Hey guys,
Internet was down at work so sorry for lateness, nevertheless, happy Thursday! Still making my way through matthews. I think in the focused study of any book of the bible, like this or the 40 day reading of Acts we’re now doing at gscc (http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Forty-Day-Walk/115344555164488?ref=ts), im often tempted to arrogantly presume to know everything God can possibly teach me. One of my greatest joys in personal devotion is to have that presumption proven wrong over and over again.
I think I finally understand the parable of the workers in the vineyard (mat 20), where various workers were hired to work in the vineyard throughout the day yet all received the same pay – despite different number of working hours. My worldly mind tends to agree with the complaints of the workers who toiled for the entire day yet received the same pay as the ones who worked a single hour. We often voice similar complaints in our daily struggles, like…I’m getting eternal life, but that guy’s getting eternal life AND a lamborghini…that’s not fair! To put things in proper prespective, imagine if the wages given in the parable was $1 million instead of 1 measly denarius…would the workers still quibble over working 8 hours that day instead of 1? Now instead of $1million, imagine eternity with God – our wage for a lifetime of following our Lord. Does it make sense to quibble over ~80 years of devoted service getting the same reward as a deathbed confessor? Rather, the joy of obtaining Christ and eternity should drown out such protests.
To paraphrase a john piper analogy, for us to get eternal life and to still demand a happy, prosperous, pampered, worry-free life is akin to be given the entire pacific ocean and still ask for a cup of water on top of that. Our indignant protests do lose some of their force given that perspective doesn’t it? We just need to see heaven. My encouragement for the week.
Have an awesomost rest of the week!
Edward
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” Matthew 13:44
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18
baby sloths, butt scratchy at 1:08!! >.< (thx christina!)
http://vimeo.com/11712103
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