The Birth Lottery

Theology
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The recent thread started by @kv100 concerning the relative roles of women and scriptural definitions/prohibitions that might apply to women got me thinking.

The Bible says in Galatians 3 - “**26 **So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, **27 **for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. **29 **If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

And then in Matthew 20 is the parable of the workers in the vineyard. I won’t post the whole thing, but it ends with “therefore the last will be first, and the first will be last.” It’s about the fairness of the owner of the vineyard.

And one thing we can say for sure about God, He isn’t what we would describe as being fair, at least not in this world. Am I right?

Myself as an example - I am astonishingly good looking. Just saying. Not the best looking guy ever, but at least in the top ten in history. And, I was one of those rug rats at the age of 3 who read encyclopedias for fun. I’m no Einstein (thank goodness), but only because I’m so much better looking than him. And I insist on matching socks.

Also I sing and dance, and make a mean plate of flapjacks. Friendly, charming, studious - you get the picture.

So why does God make a guy like me who knocks the top off of every desirable category, AND He makes the guy who doesn’t quite even make it onto the scale of ANY category?

And what about women? Whatever they might be, and contrary to progressive inclinations, they will never be men. And that just seems so much more unfair if we are applying God’s will to that picture. We could go on with Polish people, and Black people, and Natives of all tribes. Take your pick. Pick your color. Pick your nation. You got your privileged people and your disadvantaged people. How is that fair?

Now of course there are examples, like Gideon. He’s the scrawniest guy in his family, and his family is the lowliest in town, and his tribe is the smallest in the country. And I bet he isn’t good looking at all. And the angel greets him “Lo mighty man of valor!” Who is he kidding?

It’s true that none of us asked to be what we are. That was God’s choice. He could have made each of us differently. And it’s certainly true that, if we had any input to it, we would probably CHANGE something about what we are. A little taller, a little shorter, a little lighter, a little heavier, more hair less hair etc etc.

Except myself, I’m pretty thrilled with what I got, in the birth lottery. Does that mean I’m destined to be “LAST” in the kingdom of God?

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I must say, your humility is truly an inspiration to us all. It takes a rare kind of courage to carry the heavy burden of being top-ten good-looking, brilliant, and a culinary master of flapjacks. We will all be keeping you in our prayers as you navigate these trials.

Jokes aside, you’ve hit on a fascinating paradox that runs straight through the spine of Scripture: the tension between human status and Kingdom economics. Here’s a breakdown of why your birth-lottery winnings don’t automatically send you to the back of the Kingdom line, and how Galatians 3 and Matthew 20 actually fit together:

Galatians 3:28 is about standing, not sameness. When Paul says there is “neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male and female,” he isn’t wiping out distinct physical realities or earthly categories, as you noted; men don’t become women, and Polish folks don’t stop being Polish.

Paul’s point is soteriological equity: access to the Father, adoption as sons, and joint-inheritance in Christ are 100% equal across demographic lines. In the ancient world, a free Roman male had all the privilege, while a female slave had none. Paul takes a sledgehammer to that hierarchy at the cross. No one gets VIP seating at the foot of the cross, but no one gets overflow parking either.

The vineyard & the myth of Earthly “fairness.” Your observation about God not operating on human definitions of “fairness” is spot on, and that’s precisely the point of the Matthew 20 parable. Human fairness operates on merit and proportion: I worked twelve hours, so I deserve twelve times as much as the guy who worked one. However, Kingdom fairness operates on sovereign grace: The Master gives out of His infinite abundance, not our earned merit.

If God were purely “fair” in the human sense, none of us would make it onto the vineyard payroll to begin with. Grace, by definition, isn’t fair. It’s outrageous generosity.

Will the Flapjacks Master be last? To answer your closing question: being born with a strong hand in the “birth lottery” (intellect, looks, height, charisma) doesn’t automatically brand you as “last” in the Kingdom of God. The warning in Scripture regarding the rich, strong, or privileged (like Jesus’ warning about the eye of the needle in Matthew 19) isn’t that having advantages is a sin—it’s that advantages make self-reliance terrifyingly easy.

Earthly Value System: Beauty, brainpower, and status = “First.” Kingdom Value System: Humility, stewardship, and posture of service = “First.” Gideon wasn’t chosen because being scrawny is inherently holier than being strong; he was chosen so that when the victory came, no one could pretend Gideon’s biceps did the heavy lifting (Judges 7:2).

As for those who received top-tier gifts? The rule of the Kingdom isn’t disqualification, but accountability: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded” (Luke 12:48).

So, enjoy the matching socks, keep flipping those flapjacks, and use the top-ten looks to serve the vineyard. Just make sure that when you stand next to the guy who “didn’t make the scale,” you’re both looking at the Master who paid you the same cross-shaped wage.

Be blessed,

Peter

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A brilliant sermon Pastor. Not much left to say after that other than a couple observations.

This is our world. Our nations rising up against each other. Tribe against tribe and people against people, each one incensed at the unfairness of God. The root of the conflicts is in each person.

When I see someone with green hair and lots of metal and lots of tats, I see someone who is rebelling against God and rejecting what God made when He made them, not realizing that He put them into a specific context (knowing the person very well) that would most likely enable them to achieve the true greatness that they crave.

It’s hard for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. It’s also hard for any of us to not rely on our flesh to get what we need. Respect. Honor. Admiration. Success.

We can easily miss that all those things and more are available to each of us in jubilant submission to God and each other. Moths can’t eat it and thieves can’t steal it. It doesn’t age and get weak or wrinkled up. It’s treasure stored up for us in heaven.

We should have no concern for what God didn’t give us in our earthly context. God is interested in seeing us maximize what He did give to each one for His glory.

It seems to me that the Day is approaching. I hope I won’t be caught sleeping, enjoying my meager spoils, but rather working till maybe just one more comes to the knowledge of God.

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Brothers.
Some GREAT stuff in here. Thanks for the thoughts.

I have never seen a photo of our ruggedly-handsome Pater15, but I assume he looks alot like this:

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This is one of the actors our truth deficient Hollywood chose to portray the servant who:

“…has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” (Isaiah 53:2-3)

Surely, somewhere along the historical line, we have reversed our worldly values from heavenly ones.

Thanx again men.
KP

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Wisdom for the ages.