It's Harvest Time!
Gal. 6:7-10 Msg.
7-8 Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest.
*The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds.
*All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds!
(did you know when it comes to keeping a yard… you can maintain the weeds and still have them looking good from a distance.
Haven't you ever heard someone say after mowing the grass...if it weren't for the weeds I'd have no yard at all.
But the Bible doesn't tell us to maintain the weeds while were here…the Bible tells us to plant)
*But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.
9-10 So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good.
*At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit.
*Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.
When we think of harvest what do we imagine? I know I usually think of the farmers who are busily bringing in their crop…
However this year is a year of different sorts with all the wetness from the rain..it has been a real and ongoing struggle to bring in the crops...
Bringing in the harvest requires commitment, it requires work and diligence
It must be very frustrating to have such a bountiful harvest and not be able to reap it in the timeframe that you want to..
and at the same time facing the risk of losing it all together if you don't get it harvested in the timeframe you've been given
It's kind of how it is in the spiritual realm... such a bountiful harvest souls For the kingdom,
so difficult it seems to bring them in..in the timeframe that we have been given
what does a harvest look like for you?
Some think that a harvest only comes once a year..
I guess that depends how often you sow the seeds for the harvest
Now I know this would be a hard one to do but....
I wonder what our world would be like if we sowed seeds of kindness and each of us would find somebody to be good to every day..like the second part of this next scripture tells us
Mark 12:30-31 MSG
Jesus said, “The first in importance is, ‘Listen, Israel: The Lord your God is one; so love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence and energy.’ And here is the second: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ There is no other commandment that ranks with these.”
What would our neighborhoods be like?
What would our work place be like?
What would our schools be like?
What would our world be like…
if we made it a point to brighten somebody else’s day?
Then why don't we do this more often?
You know, We all have the opportunity to plant and harvest...
its up to each of us to decide whether or not to participate
TBS.(the bible says) "Every opportunity we have, we should do good to people" starting with the ones that are right in front of us
Is it hard to do? It's not so hard to do..if you are willing to try.
If you want a good harvest..then you have to be willing to
participate in the growth period doing all you can to ensure the end result
Cultivation here is what we're talking about..
it works in gardening..It works in life
Did you know that bringing the good out and someone is a harvest..
Did you know that bring a smile to someone's face is a harvest..
Did you know that Complementing someone is a planting a seed and someone feeling good about themselves as a result of it..is a harvest…
And although it's hard to do at times...that's what happens as a result of loving your neighbor as yourself on a daily basis
Illus.
Planting seeds believing and receiving
planting seeds out of my need
planting seeds I will keep believing
God will keep increasing and blessing me
We need to have the mindset of, what kind of seed can I plant today.
"Who can I bless today?" "who can I do a favor for?"
Opportunities are everywhere… If you are willing to look for them
There is an old saying and it holds true…
You will always reap what you sow
The harvest that you reap in and on your life… is the result of what you sow.
When you sow beans, you reap beans... Sow corn, reap corn...sow meanness and strife, I think it would be safe to say you're not going to like the harvest.
In our text, it says:
*The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds.
*All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds!
*But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.
In 2 Corinthians 9:6-11 Msg. Paul writes -
6-7. Remember: “A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop. ( you get to decide what kind of crop you want to reap)
God loves it when the giver delights in the giving. (God loves to bless us, and He also loves it when we bless others)
8-11. God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything,
more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it,
*He throws caution to the winds,
giving to the needy in reckless abandon.
*His right-living, right-giving ways
never run out, never wear out.
This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you.”
He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.
Extravagant; Webster defines it this way:
1. spending too much: characterized by excessive spending
2. beyond what is reasonable: exaggerated
3. flamboyant: profusely or exaggeratedly decorated, decorative, or showy
That’s how God is with you when bless others!
(“giving to the needy in reckless abandon)
That’s not what the hoard mentality of the world teaches!
*His right-living, right-giving ways never run out, never wear out.”
Try as you may, You can not out give God!! It will never happen.
Illus. The story goes that JCPenney… Was a tither and when he started his business he tithed 10%. And as his business grew he began to tithe more and more...and the more he tithed, the more God blessed him.
Soon he was tithing 20%… Then 30% and 40 50 60 and at the end of his life he was tithing 90% and had so much more that he could even spend when all that was left was the 10% that he had started giving in the beginning.
“God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you’re ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done.”
Sow, What kind of harvest do you want?
How bout a record breaking one??
The question gives new meaning to “you reap what you sow” when God’s involved in it, doesn’t it?
The Harvest is a Process..it requires "trust and faith"
TBS.(the bible says) “Do not grow weary in well doing”
For you shall reap if you faint not!
Don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up….
Your harvest will not happen over night. It will take time.
But GODS Word declares..that it will happen!
Gods Blessings come through understanding your harvest.
Mark 4:26-32 MSG.
26-29. Then Jesus said, "God’s kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it.
The seed sprouts and grows—he has no idea how it happens.
The earth does it all without his help: first a green stem of grass, then a bud, then the ripened grain. When the grain is fully formed, he reaps—harvest time!
30-32"How can we picture God’s kingdom? What kind of story can we use?
It’s like a pine nut. When it lands on the ground it is quite small as seeds go, yet once it is planted it grows into a huge pine tree with thick branches. Eagles nest in it."
