SECTION III. THE FIRST LAST, AND THE LAST FIRST
Matt. xix. 30; xx. 1-20; Mark x. 31.
Having declared the rewards of self-sacrifice,
Jesus proceeded to show the risk of forfeiture or partial loss arising out of
the indulgence of unworthy feelings, whether as motives to self-denying acts,
or as self-complacent reflections on such acts already performed. "But," He
said in a warning manner, as if with upraised finger, "many that are first
shall be last, and the last shall be first." Then, to explain the profound
remark, He uttered the parable preserved in Matthew's Gospel only, which
follows immediately after.
The explanation is in some respects more
difficult than the thing to be explained, and has given rise to much diverse
interpretation. And yet the main drift of this parable seems clear enough. It
is not, as some have supposed, designed to teach that all will share alike in
the eternal kingdom, which is not only irrelevant to the connection of thought,
but untrue. Neither is the parable intended to proclaim the great evangelic
truth that salvation is of grace and not of merit, though it may be very proper
in preaching to take occasion to discourse on that fundamental doctrine. The
great outstanding thought set forth therein, as it seems to us, is this, that
in estimating the value of work, the divine Lord whom all serve takes into
account not merely quantity, but quality; that is, the spirit in which the work
is done.
The correctness of this view is apparent when we
take a comprehensive survey of the whole teaching of Jesus on the important
subject of work and wages in the divine kingdom, from which it appears that the
relation between the two things is fixed by righteous law, caprice being
entirely excluded; so that if the first in work be last in wages in any
instances, it is for very good reasons.
There are, in all, three parables in the Gospels
on the subject referred to, each setting forth a distinct idea, and, in case
our interpretation of the one at present to be specially considered is correct,
all combined presenting an exhaustive view of the topic to which they relate.
They are the parables of the Talents[17.27] and of the Pounds,[16.28] and the
one before us, called by way of distinction "the Laborers in the Vineyard."
In order to see how these parables are at once
distinct and mutually complementary, it is necessary to keep in view the
principles on which the value of work is to be determined. Three things must be
taken into account in order to form a just estimate of men's works, viz. the
quantity of work done, the ability of the worker, and the motive. Leaving out
of view meantime the motive: when the ability is equal, quantity determines
relative merit; and when ability varies, then it is not the absolute amount,
but the relation of the amount to the ability that ought to determine value.
The parables of the Pounds and of the Talents are
designed to illustrate respectively these two propositions. In the former
parable the ability is the same in all, each servant receiving one pound; but
the quantity of work done varies, one servant with his pound gaining ten
pounds, while another with the same amount gains only five. Now, by the above
rule, the second should not be rewarded as the first, for he has not done what
he might. Accordingly, in the parable a distinction is made, both in the
rewards given to the two servants, and in the manner in which they are
respectively addressed by their employer. The first gets ten cities to govern,
and these words of commendation in addition: "Well, thou good servant; because
thou host been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities."
The second, on the other hand, gets only five cities, and what is even more
noticeable, no praise. His master says to him dryly, "Be thou also over five
cities." He had done somewhat, in comparison with idlers even something
considerable, and therefore his service is acknowledged and proportionally
rewarded. But he is not pronounced a good and faithful servant; and the eulogy
is withheld, simply because it was not deserved: for he had not done what he
could, but only half of what was possible, taking the first servant's work as
the measure of possibility.
In the parable of the Talents the conditions are
different. There the amount of work done varies, as in the parable of the
Pounds; but the ability varies in the same proportion, so that the ratio
between the two is the same in the case of both servants who put their talents
to use. One receives five, and gains five; the other receives two, and gains
two According to our rule, these two should be equal in merit; and so they are
represented in the parable. The same reward is assigned to each, and both are
commended in the very same terms; the master's words in either case being:
"Well done, good and faithful servant; thou host been faithful over a few
things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy
lord."
