Tag: sowing and reaping
Sowing and reaping!
Scripture reading for August 22nd: Psalm 115-118, Galatians 6
Key Scriptures: Galatians 6:7-10 “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Paul encouraged believers to continue to do good works. This was not to earn salvation, but to insure their reward. He taught them the spiritual law of sowing and reaping. What is sowed is what will be reaped. What is sowed will reap more that what was sowed. The harvest takes time–patience is required. A blessed field to sow in is within the household of faith because of God’s faithfulness to us, His family.
Psalm 115:1 “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name give glory, for the sake of Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness.”
Abundance through giving!
Scripture reading for August 8th: Psalm 79-82, 2nd Corinthians 9
Key Scriptures: 2nd Corinthians 9:6-8 “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”
As Paul was encouraging the Corinthians to give an offering to help the needy in Jerusalem, he shared the spiritual law of sowing and reaping. When you give, it is like sowing seed. Seed that is sown has the potential of producing a harvest. If God blesses the seed, it will increase and you will reap. The more seed you sow, the greater the potential of great increase. God loves to give increase and bless those who sow in faith into His kingdom. They abound in grace and have sufficiency!
Psalm 79:13 “But we Your people, the sheep of Your pasture, will give thanks to You forever; from generation to generation we will recount Your praise.”
Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your great generosity in blessing Your people’s giving. Help me to keep a generous spirit and be a cheerful giver. Thank You for the abundant harvest. Amen.
Flexibility to reach all!
Scripture reading for August 14th: 1st Corinthians 9:1-19
Paul’s discussion of liberty addressed another question. Does a preacher of the Gospel have a right to support from those who he reaches out to? Money issues caused trouble in Paul’s time and he again addressed this sensitive issue by using his own ministry as an example.
Some in Corinth were critical of Paul and others who preached the Gospel. They had accused them of doing ministry just for support. They looked at ministry as an easy way to make a living off the hard work of others. Paul cited two different examples to justify the right of those in ministry to receive support.
First he used the soldier who fights for the nation. Does the soldier provide for his own expenses? No! The government provides for him and supplies what he needs. Next he used the farmer who had a vineyard or the man who tended a flock of sheep or goats. Does the one who does this have a right to the produce, meat, and milk? Yes! “If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you?” (1st Corinthians 9:11) The same principle applies to the one who is sowing spiritually. It is simple to understand and the principle is written in the Law of Moses in simple terms: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” (Deuteronomy 25:4)
But Paul, himself, chose not to use these rights to support. He chose to preach without charge to insure that money issues would not give anyone an excuse to reject the Gospel. (1st Corinthians 9:12) He was not boasting now to manipulate them to give. Paul felt that God had given him a trust in the Gospel message. His reward was to be able to preach without charge.
“Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.” (1st Corinthians 9:19) Paul’s heart was to reach as many as possible with the Gospel message. He was willing to work with his own hands making tents to provide for his own needs to be able to preach to them. Even though he had a God-given right to support, he refused it to obtain a bigger harvest. Would that we all had such a heart for lost people!
Abounding grace!
Scripture reading for November 28th: 2nd Corinthians 6-9
“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2nd Corinthians 9:6-8
I love this passage of Scripture. As a farmer who has sown many fields with seed, I understand the principles of sowing and reaping. When you sow seed sparingly, you will have a problem. Weeds will come up and choke out the small amount of seed that you placed in the ground. If you sow plenty of seed, it will produce an abundant crop. The seed must be turned loose and let go of into the earth in order to produce. We can’t hold onto it and expect a crop! Sowing must be done in faith that a harvest will come. Our hope is in the seed and the Lord’s grace to provide water and weather.
As we give to God the tithe that belongs to Him and offerings, money is like seed sown into the kingdom of God. We must turn loose of it and let it do it’s work of multiplication. We give cheerfully and in faith believing that God will faithfully multiply the seed. God promises to make all grace abound to us!
I like the emphasis on the word “all”. “All Grace” abounds to the cheerful giver. The giver has “all he needs” in “all things” at “all times”. God wants us to know abundance in our lives. When we sow, we can expect blessing and sufficiency. We actually set up a cycle of blessing that is described later in this chapter. Our giving brings thanksgiving to God from those that are helped. God gets tickled and gives you more seed to sow again. This meets the needs of others who again thank God. God gets tickled again and pours out even more blessing and multiplied seed so you can give even more! More people are helped and thank God and the cycle goes on! All grace abounds and you have all you need in all things at all times!
Live by the Spirit!
Scripture reading for December 1st: Galatians 1-6
Have you ever had a battle with your flesh? Was your will power enough to win the victory? Could the Law help you overcome your desire to escape the battle? Paul wrote the letter to the Galatians to help them overcome some religious false teachers who wanted to mix the law with grace. They felt that all bases must be covered to make God happy. Paul had a simple solution.
“You were called to be free. But don’t use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (Galatians 5:13-16)
Paul encouraged the Galatians to live in freedom by living by the Spirit. The Spirit indwelling us brings the life of God into our inner man. We are not under the law, which can only reveal sin and stir up our flesh to break it. As we live by the Spirit, we live a life of love, serving God and others. We put off the acts of the sinful nature that used to plague us and ultimately would keep us from the kingdom of heaven. (Galatians 5:18-21)
We allow the Spirit to develop fruit in our lives. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-24) The Spirit is in harmony with God the Father and Jesus Christ and produces no conflict or division with man or God. When we live by the Spirit, the sinful nature doesn’t have a place in our life.
Living by the spirit brings a harvest of eternal life! God cannot be mocked, what we sow we certainly will reap. (Galatians 6:7-10) Doing good and seeking unity and restoration will produce a good reward. We don’t work for the reward, but are assured of a harvest if we don’t grow weary. This requires faith and patient endurance. Living by the Spirit is the positive antidote to trying to keep the law to earn our freedom. One leads to eternal life, the other to condemnation!
Abounding Grace!
Scripture reading for November 28th: 2nd Corinthians 6-9
“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2nd Corinthians 9:6-8
I love this passage of Scripture. As a farmer who has sowed many fields with seed, I understand the principles of sowing and reaping. When you sow seed, if you are stingy and sow less than needed, you will have a problem with weeds. Weeds will come up and choke out the small amount of seed that you placed in the ground. If you sow plenty of seed, it will produce an abundant crop. A farmer must be willing to let go of the seed. Sowing with a bad attitude doesn’t bring blessing. The seed must be turned loose and let go of into the earth in order to produce. We can’t hold onto it and expect a crop! Sowing must be done in faith that a harvest will come. Our hope is in the seed and the Lord’s grace to provide water and weather.
Our giving to God’s work is the same way. The money is like seed. It represents our life energy that we have spent working or investing. As we give to God the tithe that belongs to Him and offerings, it is like seed sown into the kingdom of God. We must turn loose of it and let it do it’s work of multiplication. We give cheerfully and in faith believing that God will faithfully multiply the seed. He is willing and able to make all grace abound to us!
I like the emphasis on the word “all” in this simple passage. “All Grace” abounds to the cheerful giver. The giver has “all he needs” in “all things” at “all times”. God wants us to know abundance in our lives. When we sow, we can expect blessing and sufficiency. We actually set up a cycle of blessing that is described later in this chapter. Our giving brings thanksgiving to God from those that are helped. God gets tickled and gives you more seed to sow again. This meets the needs of others who again thank God. God gets tickled again and pours out even more blessing and multiplied seed so you can give even more! More people are helped and thank God and the cycle goes on! All grace abounds and you have all you need in all things at all times! That’s a cycle of abounding grace that all believers should tap into!