March 18: The Last Shall Be First
♫ Music:
Day 14 - Tuesday, March 18
Title: The Last Shall Be First
Scripture #1: Matthew 20:8–16 (NKJV)
“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’ So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”
Scripture #2: Mark 2:15–17 (NKJV)
Tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Poetry & Poet:
“To the Tax Collectors after the Bandits Retreat”
Yuan Jie translated by Kiang Kanghu
I still remember those days of peace --
Twenty years among mountains and forests,
The pure stream running past my yard,
The caves and valleys at my door.
Taxes were light and regular then,
And I could sleep soundly and late in the morning-
Till suddenly came a sorry change.
...For years now I have been serving in the army.
When I began here as an official,
The mountain bandits were rising again;
But the town was so small it was spared by the thieves,
And the people so poor and so pitiable
That all other districts were looted
And this one this time let alone.
...Do you imperial commissioners
Mean to be less kind than bandits?
The people you force to pay the poll
Are like creatures frying over a fire.
And how can you sacrifice human lives,
Just to be known as able collectors? --
...Oh, let me fling down my official seal,
Let me be a lone fisherman in a small boat
And support my family on fish and wheat
And content my old age with rivers and lakes!
THE LAST SHALL BE FIRST
Gracias has become one of the most essential terms in the Spanish language. After words like “papá” (dad) and “mama” (mom), “gracias” (thank you) is part of the everyday vocabulary of all Spanish speakers. In all cultures, expressing gratitude to others represents good manners and civil interaction. For this reason, parents teach their children to say thank you as part of their early education. In Spanish, gracias preserves the etymological root of the word “grace” that we miss in English. Sadly, even Spanish speakers tend to be reminded about grace's importance without reflecting on its meaning in their lives.
Grace is the foundational term for Christianity because it describes its unique distinctiveness. We are sinners separated from a holy God. There is nothing we can do to earn God’s favor or to erase our sin and its consequences from our lives. In our desperation, we discover an exceptional passage in the Scriptures that turns our world and our dire situation upside down:
“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. Or is it by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Eph. 2: 4-8), emphasis added).
Nobody deserves God’s favor, yet we receive it in Christ through His grace. Easter reminds us that we are all sinners in desperate need of God’s grace. Followers of Christ believe that salvation is a work of grace. However, many of us forget that the Christian life is also a result of God’s grace and act as if keeping God’s favor depends on our works. For this reason, we can tend to resemble the religious leaders who opposed Jesus. They thought their religious practices pleased God and merited His recognition for their piety. Consequently, they looked down on the sinners who didn’t live and behave like them.
If we are honest, many of us share a lot in common with the religious leaders who opposed Jesus and the vineyard workers who complained about the owner’s gracious behavior. Over time, we forget our sinfulness and start to believe that we deserve God’s grace. When this happens, we struggle to appreciate God’s grace for others and fail to extend it to them. For this reason, we need Easter to remind us that we are sinners in constant need of divine redemption, the last ones who always rely on divine grace, and the sick who require divine healing.
In God’s economy, the last shall be first. We are all the last who, by grace, can become the first. God’s grace makes all the difference in the world.
Prayer:
Father, we stop our daily activities and sing to you from our hearts:
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see.
Thank you!
Dr. Octavio Javier Esqueda
Professor of Christian Higher Education
Director, Ph.D. and Ed.D. Programs in Educational Studies
Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Art:
Saint Dismas: The Good Thief Icon
Anonymous Artist
Public Domain
According to tradition, Dismas was the name of the penitent good thief who was crucified to Jesus' right. For this reason, depictions of the crucifixion of Jesus often show Jesus' head inclined to his right, showing his acceptance of the good thief. While being crucified alongside Christ, Dismas acknowledges Jesus as the Christ, and asks to be remembered when Jesus comes into His kingdom. This act of faith in the last moments of Dimas’ life is seen as a powerful reminder of how anyone can turn to God and receive forgiveness and mercy.
https://saintsforsinners.com/blogs/saints-stories/saint-dismas
https://faith.nd.edu/saint/st-dismas-the-good-thief/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penitent_thief
About the Artist:
Anonymous Artist
About the Music: “Remember Me” from the album Resurrection Letters: Volume #1
Lyrics:
Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Who can ascend the hill of the Lord?
The one who utters no untrue word,
Whose hands are clean, whose heart is pure,
Who can ascend that hill?
There is none righteous, no not one.
We are prodigal daughters and wayward sons.
We don't know the half of the hurt we've done,
The countless we have killed.