Thus the case stands when we take into account
only the two elements of ability to work and the amount of work done; or, to
combine both into one, the element of zeal. But there is more than zeal to be
considered, at least in the kingdom of God. In this world men are often
commended for their diligence irrespective of their motives; and it is not
always necessary even to be zealous in order to gain vulgar applause. If one do
something that looks large and liberal, men will praise him without inquiring
whether for him it was a great thing, a heroic act involving self-sacrifice, or
only a respectable act, not necessarily indicative of earnestness or devotion.
But in God's sight many bulky things are very little, and many small things are
very great. The reason is, that He Seth the heart, and the hidden springs of
action there, and judges the stream by the fountain. Quantity is nothing to
Him, unless there be zeal; and even zeal is nothing to Him, unless it be purged
from all vain glory and self-seeking--a pure spring of good impulses; cleared
of all smoke of carnal passion--a pure flame of heaven-born devotion. A base
motive vitiates all.
To emphasize this truth, and to insist on the
necessity of right motives and emotions in connection with work and sacrifices,
is the design of the parable spoken by Jesus in Peraea. It teaches that a small
quantity of work done in a right spirit is of greater value than a large
quantity done in a wrong spirit, however zealously it may have been performed.
One hour's work done by men who make no bargain is of greater value than twelve
hours' work done by men who have borne the heat and burden of the day, but who
regard their doings with self-complacency Put in receptive form, the lesson of
the parable is: Work not as hirelings basely calculating, or as Pharisees
arrogantly exacting, the wages to which you deem yourselves entitled; work
humbly, as deeming yourselves unprofitable servants at best; generously, as men
superior to selfish calculations of advantage; trustfully, as men who confide
in the generosity of the great Employer, regarding Him as one from whom you
need not to protect yourselves by making beforehand a firm and fast bargain.
In this interpretation, it is assumed that the
spirit of the first and of the last to enter the vineyard was respectively such
as has been indicated; and the assumption is justified by the manner in which
the parties are described. In what spirit the last worked may be inferred from
their making no bargain; and the temper of the first is manifest from their own
words at the end of the day: "These last," said they, "have wrought but one
hour, and thou host made them equal to us, which have borne the burden and heat
of the day." This is the language of envy, jealousy, and self-esteem, and it is
in keeping with the conduct of these laborers at the commencement of the day's
work; for they entered the vineyard as hirelings, having made a bargain,
agreeing to work for a stipulated amount of wages.
The first and last, then, represent two classes
among the professed servants of God. The first are the calculating and
self-complacent; the last are the humble, the self-forgetful, the generous, the
trustful. The first are the Jacobs, plodding, conscientious, able to say for
themselves, "Thus I was: in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by
night, and the sleep departed from mine eyes;" yet ever studious of their own
interest, taking care even in their religion to make a sure bargain for
themselves, and trusting little to the free grace and unfettered generosity of
the great Lord. The last are Abraham-like men, not in the lateness of their
service, but in the magnanimity of their faith, entering the vineyard without
bargaining, as Abraham left his father's house, knowing not whither he was to
go, but knowing only that God had said, "Go to a land that I shall show thee."
The first are the Simons, righteous, respectable, exemplary, but hard, prosaic,
ungenial; the last are the women with alabaster boxes, who for long have been
idle, aimless, vicious, wasteful of life, but at last, with bitter tears of
sorrow over an unprofitable past, begin life in earnest, and endeavor to redeem
lost time by the passionate devotion with which they serve their Lord and
Savior. The first, once more, are the elder brothers who stay at home in their
father's house, and never transgress any of his commandments, and have no mercy
on those who do; the last are the prodigals, who leave their father's house and
waste their substance on riotous living, but at length come to their senses,
and say, "I will arise, and go to my father;" and having met him, exclaim,
"Father, I have sinned, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as
one of thy hired servants."
The two classes differing thus in character are
treated in the parable precisely as they ought to be. The last are made first,
and the first are made last. The last are paid first, to signify the pleasure
which the master has in rewarding them. They are also paid at a much higher
rate; for, receiving the same sum for one hour's work that the others receive
for twelve, they are paid at the rate of twelve pence per diem. They are
treated, in fact, as the prodigal was, for whom the father made a feast; while
the "first" are treated as the elder brother, whose service was acknowledged,
but who had to complain that his father never had given him a kid to make merry
with his friends. Those who deem themselves unworthy to be any thing else than
hired servants, and most unprofitable in that capacity, are dealt with as sons;
and those who deem themselves most meritorious are treated coldly and
distantly, as hired servants.
