Your Harvest Is Coming Part 3
Scripture: Galatians 2:11-14; 3:1-5; Matthew 13:19-23
This morning I will conclude my series “Your Harvest is Coming.” If you recall from last week, I talked about the parable that Jesus told about the sower. In that parable, which is found in Matthew chapter thirteen, Jesus talked about where the seeds fell and what happened to them based on the type of soil upon which they landed. When He explained the parable to His disciples He told them, beginning in verse nineteen: “(19) When any one hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one, and catches away that which was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the way side. (20) But he that received the seed in stony places, the same is he that hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it. (21) Yet has he not root in himself, but endures for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he is offended. (22) He also that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. (23) But he that received seed in the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; who also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Matthew 13:19-23)
Jesus told the disciples that in each case the person heard the Word, so it wasn’t an issue of hearing. The issue was what they did with what they heard based on their spiritual maturity. The different grounds that Jesus talks about are “grounds of spiritual maturity” and as we read the parable it takes more effort for Satan to remove the Word as we move from one “ground” to the next. I told you last week that the seeds that fell by the wayside are Christians who are new to the faith and before they can truly understand the Word, Satan comes immediately to steal it from them. The seeds that fell upon the stony places lasted for a while but were lost because the person, when they were persecuted because of the Word, they were easily offended. Then there were the seeds that fell among the thorns, which represented people who had heard the Word of God, and although they were more spiritually mature than the wayside and stony believers, the Word never took root in their lives because when they faced adversity and the cares of this life, they fainted. If we are not taking the Word of God and implanting it within us, then not only do we not have spiritual seeds to sow, but the initial seeds that were sown into us die when we face trials and tribulations and the cares of this world. But here is what we all need to remember: it was only the seed that fell into the good soil that actually produced a harvest. It was only the person who did something with the Word other than just hear it that produced the fruit the Word would produce in their lives and the lives of others. And don’t forget, even in those situations where the seed fell on good soil, the soil itself did not produce at the same level. In other words, even those who receive the same Word and implant it within them will not produce the same harvest – some will produce more than others. Again, it goes back to what the person does with the Word. When you look at the parable, what separates the good ground from all the other grounds? Verse 23 says “But he that received seed in the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it.” It’s the understanding of the Word that produces the fruit. And that’s why I have been hammering the importance of implanting the Word into our lives. “Fruit producers” understand what the Bible says – understands what God says – because they spend time reading it. Understanding also implies “believing” that what is understood is the truth. New Light, I can’t say it enough or emphasize it enough – we cannot live the way Jesus desires us to live without knowing and believing what He has said. This is also true in the natural. If someone who is planting a garden or designing a flower bed has no understanding about the soil, sunlight or fertilizer requirements for what they are planting they will not receive what they are hoping for in the end. People call Nikki often to get her advice on their problems with their plants. Why? Because she has a level of understanding that they do not have and that understanding makes the difference in her harvest versus theirs. So our hearing, understanding and implanting the Word in our lives is what will produce a harvest. Also, as you will hear today, when we do not understand the Word it opens the door for others to sow bad seeds that will grow because of our lack of understanding.
I ended last week’s message with the parable that Jesus told about some of the bad seeds being sown and the two responses we have to those bad seeds. That parable was found in Matthew 13:24-30. I shared with you from that parable that it was common in the East for enemies to sow tares and other poisonous seeds in the fields of those they wished to hurt. I told you this was important because tares are grains that look like wheat while growing, but when full grown has ears which are long and the grains are black and poisonous. In the parable, because the tares were growing with the wheat, the farmer could not remove them without harming his wheat harvest. So his response was to let them both mature and then when the harvest time came it would be easier to separate them. I told you last week that our first response is to take action and try to do something about the weeds growing from the bad seeds and in doing so we harm the growth of the good seeds. I told you that as we are sowing our seeds, we cannot lose sight of the harvest when we see the growth from the bad seeds that were also sown. When we are doing our best and others see what we are doing, we cannot stop doing good because someone begins talking negatively about our work behind our backs. We must reach a point where our focus is on what God has told us to do and what we believe Him for regardless of all of the distractions that circle around us. We must remember that God knows the truth and He knows who belongs to Him.