Its like that with our spiritual lives too!
spiritual growth happens through a process, not one single event.
*First we crawl (we come to church and get saved)
*then baby steps (we read the bible and start to learn about Jesus)
*then walking occurs (we realize how good the good news, really is)
*then running ( we tell others about what we have learned)
** it’s a growing process.
life is defined opportunities, choices, problems, and victories.
And for the Christians life… The Lord takes those things and works miracles and victories your whole long...some would say that is a big claim..
And to that I would say not for THE GOD OF EVERYTHING POSSIBLE!!
TBS. “All things work together, for them that love the Lord …..”
In our lives...the way that we usually see the events that happen
are one of two ways..The beginning or the end
But the opportunity for God to do "the things" that we want him to do
is in the middle...It’s the in between, the trust and faith space
in the middle that counts, “it’s the journey” (the growing period)
Understanding that your harvest is a result of what you plant, means you need to determine your seed...what kind of seeds are you willing to plant?
Understanding that your harvest is a process, means you need to make preparation for it...what kind of a harvest are you expecting to reap?
Just remember one thing… A harvest requires sown seed
There will never be a harvest if the seed stays in the bag in the barn...
Or in your pocket
Notice in Mark 4 it says:
"God’s kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it.”
While the seed is going through a transformation process, so must we.
“The seed you sow is not the same grain you reap.”
A lot of people, don’t reap the full potential of their harvest because they don’t understand, that a harvest is a process..expect expect expect
The barn you store your seed, is smaller than the barn you are going to store your harvest in..or at least it better be
Spiritually, you need to prepare your mindset and your expectation...
they determine the dimensions of your barn.
Start expanding your expectation!
...what kind of a harvest are you looking for?
And average one...or a busting at the seams, shaken together and running over, unable to contain, running on the ground.........
The harvest is a process, when it comes time to reap
Your harvest…"will you be ready?"
Do you know what God says to do?
Isaiah 54:2 HCSB.
2. "Enlarge the site of your tent,
and let your tent curtains be stretched out; do not hold back;
lengthen your ropes,
and drive your pegs deep.
New Living Translation, says it better;
2.“Enlarge your house; build an addition; spread out your home!
3. For you will soon be bursting at the seams.
When it comes time to reap the harvest..
its too late to enlarge the facility to contain it!
Expectations and Faith Occur during the growth period..not after the harvest!
When the harvest comes you have to be willing and ready to receive it! Amen?
If you're not… It will be lost
In the Greek, there are two words used to define time..chronos and kairos
Chronos is the word from which we get the word chronological – normal, general time.
Kairos however means - a fixed and definite time, opportune or seasonable time, the right time, a limited period of time
The word kairos...holds true in every believers life.
TBS this life we live is but a vapor, our opportunity to continue to plant seed..
to tell others about the gospel is limited.
Friends, I ask you, what are you planting? what will be your harvest?
Sometimes it’s easy for us to get so caught up...that we’re focused only on ourselves.
"I’ve got my plans. Don’t get me off my routine." "I’d love to help you out, but I’m sorry, I just don’t have the time."
It's time that we set our human nature aside…
Remember, we were created in the image of God, we weren’t created to live selfishly..that's the way the world lives.
In case you haven't noticed lately…
There are a lot of hurting people all around us
who need our love and encouragement.
Don’t miss the miracle of the “now moment” God sends your way,
don‘t miss the opportunity to sow into someone else’s life..on the spur of the moment, without even thinking twice about it.
Especially as we enter the Thanksgiving season
We shouldn’t miss opportunities to do good things...
whenever situations come our way to bless people
I read a good book by Kenneth Copeland...called "Blessed to be a Blessing" and it's true..in doing so, ultimately when we bless others
We will receive ourselves the blessing
Illus.
There’s an old Indian Fable I heard recently. A water bearer had two large water pots which he carried on either end of a pole slung across his shoulders. One of the pots had a crack in it, so every day as he carried water to his master’s house he arrived with one full pot and one only half full. This went on for two years. One pot was very proud of its accomplishments, while the imperfect pot was embarrassed at its failure. Its distress at being able only to accomplish half of what it had been made to do, resulted in its speaking one day to the water carrier.
"I am so ashamed," the pot said. "Why?" asked the carrier. "Because water leaks out all the way to your master’s house and because of my crack I’ve been only able to deliver half of the load." The water carrier looked kindly at the cracked pot and said, "As we return to my master’s house today, I want you to look at the beautiful flowers along the path."
The pot was a little cheered by the beauty he saw along the way. "Did you notice that the flowers were only on your side of the path?" the water carrier asked. "I’ve always known about your flaw and I took advantage of it. I planted seeds on your side of the track and as we walked back each day from the stream, you watered them." For two years I have been able to pick fresh, beautiful flowers for my master’s table. Without your being just the way you are, this beauty would not have graced his house."
I tell you the story because someone might say that...
I know what you're saying is right and we need to be busy for the kingdom..
but I just have a hard time doing it
God knew that would be the case..that's why
TBS some may plant, so may water, but God is the one who gives the increase
While all of this may not be able to be fluent to you and to do the things that others do so easily...All of us can do something
and that's all that's required and when we do that...God will give the increase…
And the harvest will truly be bountiful and so far beyond what we could've ever thought or imagined in our wildest dreams!
Amen?
Let's pray
