DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- AN EVIL EYE

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – AN EVIL EYE

" 'Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things?  Or is your eye evil because I am good?' "  (Matthew 20:15)

Remember the parable that Jesus told.  It was about the master of an estate who had ripe grapes to harvest.  He needed more workers in the vineyard, so he went to the town square and hired men to harvest his grapes, and he and the workers agreed on a fair wage.  About 9:00 in the morning, he saw other men in the market-place who needed work and he hired them, also, and again they agreed to the wages.  As the day progressed, he still needed more workers, so at noon, and at 3:00, and at 5:00, he hired still more workers.

At the end of the day, the workers all gathered with the land-owner to be paid their wages.  The twist to the story is that they were all paid the same wages.  The ones who began working early in the day became angry because the ones hired last were paid the same wage, and they complained that the master was unfair.  After all, they had endured working in the hot sun all day.

The landowner replied that they had all agreed to the wages, and that he had the right to pay them what he wanted.  It may not have seemed fair, but it was just.  He had not deceived them, and he had the legitimate right to be generous and use his own money as he wished. The money was his to begin with. The laborers who complained had an evil eye because, instead of being thankful for what they were paid and glad that others were blessed, they thought they had been mistreated.  

Sometimes I complain about how God seemed to bless other Christians more than myself.  God has the right to do what He desires to do.  He can bless whomever he wants because He is the Master of the field.  

In the final analysis, God has promised the gift of salvation and heaven to all who believe.  This is equality, but it is not equity.  Beyond that, God can and does bless each person according to His own good pleasure.  God is a just God, and He knows what I need.  My complaining only proves that I have an evil eye of envy.  Instead, I should be thankful and rejoice when God blesses other people.   

Love,  Dad