when our kids were growing up, our stock reply was, “Get used to it. Life isn’t fair.”

And yet, we want it to be; expect it to be. And when it isn’t, we get angry or sullen. In chapter 20 of his gospel, Matthew recollects the story Jesus told about laborers in the vineyard. The owner was looking for day laborers to help harvest the crop. He went to the market where those laborers would hang out, waiting to be called. I remember doing that as a teenager, except the day laborers gathered in a building. Every so often, the person in charge would shout, “Three men for an orchard,” or “Two for an assembly line,” etc. It was interesting; I never knew from one day to the next what I would be doing, and I learned quickly that there were a whole lot of jobs I didn’t want to spend my life doing.

In Jesus’ story, the owner called some workers at 9:00 am, promising the standard day’s wage. When he realized he was going to be short, he hired more at noon, and still more in the evening. When it came time to pay up, he began with those who had been hired just before quitting time, and gave them the prevailing day’s wage. Those hired at daybreak began to calculate. “If he paid a full day’s wage for an hour’s work, imagine what I’m going to get!” 

Anticipation turned to disappointment and jealousy when they got only the prevailing day’s wage they had been promised. “Wait a minute—this guy only worked an hour! This isn’t fair!”

The owner stopped the complainer. “I paid you what I promised. It’s my money; if I want to be generous, that’s my privilege. I did you no wrong.”

The people who first heard this story knew exactly what Jesus was up to. They had worked hard to do the right thing, and Jesus was accepting people who had messed up their lives, were living wild and basically were a drain on society. “It isn’t fair” was in their hearts, if not on their lips.

And what about me? The problem is one of comparison. We all do it. We measure ourselves against others, and it never turns out good. If I compare myself with someone who has made a mess of his life, I swell with pride. If I compare myself with someone who has accomplished more and been wildly successful, that comparison turns to jealousy. If I compare myself with hard working people who live in an oppressive society, I feel guilty. Comparing ourselves with others never works because life isn’t fair.

Instead of comparisons, we receive God’s gifts with gratitude and humility. We live in generosity, and the only comparison we make is with Jesus himself. When we do, the only response we can give is that which is found in the gospel: “When we’ve done all we can, we must still say, “We are unprofitable servants.” Life isn’t fair, but it is filled with mercy and grace for those willing to shed the comparisons and simply receive God’s wonderful gift of life in Christ.