Then in keeping with Jesus’ insistence that the last will be first, in 2013 the Sox catapulted into first and won an exciting World Series! It was a tremendous turn-around and wonderful reversal of fortune.
But Jesus, we didn’t know you meant for the first to go back to being last!! This baseball season marks the Sox return to the cellar. Oh well, perhaps we’ll be first again in 2015. Hope springs eternal: “The last will rise again.”
Of course, that Gospel reading/line wasn’t about the Red Sox. It was about our God whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways, according to the September 21 reading from Isaiah (55:6-9). If they were, then God wouldn’t be God. And certainly, the last laborer in the field would not get the same amount of money for one hour of work compared to a long day of work. It just wouldn’t happen, if we made the call. Our ways are not God’s ways to be sure.
Once there was a Native American chief who was nearing the end of his life. One of his three sons was to succeed him, but he couldn’t decide which one. So he summoned them, and asked, “Do you see the mountain in the distance? I want you to journey to that mountain, climb to its summit, and then bring me back what you think will be most helpful in leading our people.”
The first and oldest son returned with flint stones for the making of arrow tips and spear points that could be used in fighting off enemies. The second son climbed the mountain and on the way down found forests rich with wood for making fires.
The third and last son returned late and empty handed. He said, “When I reached the summit I found nothing worth bringing back. The top was barren and useless. So I sat and then as I always do, I opened my heart and prayed to the Great Spirit who is my friend and constant companion whose ways I don’t always understand.
I looked to the horizon far in the distance. There was a new land filled with forests and meadow, mountains and valleys, fish and animals – a land of great beauty and great peace. I delayed coming back because I found it very difficult to return after seeing the beauty and peacefulness of the land.”
The old chief was joyous! He had his answer. His last son would be first. His youngest and third son would be the new chief and leader. He thought, “My other sons brought back worthy and necessary things. But my last son knew what was most important: beauty and peace, and as their leader, my last son will help my people feel the same way."
And that’s one meaning of our Gospel. Our worth is not based on things and possessions, like the flint or wood brought back by the first two sons. Our worth is based on whether we see and appreciate the beauty in things and in the people around us. That’s what makes us first in the eyes of God.
Our worth is not based on whether we will fight our enemies with arrow tips and spear points – or with guns, tanks, or drones. It’s based on whether we seek to heal divisions and to promote peace between people, nations, and religions. That’s what makes us first in the eyes of God.
And clearly, God’s way to first place is through love and generosity. These don’t require us to punch a time clock to determine how worthy and loved we are – whether we’re winners or losers. That’s made clear by the equally-paid laborers in the vineyard who waited all day hoping for work and finally were hired at 5 o’clock in the afternoon for just one hour of work.
And by the way, it’s not really all that important to be the first. Not everyone can be first, but everyone can be a winner simply by playing the game called life with Jesus as your player-coach.
Deacon David Pierce
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