"And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.
But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.
And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,
Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?
Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.
Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?"
Matthew 20:9-15
Reading through this parable again today and the complaint here struck me "thou hast made them equal unto us." From one perspective, it seems reasonable for the people who worked longer to expect more compensation, but even now with employment in a corporation, our employment agreement isn't affected by other employment agreements. We agreed to a wage, and we won't get an automatic raise if someone gets hired who works less or even performs the job poorly. Similarly here... we would be expected to fulfil the terms of our agreement anyway. Not saying that corporations are poster children to look up to, but I think it does show one side of the issue, which is our responsibility to the agreements that we made. With God, if we are baptized and agree to follow the commandments, we don't get to throw out that agreement because someone else isn't living up to their agreement with the Lord. Our baptism isn't nullified because of what anyone else does. God still holds up his agreement with us, if we hold up our agreement with him.
More than that though, since this is a parable also reflecting spiritual realities, I wonder if our complaints about others are based in a deep desire NOT for equality, but to triumph over everyone else. God teaches love and cooperation, and in a lot of ways our sense of competition, or wanting more than someone else, is in direct opposition to that, right? If we loved those laborers and knew that they hadn't been able to find work, would we be angry that they were getting the same wages or thankful that they and their families would be taken care of? I think this also goes back to a basic question for all of us: when we see others have amazing things happen in their lives, are we happy for them, or do we become jealous? Since we owe God everything, are we going to start arguing about whose sins are worse and who deserves a better place in heaven, or are we going to be grateful for anything we can get, and thankful that other people are blessed to be there as well?
Today, let's take a hard look at our attitudes towards others and if we need a mind shift, let's pray and ask God to help us see others as he does... as worthy of miracles, blessings, and even random and perhaps undeserved opportunities, just as we likely desire in our own lives. As we learn to love on a deeper level and make ourselves equal (Doctrine and Covenants 70:14, 78:5-6, 104:16-18), we will be able to work together with each other and God and eventually be blessed with an even better type of equality, born of love and also undeserved (Doctrine and Covenants 88:107). That is what our agreement with God is. We agree to work for him, and he agrees to bless us beyond our wildest dreams with something we in no way deserve. Let's rejoice in that uneven agreement, and put our hearts and souls into living up to that love.
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