I Deserve This.
The first group of laborers complained to the landowner, “You have made them equals to us.” (emphasis is mine). They also credited themselves, “We bore the day’s burden and the heat.”
To be fair to them, they were there at dawn, ready to work.
We hear these kind of expressions that often. We all probably have said or thought similarly about ourselves too. We worked hard. We took our job seriously. We deserved it. Then we compare ourselves with others, “We work harder. They don’t deserve it.”
There is room for a system of merits and rewards in human society. Sometimes, it’s even a matter of justice.
But we are wrong to apply this way of thinking to God and God’s gift.
If the landowner had not given the laborers work, all of them, including the first group, could be “standing idle all day.”
God’s forgiveness, mercy, and love are all given to us unconditionally.
If God had not created us, we would not even exist. Moreover, God gave us God’s only Son to die for us sinners to save us and to make us children of God. The Holy Spirit is present to guide us to eternal life with the Trinity.
Therefore, gratitude is the only thing we have to offer.
Image source: www.agnusday.org
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