the eleventh hour

I became a Christian when I was really young. I think I was about six years old. This weight-lifting, phonebook-ripping, ice-smashing clan of strong men and women who love Jesus, called "The Power Team", came to my church, wowed me by their big muscles and then told me about the Gospel of Christ. Though I was small, I knew that I wanted Jesus in my heart. It was simple. My parents are believers and we'd always prayed together and talked about Jesus openly. After that, I would raise my hand to accept Jesus in my heart nearly every week at Sunday School, until my parents finally told me that Jesus would stay in my heart forever and that I didn't have to ask him to come back every week. Amen to that!

Truthfully, I've lived a spiritually rich life ever since... a lot of ups and downs and discoveries and disappointments, but Jesus has consistently been near to me throughout all, and I have known that.

I love hearing testimonies of individuals who have been far from religion and faith for most of their lives and then, through some crazy revelation, find that God is real and that Jesus is worth following. It's amazing! I never had that kind of story, but I love to hear them. My story is important too, it's just different.

I used to wonder if there was any sort of special "reward" for loving Jesus longer than everyone else. It sounds absolutely absurd, of course, but I really thought it. I was happy that they became Christians, but secretly I felt like Jesus and I had some deal made where he would bless me more, lift me higher, let me be more of a leader, help me be a super-Christian. And he has blessed me incredibly! But not just me, and certainly not because I was a Christian ages ago. Our Father doesn't work that way.

In Matthew 20, Jesus is talking to his disciples about this very thing. He tells a parable about a house-master hiring workers to work in the fields, promising them a day's wages for it. Hours later, after the sun has gone down and the bulk of tough work has finished already (the eleventh hour of the day), he hires on more laborers and then pays them the same amount of day's wages. Those hired first grumbled at the injustice of this saying, "These last worked only one hour and you have made them equal to us who who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat", to which the master replies, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you agree with me for your day's wages? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?'.

So the last will be first, and the first last.

It's not unfair. 

He can do whatever he wants.

I have absolutely no entitlement to anything at all. 

In fact, I have more responsibility, more to own up to. 

"So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, 

but only God who gives the growth.

He who plants and he who waters are one, 

and each will receive his wages according to his labor.

For we are all God's fellow workers. 

You are God's field, God's building.

According to the grace of God given to me, 

like a skilled master I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it.

Let each one take care how he builds upon it...

Now if anyone builds on the foundation with

gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw--

each one's work will become manifest,

for the Day will disclose it, 

because it will be revealed by fire,

and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, 

he will receive a reward.

If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss,

though he himself will be saved,

but only as through fire.

1 Corinthians 3:7-15

Dude. 

That's heavy

and beautiful.

A lot to think about.

How do I react to those who are brought into the Kingdom at the eleventh hour? Am I gracious?

And how am I taking care of all that is being built upon the foundation that was laid down decades ago on my heart? Would I be ready to account for it all today, if I had to?