Matthew 20:1-16

Jesus related a parable about a landowner who hired people to work in his fields. People were hired at different times throughout the day and all got the same pay at the end. Some of the people who were hired first complained that the people who worked less should not get the same amount as the ones who worked all day. The landowner reminded them that they had agreed on a wage when they started and got what they were promised. They shouldn't be jealous because the others got the same.

It doesn't matter how long we walk with the Lord, doing His work. God's reward of eternal life is the same whether we come to Him as a small child or when we are old. Man's way reasons that the one who serves longest should get the greatest reward - God rewards all who come to the harvest with the same gift of eternal life, regardless of when they come. It is God's gift to do with as He pleases and we have no right to grumble and complain if He goes about His business in a way that we don't understand.