The Riches of Purpose

Location: Tea Room
Matthew 20:1-16 (NIV)

"About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’" (Matt 20:6-7, NIV).

While on a trip, I met the nicest ladies ever who ran the best tea room in the state. Ok, so it’s the only tea room in that state that I’ve been too, but I don’t know, I don’t think it can be topped. One of the ladies who worked there used to be an event planner that put on many large events, but due to the COVID situation, she had to find employment elsewhere because there were no events happening. I’m sure you know someone who’s employment was affected by coronavirus. Whether it’s a business owner, a musician, a freelance worker, or a myriad of other possibilities, being out of work can be devastating. And if being out of work is where you find yourself today, I’m so sorry that happened.

This lady’s circumstance from the tea room, among many others stories of lost work, made me think about Jesus talking about how the Kingdom of Heaven is like a landowner who finds workers for a vineyard. 

In the past, this story from Jesus never sat well with me. I couldn’t understand how a just God would pay people the same for unequal work and then tell them they weren't allowed to be angry about it. I didn’t get it. But as I heard this women’s story at the tea room about having to find work elsewhere, not because she chose to leave her job, but because she was unable to work at her old job due to the affects of the virus, I realized that maybe I was thinking about labor and work in this passage the wrong way. 

I realized that I had been looking at work as something negative, like a chore where your mom makes you pull weeds in the yard. Yes, I want a nice looking yard, but having to pull the weeds in 90 degrees in July? That sounds like a lot of work and not something that I’m rushing to do. When I think about work in this negative light, it seems completely unfair to me that the landowner would pay the all-day workers the same as the part-day workers.

But what if the labor Jesus was referring to wasn’t a chore? What if being called to work by the landowner - by God - is actually a gift? What if it is a prize to not be standing around purposeless, but to be asked to do something with meaning? Would we be mad if all the laborers met the same end if we were given the riches of a significant purpose?

What if it is a prize to not be standing around purposeless, but to be asked to do something with meaning?

You have been given a purpose today. You’ve been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-20). You do not have to stand around. You have been called. You have been equipped with the gifts to do the work you were meant to do. And, you have an eternal purpose with God.

Holy God, thank you for equipping us each with unique experiences, life stories, one-of-a-kind talents, and spiritual gifts so that we might have the riches of meaning and purpose. Guide us as we walk in our purpose today. Amen.

​Reflect: What purpose is God calling you towards? (Hint: Many times, healing from tragic circumstances in our past equips us to help others - what experiences come to mind for you?) What does the ministry of reconciliation mean to you (2 Cor. 5:18-20)?

Works Consulted
Blue Letter Bible, "Idle - argos" from Matthew 20:3, Accessed August 9, 2020. ​https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G692&t=NIV
Blue Letter Bible, "Standing around - histemi" from Matthew 20:6, Accessed August 9, 2020. https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G2476&t=NIV