God's Not Fair!
God’s Not Fair!
Have you ever heard anyone say this? Well, in a very real sense they are right. Please let me explain before you get upset with me. Nowhere in scripture is God described as fair. I checked three concordances (NIV, NASB, & KJV) and I couldn't find the word “fair” used anywhere to describe God.
Unfortunately, when people expect God to be fair, they are using a standard of this world to try to explain an aspect of God’s character, and it just doesn’t fit who He is. God is Holy and, as such, He is gracious and compassionate. Being gracious and compassionate is a whole lot better than being fair. If God were fair, He would give us what we deserve and none of us would really like that.
However, take a look at what He is really like. Psalm 103:8 says: “the Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love”. Verse 10 states: “He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities”. Lastly, verse 13 says: “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on His those who fear Him.”
The ‘Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard’ in Matthew chapter 20 (vs 1-16) gives us great insight into God’s heart and character. In this story, the master of the house one morning decided to hire some laborers for his vineyard. The laborers agreed to work for what he offered – a denarius for a day’s worth of work. At the third hour the master went out into the marketplace and hired some more laborers. Going out again at the sixth and ninth hours, the master hired even more laborers. And he hired yet even more at the eleventh hour. That evening the master and told his foreman to pay the laborers their wages, starting with those who were hired last. When those who were hired first came forward to be paid, they thought they would be paid more than those hired last but they too received a denarius, exactly what was paid to all the other workers. In response, the workers who worked the longest complained. They didn’t think the master was being fair. However, the master explained to them that they agreed to work for a denarius. Nothing unfair about that! The master simply chose to be gracious and compassionate to the last workers what he paid to the first workers. The master said to the workers: “Am I not allowed to do what I choose and with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?”
It is obvious that the master was working on a different set of principles than the workers. While being fair is a good thing, being gracious and compassionate is a whole lot better because it is an expression of generosity and love, and this accurately reflects the character of God and the way He is towards us.
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