Our priests are cheats, our prophets are liars,
We know what the law requires.
But we pile our sins up higher and higher,
Who can ascend that hill?
And I am a sheep who has gone astray
I have turned aside to my own way
Have mercy on me, Son of David
Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Now hear the voice of the Word made man
The spotless sacrificial Lamb
"A body You gave me, here I am.
I have come to do Your will"
And no one takes my life, you see
I lay it down now willingly
And I will draw all men to me
When I ascend that hill.
On Sunday You came as a King.
On Monday washed the temple clean.
On Tuesday You told of what will be.
On Wednesday You waited patiently.
On Thursday You said it is time.
I'll drink this cup 'cause it is mine.
On Friday, Lord, You poured the wine.
Like a thief on the cross, as He hung there dying
For crimes, there were no use denying.
While the righteous Judge hung right beside him.
How could I not recognize You?
How could I not recognize You?
How could I not recognize...my Lord?
My Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.
Just days ago the sky was stone.
The trees were standing stripped to the bone.
You could hear creation groan.
But I write these words on an April day,
And the earth is drinking the early rain.
The hills remember green again.
And we've heard this story all our lives.
Still, we feel the pain of the crucified,
And the end still comes as a surprise.
But before the breath there in the tomb,
Before our joy sprang from the womb,
You saw a day that's coming soon.
When the Son will stand on the mount again.
With an army of angels at His command,
And the earth will split like the hull of a seed.
Wherever Jesus plants His feet,
And up from the earth, the dead will rise.
Like spring trees robed in petals of white,
Singing the song of the radiant bride.
And we will always be, always be, always be with the Lord.
We will always be, always be, always be with the Lord.
We will always... (we will always be, always be).
Be with Jesus (always be with the Lord).
My Lord, remember me (we will always be, always be).
When You come into Your kingdom (always be with the Lord).
Lord, remember me (we will always be, always be).
When You come into Your kingdom (always be with the Lord).
About the Composer/Performer:
Andrew Peterson (b. 1974) is an American Christian musician and author who plays folk, rock, and country gospel music. Peterson is a founding member of the Square Peg Alliance, a group of Christian songwriters. He has toured with Caedmon's Call, Fernando Ortega, Michael Card, Sara Groves, Ben Shive, Eric Peters, and other members of the Square Peg Alliance. Peterson is the author of The Wingfeather Saga series of children’s and young adult fantasy novels, which is being adapted into an animated TV show. Andrew’s second nonfiction book, The God of the Garden: Thoughts on Creation, Culture, and the Kingdom, followed his memoir, Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making. In 2008, driven by a desire to cultivate a strong Christian arts community, Andrew founded a ministry called the Rabbit Room, which led to a yearly conference, countless concerts and symposiums, and Rabbit Room Press, which has published over thirty books to date.
https://www.andrew-peterson.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Peterson_(musician)
https://www.rabbitroom.com/
About the Poetry and Poet: Yuan Jie translated by Kiang Kanghu
Yuan Jie (719/723–772) was a Chinese poet and man of letters of the mid-Tang period. He attained a jinshi degree in the imperial examination in 754, and served in several regional government posts before resigning. Among his most famous poems is the "Zei Tui Shi Guanli," which describes the state of the countryside following the An Lushan Rebellion, which he experienced firsthand. He also compiled a collection of poetry by his contemporaries, the Qie-zhong Ji, and was noted for his prose compositions. In 763 he was appointed governor of Dao Prefecture, and in 768 he moved to Rong Prefecture, but during this time he came to resent the heavy taxes that his position forced him to levy on the peasants, and in 769, he resigned his post.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_Jie
About the Devotion Writer:
Dr. Octavio Javier Esqueda
Professor of Christian Higher Education
Director, Ph.D. and Ed.D. Programs in Educational Studies
Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
Dr. Octavio Javier Esqueda is a professor of Christian higher education in the doctoral programs at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University. He was born and raised in Guadalajara, México, where he graduated with honors with a Licenciatura in Latin American Literature from the University of Guadalajara, as well as two additional diplomas, one in religion and society and the second in journalism. He graduated with honors from Dallas Theological Seminary with an M.A. in Christian Education and completed his Ph.D. in Higher Education at the University of North Texas. Before coming to Biola University, he taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He and his wife, Angélica, have two children, Darío and Salma. Dr. Esqueda has several publications on theological education, Christian higher education, and literature. Teaching is his passion and he has had the opportunity to teach in several countries on different academic levels. He is an avid soccer fan.