Listen to this article:
Jesus tells a story (Matthew 20) about a landowner who goes out to the parking lot of a Home Depot at the crack of dawn to hire some laborers to work on his property . After agreeing to $400 for the day’s work, the workers hopped on the back of the landowner’s pickup truck to start their work day. (Okay, I might change some of the details slightly for modernity’s sake)
As the first group was working hard, the landowner went back to the Home Depot near his home around 9am and found some more people eager to work. After agreement of the wages, the new group of workers headed to the property to start their day.
Then at noon and at three in the afternoon, the landowner did the same; looking for workers at Home Depot. Finally at 5pm, he went back to the parking lot of Home Depot and saw those who weren’t hired. He offered them work and they agreed.
When the work day ended, they stood in line to receive their wages. The group that got hired at 5pm received $400 each for their labor. Those who were hired at the crack of dawn were getting excited.
They were all thinking “If those guys got $400 for just an hour of work, how much are we gonna get paid?”
But when the landowner came to them, each of them got $400.
It was difficult for them to feel excited for this paycheck because it just seemed so… unfair.
One of them spoke up: “Hey, this isn’t really fair. We worked our butts off all day in the sun. And these guys who only worked for one hour — avoided the harsh sun — they get the same amount as us? Make that make sense!”
“Friends,” responded the landowner. “I paid you what we agreed on, didn’t I? I haven’t done anything wrong, after all, I’m doing what I seem fit with my own money — can’t I at least do that? Or are you resentful because I’m generous?”
That’s basically how Jesus ends that story.
It’s a fascinating question: are you resentful because I’m generous?
Have you ever been resentful at someone’s generosity?
Instinctively, we want to say “no”, right? Who gets upset at someone being generous?
But if you think about it and press upon it, I’m certain we can all find moments where we were resentful towards someone being generous. Oh, definitely not towards us. We’re never resentful when generosity comes our way. But when someone we deem undeserving or unworthy experiences generosity? There’s a chance where it may simply rub us the wrong way.
Think about how some people talked about the possibility of student debt forgiveness. A loud contingency of people noted “I paid all of mine off so they should pay off theirs too!”
Or what about that colleague who you feel isn’t worthy but gets that coveted promotion?
Or maybe your parents “generously” dote on your sibling who seemingly can do no wrong and yet you… you’re just… there.
If we’re honest with ourselves, I think we would rather have God be fair than generous. Or at least, God be fair in our favor. What you have to understand is that this God of ours, this God is not a fair God.
Rather than complain and lament that God is not fair, we should be grateful that God isn’t fair. Because if God was actually fair, we’d be getting what we deserve--and as Paul writes “all have fallen short of the glory of God.”
Not fair, but generous
Instead of being fair, our God is a generous God.
Over and over, God consistently and continuously shows us that God is a generous God — generous in grace; generous in love. Our God is not just a God of second chances but of third, fourth, fifth and on and on chances because God is not fair but generous.
As God’s children, then, we should aim to be generous people.
A lot of our talk about generosity in churches seems to be limited to money and finances. Which is important because where our treasure is, there also lies our heart. A budget is a moral document because it shows us where our priorities truly lie. But really, as a follower of Christ, our generosity should extend beyond our wallets. We’re called to be generous with our time; with our possessions; with our… lives. We’re called to be generous because God is generous. We’re called to give ourselves because God, through Jesus Christ, gave himself. Freely.
One way to keep practicing the art of generosity is to continue to remain grateful. I feel very certain that gratitude is the foundation of generosity. It’s hard to be generous when we’re not grateful for the things in our lives. But if we can make gratitude a permanent attitude, I think it opens us up to be more generous with every aspect of my life.
Remember: we Christians believe that everything on God’s green earth belongs to God. Therefore, we are not entitled to anything but we are entrusted with everything. So continue to be faithful stewards of all that you have been entrusted with. May you continue to be grateful and may you continue to be generous with what you have been entrusted with.
Joseph Yoo is the author When the Saints Go Flying in. He is a West Coaster at heart contently living in Houston, Texas with his wife and son. He serves at Mosaic Church in Houston. Find more of his writing at josephyoo.com.
