Wednesday, July 16, 2003
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
"Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give
to you."
You know the result of Cain's envy. Is there any emotion more basic to our natures than that of
jealousy of another's gain?
Our text for the day is a wondrous display of the generosity of God. "The Kingdom of God," said
Jesus, "is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his
vineyard..." Some of the laborers the householder hired at six a.m., some he hired at nine, others
he hired at noon, more at three, some were hired an hour before quitting time. When the time
came to distribute the day's wages, all the workers received pay for a full day's work including
those who had worked just one hour. And those who worked all day were furious. It wasn't fair.
May we focus less on the unfairness of life and more on the wonderful gifts from God.
(Matthew 20.14
NRSV)
One of the most basic elements in the make-up of human beings is envy. We see it on the first
pages of our Bibles. Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain, a tiller of the ground. "In the course of
time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel brought of the
firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering,
but for Cain and his offering, he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance
fell..." (Gen. 4:3-5)
Dear God, I have a lot to be thankful for. Thank you for your generosity. Amen.
