funny ways some people interpret scriptures.

A few years ago I got into a discussion with a friend from church, on a social media platform. We got into a discussion of
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard Matthew 20:1-16. In the parable workers were hired in the morning, noon and late in the day. All the workers got paid the same. My Christian friend, who owns a business, said it means once you're hired and agree to a wage, that's all you get paid, no matter how long you work there. I was shocked and told him that's not what the parable is about. I was even more shocked when other Christian business owners agreed with him. You never know the crazy way some Christians will interpret scripture.

Study to show yourself approved.

Companies also pay a salary which is a total one is paid for the day reguardless of how many hours they work. I know people who worked 16 hours a day and those who work 8 and get the same salary for the day.

They were interpreting the parable to mean if you got paid $10 an hour, your pay should never change. If you got a salary of $20,000 a year, 20 year later your salary would be the same.

Well, slavery is approved in scripture.
Some secular employers benefit greatly from that implication today.

Slavery is no longer legal My point is to show yourself approved. Know what stories and verses mean. Look up verses in the Greek and Hebrew, know the history at the time and why Paul and Jesus said the things they did. Too many times people don't do the research. I've had some people in the church say if the other person is a Christian, you should marry them. I would tell them, it takes more than being a Christian to make a marriage. What if the other person has bad habits you don't like. They may have bad habits, but they are still a Christian. It doesn't mean you marry them.

Ain't that the truth.

Classic one for me: Matthew 18:20.. people will interpret as Jesus being 'in the midst' of 2 or 3 christians gathered in ANY situation.
So for example.. christians gathered at a concert-- not church.. not people they know.. just a concert.. and will go 'yeeeah! Where two or three are gathered.. there I am with them.. Jesus is with us MAAAN!'

But the context is resolving disputes within a church family.. sinning members. That's the primary application. Jesus is blessing the process of resolving disputes within the church setting, and it is an update of the Deuteronomy process that Israel practiced for resolving disputes.

Not certain, but I believe two or three gathered in His name, not simply showing up at a concert. If they are there in His name, certainly, they represent Him.

I'm single, never married. I once asked a friend, Jesus said, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there also" I asked him, if I'm home alone than Jesus isn't there?

If a person has Jesus in his heart He is there.

I'm no longer surprised, ever since I found out that some Christians believe that the earth is flat.

That's not the point of the parable, but it is an underlying moral principle in the parable, and one that we should pay attention to. It runs contrary to 'equity theory' in organizational psychology and human resources. Not that equity theory isn't true, but there is an ethical problem with the sense of entitlement behind it.

And the way you presented the business owner's ideas is oversimplified. The workers in the parable agreed to work for one day or a portion thereof. But they were free to come in the next day if the owner of the vineyard wanted to hire them, or not do so. They weren't locked in for life. If another owner of a vineyard paid more, they could go work there.

I had a conversation with a Jewish man once who said that Jews believed that if you agreed to do some work for a certain amount, that agreement was what mattered, not what other people were making.

I do think the social jealousy aspect of being upset of other people doing better than you or getting paid more for the same work that you do ____when you agreed to it___ is a valid underlying moral principle in the parable. But it is not what the main point of the parable is about from a big picture perspective.

If you are on a contract for a year and someone else comes in part-way through the year on a one-year contract and gets paid more, you have no right to be envious. You should honor your agreement. But at the end of your term, you could make an agreement to work elsewhere. And if you are an 'at will' employee, you could leave at any time and find a job elsewhere if there is one.

The laborer's term ended at the end of the day in the parable. Most people do not sign contracts for life setting a specific wage. Also, our financial system is designed to have constant inflation. Usually it is less than the past couple of years.

Are you sure you understood the man correctly.

In many cases, these types of jobs pay reasonably well compared to hourly jobs.

That highlights the importance of seeking the understanding of the Spirit. All Christians have it available, but few listen to it's still small voice, preferring to insert that own flavor and spin that tickles their tastebuds and ears.

For God so loved the world . . .
How some people see “world” and think it means only a few select people is beyond me. And they spout that nonsense on CC every day.

1 John 2:1-2

Oh, uh, ouch! Bang, now that body slammed a few folks!

As it should. Reality is our friend.

The parable is about the Kingdom of Heaven .. Mat 20:1 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.