"That's not fair!" Every kid knows this phrase instinctively. Someone else got more candy. Someone else is getting to play. Or worse yet: I studied hard to get an A on the test, but the teacher gifted everyone an A?! If kids were adults, they'd probably start dropping buzzwords like: 'Inequity! Injustice! Travesty! Who is the tyrant who would perpetuate such an outrage?' Enter the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. Jesus tells a story where a landowner hires folks at varying times during a day, but - at the end of the day - everyone gets the same pay. You can envision the lawsuits. Yet Jesus sees no injustice and instead says "I paid you what we agreed; do you resent my generosity?" Why does this aggravate us so much? If God is a God of justice (and he is), what is he revealing about our hearts and his? What lens gives him joy where we see only bitterness? Let's talk about "No Fair!" (Matthew 19:30-20:16).
