Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters Eccl. 11:1
1 Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.
2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth.
3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be.
4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.
5 As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all.
6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
This takes us to the banks of the Nile River where after every year as the floods would subside, the farmer would go forth and, without any ploughing, would cast his bread corn upon the waters and the mud.
It was those fruitful harvests that made Egypt the granary of the ancient world.
Notice: it was not “cast thy seed upon the waters”
But “bread”.
It was the casting of the bread-corn… that which might be used for the making of bread.
Solomon was saying here… that which you would also eat, spare some of it to cast upon the waters that you might reap a great harvest.
Not just a lesson on sowing, but a lesson on self-denial and self-restraint.
For if the farmer would use up, and eat up all of his bread, and would not save any for sowing, then he would have nothing to invest in future harvests.
If ever this message needs to be preached, it’s today!
WHY? Because… the marvelous technological advances of our age
-and the quickening of the whole speed of life have had a detrimental effect upon the church…
YOU may ask, What’s wrong with these advances?
For the most part, they have produced a generation that is eagerly impatient for the utmost immediate results.
Spiritual sense: the greediness and self-centeredness of the world has not only crept into the church, but has walked brazenly into the doors of every church across America….
….and has not merely slithered down in the church pew, but has stood with arrogance and boasted about their prosperity, which is simply a cover-up for GREED!
The very reason that many Churches are spiritually bankrupt is because they have drained the spiritual resources without putting anything BACK INTO THE WORK OF GOD!!!
I’m not totally against WELFARE and Gov’t assistance… I think there are some cases that merit it….
BUT that Welfare mentality, that part of welfare that has been abused, I see so many times in the church….
“God gimme your blessings”
“God gimme your healing”
“God gimme your power”
BUT there is no desire to work or pray for these things….
WE just think that GOD owes them to us! And there is absolutely nothing we have to do in return!
Clarify something right here from the beginning!
SALVATION IS FREE…
Eph. 2:8-9 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
YOU cannot work to be saved, but after
You get saved, you will WANT to work for
God because YOU LOVE HIM!
THAT is what the CASTING of bread is here.
THIS harvest is not referring
to our eternal inheritance, but rather to the
rewards that God has for those who work for
HIM!
But unfortunately the church has GREEDILY gobbled up the Harvest of God’s blessings!!! Without investing anything back!
We’ve long ago sucked up every last bit of harvest that our forefathers left, and have forgotten to save some of the harvest to put back into the CHURCH!!!
Our forefathers knew how to sacrifice, and
Pray and seek God….
AND as a result, God blessed their sacrifice…
God blessed their commitment,
God blessed their humility of heart!
Healings and miracles and the moving of the Spirit were common occurrences in their day…
And then today we wonder why our services are so dead and so dry…
Seems as if Ichabod has already been written over the posts of our doors!
WHY?
The Church has greedily used up every last bit of the spiritual resources God has blessed them with using it for their own profit, their own gain, their own IMMEDIATE RESULT
That’s why we have so many extravagant super churches around the country because the CHURCH has gone from being the body of Christ to the
To the Structure of NICE
She’s traded her Worship for Wordliness
Love Lust
Salvation Show
Blessings Bragging
The Gospel for Greed!!!
And then we wonder why our churches are like they are.
We wonder why our youth turn out to be like they are.
Mentioned previously, that the marvelous technological advances and the whole quickening of society have had a detrimental effect upon the church:
You see, All these advancements in technology were supposed to give people more time.
When the first automobile came to be regularly used, it was said that so much time could be saved because they were so much faster and quicker than a horse and buggy.
When the computer became a standard for the business world and industry, it was said, that it would speed up progress so that more time could be given to employees.
You would have thought that the introduction of cellular phones would surely have saved a lot of time in running back and forth, and that time would be seen in more time spent with the family….
It would seem that with all these modern advances in technology, that people would have more time for leisure and happy living, more time for family outings, more time for church activities, more time for prayer….
BUT not so… if anything, we are busier people now approaching the year 2000 than we’ve ever been!
WHAT has happened to our society? EVERY gain of time from modern advancement has been used up right away in NEW WANTS and NEW DESIRES.
NONE of it is used for a quieter, more serene way of life…
NONE of it is used for higher purposes which would be a seed for a happier and fuller future!
In older times, it was the dream of the business man to establish a reputable business that his sons might be proud to take up and maintain the prestige of it.
-HOWEVER, that philosophy is seldem seen anymore.
-If a man’s business succeeds, his son may never even have to work at all.
-And so a business man squeezes every last resource…. Pulls out every last penny…And never spares any of his harvest to Cast upon the waters….
It’s come down to the HAND to MOUTH spirit… the excessive living for today syndrome.
MEN don’t have patience and faith for the steadier slower business which would build up character and reputation and last for many years
THEY want their CAKE now… and are not willing to put anything into the future….
Grandpa and Grandma started out with an old beat up car, 10 cents, a house in desparate need of repair, and a great love for each other that lasted 65 years…
Wasn’t til later in life they began to acquire some nicer things…
BUT we’ve raised a generation NOW that thinks they have to have a brand NEW vehicle right out of high school..
-Young married couples take out 30
year mortgages with $1500. a month payments, acquire 3 vehicles. Have a bass boat, jet ski’s, ….