Reverting now from the parable to the apophthegm
it was designed to illustrate, we observe that the degradation of such as are
first in ability, zeal, and length of service, to the last place as regards the
reward, is represented as a thing likely to happen often. "Many that are first
shall be last." This statement implies that self-esteem is a sin which easily
besets men situated as the twelve, i.e. men who have made sacrifices for the
kingdom of God. Now, that this is a fact observation proves; and it further
teaches us that there are certain circumstances in which the laborious and
self-denying are specially liable to fall into the vice of self-righteousness.
It will serve to illustrate the deep and, to most minds on first view, obscure
saying of Jesus, if we indicate here what these circumstances are.
1. Those who make sacrifices for Christ's sake
are in danger of falling into a self-righteous mood of mind, when the spirit of
self-denial manifests itself in rare occasional acts, rather than in the form
of a habit. In this case Christians rise at certain emergencies to an elevation
of spirit far above the usual level of their moral feelings; and therefore,
though at the time when the sacrifice was made they may have behaved
heroically, they are apt afterwards to revert self-complacently to their noble
deeds, as an old soldier goes back on his battles, and with Peter to ask, with
a proud consciousness of merit for having forsaken all, What shall we have
therefore? Verily, a state of mind greatly to be feared. A society in which
spiritual pride and self-complacency prevails is in a bad way. One possessed of
prophetic insight into the moral laws of the universe can foretell what will
happen. The religious community which deems itself first will gradually fall
behind in gifts and graces, and some other religious community which it
despises will gradually advance onward, till the two have at length, in a way
manifest to all men, changed places.
2. There is great danger of degeneracy in the
spirit of those who make sacrifices for the kingdom of God, when any particular
species of service has come to be much in demand, and therefore to be held in
very high esteem. Take, as an example, the endurance of physical tortures and
of death in times of persecution. It is well known with what a furor of
admiration martyrs and confessors were regarded in the suffering church of the
early centuries. Those who suffered martyrdom were almost deified by popular
enthusiasm: the anniversaries of their death--of their birthdays,[16.29] as
they were called, into the eternal world--were observed with religious
solemnity, when their doings and sufferings in this world were rehearsed with
ardent admiration in strains of extravagant eulogy. Even the confessors, who
had suffered, but not died for Christ, were looked up to as a superior order of
beings, separated by a wide gulf from the common herd of untried Christians.
They were saints, they had a halo of glory round their heads; they had power
with God, and could, it was believed, bind or loose with even more authority
than the regular ecclesiastical authorities. Absolution was eagerly sought for
from them by the lapsed; admission to their communion was regarded as an open
door by which sinners might return into the fellowship of the church. They had
only to say to the erring, ego in peace," and even bishops must receive them.
Bishops joined with the populace in this idolatrous homage to the men who
suffered for Christ's sake. They petted and flattered the confessors, partly
from honest admiration, but party also from policy, to Induce others to imitate
their example, and to foster the virtue of hardihood, so much needed in
suffering times.
This state of feeling in the church was obviously
fraught with great danger to the souls of those who endured hardship for the
truth, as tempting them to fanaticism, vanity, spiritual pride, all
presumption. Nor were they all by any means temptation-proof. Many took all the
praise thou received as their due, all deemed themse1ves persons of great
consequence. The soldiers, who had been flattered by their generals to make
them brave, began to act as if they were the masters, and could write, for
examp1e, to one who had been a special offender in the extravagance of his
eulogies, such a letter as this: "All the confessors to Cyprian the bishop:
Know that we have granted peace to all those of whom you have had an account
what they have done: how they have behaved since the commission of their
crimes; and we would that these presents should be by you imparted to the rest
of the bishops. We wish you to maintain peace with the holy martyrs."[16.30]
Thus was fulfilled in those confessors the saying, "Many that are first shall
be last." First in suffering for the truth and in reputation for sanctity, they
became last in the judgment of the great Searcher of hearts. They gave their
bodies to be scourged, maimed, burned, and it profited them little or
nothing.[16.31
3. The first are in danger of becoming the last
when self-denial is reduced to a System, and practiced ascetically, not for
Christ's sake, but for one's own sake. That in respect of the amount of
self-denial the austere ascetic is entitled to rank first, nobody will deny.
