“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard” (Mt 20: 1, 2)

The kingdom of God is like no other. The King of this Kingdom is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Its constitution is based on grace. God does not owe men. God is the creator and the owner of all creation. Everything God does to man is by His grace alone. This grace works from beginning to the end. We are saved by grace, live by grace, and shall breathe our last by grace.  Jesus Christ came to earth ‘full of grace and truth’ (Jn 1:14). Grace means the unmerited favor of God upon men. No man can ‘claim’ anything from God. God is sovereign in all things even in the way He dispenses this grace. When we become born again we need to change our way of thinking to be in line with the Kingdom’s principles. The flesh is offended at the manifestation of God’s grace.

In the parable of the workers hired by the Landowner we see the grace of God in action and the reaction of people towards it. The first group of men hired early in the morning made an agreement with the Landowner. They expected to be paid $1 dollar a day (for example). The rest men were hired without any labor contract and promised to receive ‘whatever is right’. At the end of the day all the workers received the same amount. The ones without a contract rejoiced for they did not expect to be paid so well. But the first group of men, who worked since morning and ‘borne the burden and the heat of the day’ were disappointed. They started murmuring against the Landowner. It is true that they agreed for 1$ but now, they expected more since the rest received the same.

I want you to see this: This expectation is wrong. This is how the flesh reacts in the presence of the generous grace of God. This is a great lesson for us all: If you make a business contract with God, if you have your own personal selfish expectations what your reward for serving Him should be, then you shall receive exactly that, not more, not less. You will still be disappointed when you see others blessed more than you. No man should do such a ‘business deal’ with God! Do not limit God! Trust Him for He is good and generous like no other!  But if you say: “Father, whatever You consider right for me, I receive with thanksgiving, you shall be surprised that your reward is much more than all your dreams. His grace is very romantic and adventurous. God loves to surprise His children! Just serve God with all your heart and leave the rest to Him! Today, I thank God for His amazing grace!