today's other readings are Ez. 34: 1-11 and Psalm 23
The Parable of the Vineyard Workers is one of those parables that prompts a sense of unease by all who dutiful and good. To which our Lord Jesus says, "Good - that's what I want".
What is going on here? First let us remember that it was shared with good people who resented Jesus’ outreach to sinners. They could not understand why God would love sinners as much as those who had been obedient all their lives. They could not understand how God would allow those one to be welcomed to the Kingdom of Heaven while they had been working all day in the heat of the sun for the promised full wage. Why should latecomers and slackers enjoy the same full pay they had earned - why should they get the same reward?
This Parable of the Vineyard Workers continues to challenge our logic and sense of fairness. Only when we look at ourselves honestly do we realize that every single one of us are slackers, lost sheep, prodigal sons and daughters, and latecomers, will we be able to our thinking that somehow we have earned a bigger slice of heaven then those slackers. For our God is a God of mercy and compassion far greater than we possess or can conceive. For this we should give thanks, rather than being resentful. How great is our God.