But his right to rank first in intrinsic spiritual worth, and therefore in the
divine kingdom, is more open to dispute. Even in respect to the fundamental
matter of getting rid of self, he may be, not first, but last. The self-denial
of the ascetic is in a subtle way intense self-assertion. True Christian
self-sacrifice signifies hardship, loss undergone, not for its own sake, but
for Christ's sake, and for truth's sake, at a time when truth cannot be
maintained without sacrifice. But the self-sacrifice of the ascetic is not of
this kind. It is all endured for his own sake, for his own spiritual benefit
and credit. He practices self-denial after the fashion of a miser, who is a
total abstainer from all luxuries, and even grudges himself the necessaries of
life because he has a passion for hoarding. Like the miser, he deems himself
rich; yet both he and the miser are alike poor: the miser, because with all his
wealth he cannot part with his coin in exchange for enjoyable commodities; the
ascetic, because his coins, "good works," so called, painful acts of
abstinence, are counterfeit, and will not pass current m the kingdom of heaven.
All his labors to save his soul will turn out to be just so much rubbish to be
burned up; and if he be saved at all, it will be as by fire.
Recalling now for a moment the three classes of
cases in which the first are in danger of becoming last, we perceive that the
word "many" is not an exaggeration. For consider how much of the work done by
professing Christians belongs to one or other of these categories: occasional
spasmodic efforts; good works of liberality and philanthropy, which are in
fashion and in high esteem in the religious world; and good works done, not so
much from interest in the work, as from their reflex bearing on the doer's own
religious interests. Many are called to work in God's vineyard, and many are
actually at work. But few are chosen; few are choice workers; few work for God
in the spirit of the precepts taught by Jesus.
But though there be few such workers, there are
some. Jesus does not say all who are first shall be last, and all who are last
shall be first: His word is many. There are numerous exceptions to the rule in
both its parts. Not all who bear the heat and burden of the day are mercenary
and self-righteous. No; the Lord has always had in His spiritual vineyard a
noble band of workers, who, if there were room for boasting in any case, might
have boasted on account of the length, the arduousness, and the efficiency of
their service, yet cherished no self-complacent thoughts, nor indulged in any
calculations how much more they should receive than others. Think of devoted
missionaries to heathen lands; of heroic reformers like Luther, Calvin, Knox,
and Latimer; of eminent men of our own day, recently taken from amongst us. Can
you fancy such men talking like the early laborers in the vineyard? Nay,
verily! all through life their thoughts of themselves and their service were
very humble indeed; and at the close of life's day their day's work seemed to
them a very sorry matter, utterly undeserving of the great reward of eternal
life. Such first ones shall not be last.
If there be some first who shall not be last,
there are doubtless also some last who shall not be first. If it were
otherwise; if to be last in length of service, in zeal and devotion, gave a man
an advantage, it would be ruinous to the interests of the kingdom of God. It
would, in fact, be in effect putting a premium on indolence, and encouraging
men to stand all the day idle, or to serve the devil till the eleventh hour;
and then in old age to enter the vineyard, and give the Lord the poor hour's
work, when their limbs were stiff and their frames feeble and tottering. No
such demoralizing law obtains in the divine kingdom. Other things being equal,
the longer and the more earnestly a man serves God, the sooner he begins, and
the harder he works, the better for himself hereafter. If those who begin late
in the day are graciously treated, it is in spite, not in consequence, of their
tardiness. That they have been so long idle is not a commendation, but a sin;
not a subject of self-congratulation, but of deep humiliation. If it be wrong
for those who have served the Lord much to glory in the greatness of their
service, it is surely still more unbecoming, even ridiculous, for any one to
pride himself in the littleness of his. If the first has no cause for boasting
and self-righteousness, still less has the last.
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