Matthew 20:6-7 — And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.
In yesterday’s piece I spoke about empathy. Maybe that stirred this one in my head.
There are many lessons to be drawn from the wonderful parable of the laborers in the vineyard, which Matthew recounts in the first sixteen verses of the twentieth chapter of his gospel. The “big” lesson, of course, is that the last shall be first and the first shall be last — but that’s not my focus today.
My heart breaks for the laborers who were still standing around at the eleventh hour. It was not, as some commentators (even distinguished ones) have suggested, that they were lazy latecomers. All through the centuries men have stood, and waited, and hoped … and gone home. It still happens in Florida (as well as other parts of America) today.
Jesus knew how those laborers felt. “How come you guys are standing around? Because nobody gave us a job.” The word “idle” in verse 6 means nothing more than that they were not working — like engines idling.
This wonderfully empathetic note reminded me of some things. The first is just how much I love Jesus, and how much He loves me. You see, I came to Jesus late. Maybe not the eleventh hour, but certainly the ninth! Jesus operates on a “no child (of God) left behind” principle.
The second thing is that Jesus knows how I feel. When I feel unwanted, unvalued, and useless He let’s me know I’m wanted, valued and useful. He can see deep into hearts and see hurts, and if we let Him, He heals those hurts.
The final reminder is that Jesus was (is) the Master Teacher. Every parable has layers, with several lessons for several audiences. Consider this one — it has the following (at least, you may see some more):
It tells the disciples, and us, that no privileges attach to being saved sooner rather than later. (It might also be a warning to the Jews that their selection as God’s chosen people would not give the pre-eminence in the kingdom of Heaven.)
The parable tells us that God will welcome us whenever we choose to come. If we deliberately reject Him, that’s one thing — but if we have not rejected Him, He will not reject us.
God’s generosity is enormous — and never limited by our service, but tailored to meet our need.
The parable is a reminder of God’s compassion.
So many layers, so many lessons. But for me, today, it’s about the empathy in the vineyard.