11A Worship

How do you respond when you come across something that does not seem fair? You watch, or are the victim of, one person being treated one way, and others (maybe yourself) being treated another way. One person is given extra benefits, or their questionable behavior is tolerated, but others are not, and it’s not fair. Few things get us, me too, worked up faster than when it is clear that two different standards are being applied and the playing field is uneven.

My first job after graduating from Whitworth was that way. There were certain favored employees. The manager turned a blind eye when certain co-workers crossed ethical lines.  The owner himself regularly cheated his employees. It was unfair. I confronted the owner and he began treating me more fairly … but it was a reluctant fairness.

In our Christmas parable this morning the issue appears to be one of fairness. Some workers are hired first thing in the morning and toil all day. Others are hired one hour before the workday is over. And yet they all get the same pay. When I first heard this parable, it didn’t seem fair. The first to be hired in the parable grumbled. I would have too. But there is something bigger going on. This is a kingdom of heaven parable, a Christmas parable. The message of this parable is Joy. His Joy is beautiful. His Joy is freedom. His Joy came to us that first Christmas … at the birth in Bethlehem.

The Hopes and Fears of all the years are met in THEE tonight!