And that is precisely why this story from Jesus is so difficult to understand, for me, and perhaps for many of you. It is not ‘fair’ to give the same wage for differing amounts of work. It is not ‘fair’ for God (the owner of the vineyard) to reward those who did minimum work with the maximum reward. It offends my Kempf-ness…

Yet the problem with the story is not about ‘fairness’ is it? They got ‘the agreed upon wage’. It was fair. It was just. It was the agreement. But it was not what they came to expect. The problem that the first workers got themselves into was all about entitlement, all about special favors, all about expecting MORE. Surely God will reward the ‘extra’ that I have done… Like last week’s story of forgiveness, , they were still in the world of justice, of mathematics, of measuring their love and expecting God to do the same. They wanted to live in a 7 x world.

With one word, Jesus goes to the heart of their difficulty. “Friend” I did you no injustice.” Friend. Not worker, not slave, not even brother or sister, but FRIEND. What I have in store for you is to know that my love is all you need. And it is not a zero sum game. If you have my love, my day’s wage, it is enough. And you should rejoice that others know the same love, experience the same reward. It’s not about competing for relationship – it’s about rejoicing when good abounds.

But, how do you get your heart to live in that kind of world? How do we expand our heart to love this generously? Fr. Anthony De Mello tells a story about two brothers. Both heard the call to serve. The younger left behind family and friends, left behind the woman he loved and hoped to one day marry, and became a missionary. He worked for years under tough conditions, and finally, died from an indigenous disease in the remote country where he was serving. He was taken to the gates of heaven, where the Father said: Well done good and faithful servant. Because you have given a thousand talents of service, I give you billion worth of reward. Enter into my joy!

The older brother ignored the call, married the woman of his dreams, ran a successful business, raised two kids, occasionally sent money to ‘the poor whom his brother served.’ He too died, and was taken to the gates of heaven. God welcomed him and said: Well done, faithful servant. Because you have given ten talents of service, I give you a billion of reward. Come, and enter into my joy!

When the younger brother heard his older brother also had gotten into heaven, he was surprised, but pleased. “If I had it all to do again, knowing what I know now, I would still live my life exactly how I did. De Mello concludes by saying: “Good News indeed. A generous God, and a servant who gives for the sheer joy that love brings to service.

Maybe that is the gospel question to pray into today. If you knew that people who ‘deserved the kingdom’ less than you; who abided less by the rules, who lived not as ‘correctly’ as you are still getting in, would you change anything about how you are living? If the answer is no, then we have good news indeed…