And then miss church on the weekends because that’s the only time they ever have to use them, if they don’t have to work overtime to pay for the whole mess!!!
AND you would think they would be HAPPY and CONTENT!!! They’re not… they are ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS wanting more!!!!
Years ago, the building of an house was a serious business in our grandfather’s time.
-What strong foundations they laid.
-What massive timbers you find in those old houses.
BUT today, there is not the same desire to have a house… to live in one place for any length of time.
SO, houses are built less solidly, but more
Showy!
AND thus is the whole fabric of society! Which is very flimsy and very temporary!
We see it in marriages… divorce is almost as common as marriage itself!!!
One parent households are almost as common as two parent homes.
Step brothers and step sisters, are almost as common as
Full blooded brothers and sisters.
WHAT has taken place? We’ve been living in a society that has SOAKED UP EVERY LAST BIT OF HARVEST
And has not made any investment at all for a future harvest!
We see it in Literature! The newspaper is written at 8th grade level. Books that have any depth at all collect dust on library shelves, while people have opted for the light, superficial reading!
Television has become the industry standard for the home…. Because people no longer have to think! The television industry does the thinking for them!!!
Mentioned TWO words at the beginning of the message:
Self-denial and Self-restraint
The willingness to forego the gratification of today for the sake of the days to come.
Give you example: In New Orleans, they have
Some very magnificent live theatres.
-the New Orleaners love their theatres…
and it is well known that many people will plan
their food budget around their theatre tickets.
They would first go without food than to miss
A performance.
You see it all around.
-Many people would buy their cigarettes first before food.
Driving through Mississippi many years ago, and noticed an unusual sight…
-beautiful shiny cars in the driveway….
-satelite dish outside…
BUT their home was nothing more than a shanty…
Some covered with cardboard.
Is not this so true with the church? Have we not the nicest of things in life? Have we not learned to dress the best? Do we not have the nicest of homes, the nicest of cars? Have we not had the best of foods?
And yet what about the condition of our spiritual houses?
WHILE we have feasted on the HARVEST, The temple of the Holy Ghost has laid in ruins!!!
The dedication of yester-years lies buried underneath layers and layers of greed, impatience, and thoughtlessness.
I feel tonight that the Great Archeologist of Heaven, the Holy Ghost, is trying his best to dig up some valuable artifacts of the past in hopes that there is some sort of resurrection of life brought back to the CHURCH of Jesus Christ!!!
Can you not see tonight how important it is to have some degree of self-denial and self-restraint???
Even Jesus said it this way:
Mark 8:34 34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.
36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
This passage in Eccles. Is trying to show us the need of living, not just for today, but for days to come, of casting one’s bread upon the waters.
ONE of the very reasons it is so difficult to see REVIVAL come is because the church has used up all the resources of the last revival, the last campmeeting, without casting some precious seed towards future revivals, and future campmeetings!!!!
We’re not seeing revival because the church is not praying!
We’re not seeing souls saved because the church is not witnessing!
We’re not seeing financial needs met because the church is not tithing like she should!!!
WE want the shout! We want the feel-goodism!
We want the victory!
BUT before we ever have that, we must first learn to CAST our bread upon the waters….
WE must learn self-denial
We must learn self-restraint!
WE must learn not to let the flesh rule, but to rule the flesh!!!
We’ve all but tied ourselves up so financially that when it’s time for Mission offerings… when special needs to arise, we are so oppressed with bills that we can’t give extra if we wanted to!!!
What is it that GOD is trying to say to us today?
LEARN to cast your bread upon the waters….
Take some of that which you already have and invest it in spiritual things!!!
IF you never CAST your…
Bread of PRAYER: You’ll never be close to God.
You’ll never know God’s voice.
You’ll never know God’s will for your life
Bread of SACRIFICE You’ll never know the joy of
Seeing God supply all your needs according
To His riches in glory.
-You’ll never know the Power of God to
come through for you and your family.
Bread of TITHING You’ll never experience the Great Love for your church or for your Pastor
-You’ll never see the church go forward
She’ll always be broke, always be struggling….
Because you are not casting your bread of tithes
Bread of FAITHFULNESS You will never see the full
Blessings of God…
-never know the sense of being a part of the
body of Christ….
If a body member is cut off and missing, the body learns to function without that particular part of the body!!!
THE church becomes “handicapped” if you will when you are not faithful to God’s house!!!!
Sure, she can still function, but she would function a whole lot better if you were here and faithful to every service!!!!!!!
For if you NEVER cast your BREAD of FAITHFULNESS,
You’ll never be known as one that the church
Can count on
If you never cast your…
Bread of EXAMPLE You’ll never see your children saved
-You’ll never be known as a “man of God”
a “Woman of God” a “prayer warrior”
Bread of EVANGELISM You’ll never see the lost saved
The heathen brought to Christ…
You’ll never be able to bring your SHEAVES to the Lord….
Psalms 126:6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing
precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
LISTEN CHURCH: WE’VE SOWED TO THE FLESH LONG ENOUGH!
It’s time to SOW TO THE SPIRIT!!!!
TIME TO CAST OUR BREAD UPON THE WATERS!
