Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last - Matthew 20:16

In our Gospel Reading, heaven is described as a landowner of a vineyard, who went out early in the morning to hire workers. After employing the first group at 6:00 in the morning, he returned at 9am, at 12 noon, and at 3 in the afternoon, hiring more workers as the urgency of the harvest increased. The scripture says he came back a final time about the “eleventh hour” that’s approximately 5pm, and hired a concluding number. Then an hour later, all the workers gathered to receive their day’s wage. Surprisingly, all received the same wage in spite of the different hours of labor. Immediately, those hired first were angry, saying, "The men who came last have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day's work in all the heat." When reading this gospel, perhaps you as well as those workers have felt that there was injustice done here.

Well first of all no one has been treated unfairly here. The first workers agreed to the full wage of the day, and they received it. Moreover they were, I can only imagine, very grateful to get the job. In the time of Jesus, an average man and his family could not do much more than live on what they made that day. If you didn’t work or farm or fish or sell, most likely, you have nothing to eat. Survival jud dapat. The first men chosen were the most fortunate that morning. Indeed if there is any sympathy, it should at least be for the men who were not chosen that day, who also had their own family to feed. Everytime mag visit ang land owner nung araw na yun, they always saw someone else chosen. Then pagka 11^th hour si land owner naghanap na naman ng workers, the last and most discouraged of workers, hearing that they will be treated fairly, accepted the work na di pa talaga nila alam magkano sweldo nila and also knowing that anything will be better than nothing, as they all gathered for their payment, they were stunned to receive the same as all the others, shock jud sila syempre, I can imagine they must be very very grateful!

I feel for the first workers, sabi pa ng land owner "My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the last comer as much as I pay you. Have I no right to do what I like with my own?  Then there’s this piercing question: “Why should you be envious because I am generous?"

Recently, I was laid off by my dream company understanding that God has better plans for me, I landed a job at a real estate company as a sales manager. I was the youngest sales manager in our region, until someone was hired also as a sales manager in a different division who is younger than me making him the youngest sales manager; I kept questioning myself, Bakit? Paano siya nahire? Wala naman siyang job experience, knowing him, hindi naman talaga siya qualified as sales manager. pero ako I’ve been employed before in big companies, pero bakit siya? Then sinabihan ako ng girlfriend ko, “Bitter ka lage? Wag ka gud maging bitter, basta pasalamat ka sales manager ka yun lang intindihin mo!” ayun.. Bitterness..

Bitterness, it makes us think of inequality in something that has given to us. We tend to question and weight these things and claim that we deserve more than anyone. It's basically a sign of immaturity and weakness. Because if you are mature, you won't complain and ask for more, instead you will thank what you had received and make the most out of it. Bitter people are like the envious students in class who always compare their grades with others. Their famous (a bit exaggerated) tag line would be "Ang daya, bakit mas mataas grade mo?" when they try to compare their work with others. Comparing what you don't have with what others have won't make you better, in terms of grades, yes, in terms of values and real knowledge, NO. If you keep comparing and comparing even the smallest (so-called biased) blessing things you receive, you will end up relying on them, wasting your time, your energy and most importantly losing self-confidence and the ability to face and DEAL WITH IT. I admit, I'm one of those bitter people that measure every corner of unfairness in the world. Like what I do, comparing my stuff with the brand-new things my friend has, bakit siya pinanganak mayaman, ako hindi? Especially when I work hard on something and feel like I really deserve something more. But remember: God made us equal. We might have low income but income isn't everything. We might be uglier but looks isn't everything. And there's always "something" that makes us stand out and be unique.

Brothers and sisters, there are going to be times in our lives when someone else gets an unexpected blessing or receives some special recognition. Let us not be hurt and certainly not feel envious when good fortune comes to another person. We are not in a race against each other to see who is the wealthiest or the most talented or the most beautiful or even the most blessed. The race we are really in is the race against sin, and surely envy is one of the most universal of those.

This Gospel in not really about wages, workers, vineyard or whatever. This is a story about God’s goodness. His patience, his forgiveness, his genenoristy and compassion. It is about grace. Tingin ko, thrill ito kay Lord, being merciful especially to those who don’t expect it and often feel they don’t deserve it. Guys, I had ZERO faith before joining in this ministry, college na ako nun dun pa ako nagka faith kay Lord. However late you think you are, how many chances you think you have missed, kahit ang dami mo nang mali nagawa. I affirm the renewing power of God’s love and the miracle of His grace. His concern is for the faith at which you finally arrive, not the hour of the day in which you got there. It’s never too late.

-Papat Banes