A Labor of Love

As Labor Day approaches, I'm reminded of the story in Matthew chapter 8 which describes a landowner hiring vineyard workers. The first group is hired early in the morning, while subsequent groups are hired at various time throughout the day, with the last group going to work just one hour before quitting time. When it is time to be paid, the last ones to be hired receive a full day's wages, as does everyone else, including the first ones hired. The first ones hired are indignant because they are not paid more than the others.

The ones who worked the entire day are not so much angry over the amount they are paid -- they receive their promised wages -- they are upset because of the unfairness of the situation. Their perception is that the last workers hired got a nice bonus which they didn't deserve.

The first laborers hired, "...grumbled at the landowner, saying, 'These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.' But he answered and said to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius [standard day's wages]? Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?' So the last shall be first, and the first last." (verses 11-16)

One of the foundational teachings of Jesus is to proclaim the kind of equality described in this story, to promote the poor and to provide equal footing to all, regardless of one's social standing, or what others think someone else may or may not "deserve." The celebration of Labor day has its roots in the early labor union movement, specifically efforts to end harsh working conditions, thereby giving a voice to those in poverty. As such, I believe it is probably one of the more "Christian" holidays we celebrate in America. Christmas and Easter commemorate the birth and death of Jesus, but Labor Day could be viewed as a celebration of the way Jesus lived: encouraging work and productivity, while teaching the vital importance of caring about what happens to other people.

His life was a labor of love. Let us always pursue the same line of work as Jesus.