That’s Not Fair!

17th Sunday after Pentecost

That’s Not Fair!

Text: Matthew 20:1-16

I.

That’s Not Fair!  We’ve been slaving away all day long!  We started working at the break of dawn at 6:00 am.  We’ve put in over 10 hours of work.  We poured out sweat as the sun beat down on our bodies.  Our hands and our joints are aching from grueling work.  Our hands and our feet are stained with grape juice.  We did our job faithfully and dutifully.  We worked hard.  We smell like dirty tunics and we look like filthy pigs.  And you’re telling us that you’re going to pay them the same amount that you pay us?  That guy didn’t even start until 9:00am!  That guy started after lunch!  And that guy only worked one hour today!  You’re going to pay us all the same?  That’s Not Fair!

The outrage of the workers in Jesus’ parable is understandable.  Working a vineyard was no cake-job.  It was out in the scorching Middle Eastern sun.  It was tedious work.  It was tiring work.  It was slave work.  That’s likely why the landowner was hiring day laborers to do the work.