Envy || Mathew 20:1-16

Kia ora and welcome to the St Francis Church

sermon podcast. We're so glad that you've joined

us. Our prayer is that as you listen, you would

encounter God's presence. Be refreshed in your

faith and equipped for everyday life with Jesus.

As a church, we are learning to faithfully follow

Jesus by practicing His way at His pace. For

more info about who we are and what God is doing

among us, head to stfrancis .co .nz. Grace and

peace. Morning everybody. I really enjoy my weekly

visits to my two grandsons down the road. I don't

know whether you can see them, Mitchell and Finn.

I love them to bits. But as young as they are,

I'm very much aware that they're already displaying

a key human quality, envy. So envy is defined

as a painful or bitter resentment of another

person's better fortune. So every week I have

to bring two of everything, two grapefruit, two

chocolates, whatever it is, and I have to try

to divide my time the same between the two of

them, otherwise envy sets in. And that's what

today's gospel is all about, highlighting this

quality of envy. So I'd like to go through the

reading, which Jenny has just read out, and reflect

upon each section of it. So we have the landowner,

owner of a vineyard. He goes out in the morning,

six o 'clock in the morning, to the marketplace

of the village, the local village. And he looks

for laborers, the promising laborers that look

strong enough to do the vineyard work. then he

agrees with those laborers for a denarius, which

was the standard coin of those days, for a day's

labor. So that was set as the pay or the wage

for a whole day's work from six to six. So he

agrees with them that day, sends them into vignette.

And if that was the end of the story, at the

end of the day, there wouldn't have been an issue

about them claiming any more. No question of

it. However, He goes out about nine o 'clock,

three hours later. He sees others standing idle

in the marketplace. These would be men hoping

to feed their families, getting a day's wage,

and at the end of the day, going home satisfied

that they'd earned their money. But they were

now standing idle. He says, you also go into

the vineyard. I will pay you whatever is right.

So not the denarius. He doesn't promise them

that. Whatever is fair, whatever is right. So

they went. It goes out at 12 o 'clock, 3 o 'clock,

and then at 5 o 'clock, one hour to go before

the end of the working day, he finds others still

standing around desperately hoping for some work

to feed their families, and he said, you go into

the vineyard too. Now, when those who were hired

at about 5 o 'clock came, each of them received

a denarius. So this is a story about the generosity.

of that landowner. He didn't have to pay them

a denarius or anything remotely like that, but

out of his kindness and compassion, knowing that

they were laborers, knowing they needed the money,

he pays them the full day's wage. Now when the

first came, they thought they would receive more.

So again, you think of my two grandsons comparing

as granddad giving me more chocolate than, you

know, sort of thing. So. But each of them also

received the same denarius for a full 12 -hour

day. When they received it, they grumbled against

the landowners saying, these last worked only

one hour making comparisons and you've made them

equal to us who've borne the burden of the day

and the scorching heat. So again, sense of comparison

coming out. But the landowner replies to them.

Friend, I'm doing you no wrong. Did you not agree

with me for the standard wage, the denarius?

What's the problem? Are you envious and the Greek

is poneros, evil, ophthalmos eye? Have you got

the evil green eye? Because I'm generous? That's

the story. So I just wonder. Why do human beings

have this very strong impulse to be envious?

And I can just talk about my own life. I was

from an early stage channeled into thinking of

myself in comparison with others, my older sister,

my younger brother, my cousins, whatever it was.

And I was directed into competition with others

on the tennis court, who was going to come first

in class, right, the sense of competition. measuring

up to other people's standards. I remember taking

piano lessons, and I reached a certain level,

but not beyond that, and I became envious of

people like Belinda, who are so much better than

me, comparing myself with others. What Jesus

is pointing to is that self worth should not

be defined by other people's condition. A far

better way is to focus gratefully on who I am,

and what I have and have been given by a gracious

and compassionate God. And I'm called to do the

best I can with what I have been given and leave

others to enjoy what God in his generosity has

given to them. In that way I can live a happier

and more productive life. Envy is at the end

of the day completely futile. It's not going

to change anything. Now there's a story about

Rabbi Zusha who lived some time ago in Eastern

Europe. And on his deathbed he began to cry uncontrollably

and his students and disciples tried hard to

comfort him. They asked him, Rabbi, why do you

weep? You are almost as wise as Moses. There's

the comparison coming in. You are almost as hospitable

as Abraham. and surely heaven will judge you

favorably." Zusha answered them. When I get to

heaven, I won't worry so much if God has asked

me, Zusha, why were you not more like Abraham

or Moses? After all, I was not given the righteousness

of Abraham or the faith of Moses. But what will

I say when God asks me, Zusha, why were you not

more like So Lord I pray that I will be the best

Peter that I can be.