This morning we will be finishing the message by looking at our second response to the bad seeds that have been sown. The example we will look at this morning comes from the book of Galatians – the book I asked you to read in preparation for today’s message. Again, I won’t ask you if you followed through and read it as I asked you to, but if you did, you will recognize this situation that was the focus of that book. Paul had sown the Word of God into the churches of Galatia. He had sown good seeds that would bring forth a harvest, but then others came along and began sowing some bad seeds. When Paul got wind of what was happening, this is what he wrote to them in chapter one. First he said, “(6) I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; (7) which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-7) The first thing he said to them is that he was amazed at how easily (quickly) they had accepted an “alternate” gospel in their lives. He had sown the truth into them which they should have held on to. However, along with that truth, they readily accepted another version of that truth which, in effect, caused them to deny the actual truth. This is evident when Paul said, “….for a different gospel; (7) which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” The two key words are different and distort. The people had heard the original truth and now they were allowing someone else to distort that truth. Paul goes on in the rest of chapter one to explain to them that the gospel he had shared with them did not originate in man, but came directly from God and therefore was authentic. As I thought about this, it reminded me of Acts 17:11, where Paul and Silas arrived in Berea and found that they “….were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” The believers in Galatia were allowing the Jewish leadership to define what Christ’s gospel said instead of going back to the Scriptures to verify that what they were being taught was true. Two thousand years – Christians are still giving the pulpit more authority over their lives than the Gospel.????
Paul continues in chapter two explaining how he had been sent to the Gentiles – the uncircumcised. Remember, before Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Jews had nothing to do with the Gentiles, especially those who were not circumcised? Circumcision was a requirement in order to live by the Law of Moses and some wanted this “requirement” to be enforced upon the Gentiles once they accepted Christ. In other words, they believed that the Gentiles who chose Christ as their personal Savior were not truly saved and cleansed from their sins unless they were also circumcised. Paul called this out when he admonished Peter. Peter had been sitting down side by side with the Gentiles eating meals, but when certain Jews visited the city, Peter stopped and distanced himself from the Gentiles. Peter’s reaction angered Paul so much that Paul called him out. Galatians 2:11-14 says, “(11) But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. (12) For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision. (13) The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. (14) But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in the presence of all, ‘If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?’” Paul was expressing the truth of the gospel that even Peter in this situation had failed to remember. The Gentiles were saved and just as much believers as the Jews because of Christ, not the Law, and definitely not because of circumcision.
In chapter three Paul gets to the point. He says, “(1) You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? (2) This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? (3) Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? (4) Did you suffer so many things in vain--if indeed it was in vain? (5) So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?” (Galatians 3:1-5) The Galatians had started listening to some Jews who had begun teaching them that they still needed to abide by the Law, especially circumcision, if they were to be truly saved. Because the Word that Paul had sown into them initially had not taken full root, (they did not have the full understanding of it) they accepted this new teaching and let it grow within them right alongside of the truth that Paul had sown. Paul was telling them that this cannot be. They cannot accept an alternate gospel and expect to remain saved. This is why it is so important that we plant the true seeds from the Word of God in our hearts. Not man’s version of the seeds; not Rodney’s interpretation of the seeds; the seed itself. It is only the true seeds from God’s words that will bring the harvest. Paul tells the Galatians, “(1) It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. (2) Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. (3) And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. (4) You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” (Galatians 5:1-4) Paul makes it clear that if the Gentiles try to live by an alternate gospel, in this case, the Law, that they will sever their relationship with Christ, choosing slavery over freedom. When we are sowing the Word of God in our hearts, we cannot allow anyone to come along and attempt to sow “bad seeds” of an altered Word within us. Those bad seeds are representative of misinterpretations of what God’s Word says. We cannot accept a watered down gospel that allows us to live however we want if we want to experience our true harvest. Remember, even those “bad seeds” will produce a harvest if they are allowed to grow within us.
I want to offer this up to you as a warning. We read the situation in the book of Galatians and wonder how a group of people could so easily be persuaded to accept an alternate Gospel that was different from what they had originally been taught. We might wonder how they could do this when they were hearing firsthand accounts of Jesus’ life and sacrifice. But when you go back and read this book while remembering Jesus’ parable, then it makes sense. They heard the Word coming from Paul, but because they were so new to the faith, the Word had not taken root so they accepted the new doctrine because it sounded so closely aligned to what they had originally heard. I would say in their case it was strictly because they were new to the gospel. But we were left with another warning.
Paul told Timothy the following, “(1) I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: (2) preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. (3) For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, (4) and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” (Second Timothy 4:1-4) Paul told Timothy to preach the Word, but not only to preach it, but to always be ready to defend it by reproving and rebuking those who distort it. He said the day was coming when people would not want to hear sound doctrine – the seeds that would produce a harvest. He said they would find teachers that would teach a word according to their own desires and would turn away from the truth to accept myths. We are living in that day New Light. There are many preachers and teachers in the world teaching a gospel that “seems right” but is not right. And people flock to hear that gospel because it meets their own personal desires – it makes them happy. If people were given a choice, most would choose to hear a motivational speaker versus an Evangelist. Why? The motivational speaker will tell you that you are good and you have potential and everything that you need is within you – nothing can hold you back. Contrarily, the Evangelist will tell you, from the Word, that if you are not living according to the Word of God then regardless of the success you have in this life, you will die and go to hell. Now be honest, is that the message most people want to hear? Absolutely not! But it’s the message we need to hear. Only the true Word will produce a harvest.
We have a harvest that is coming if we faint not and if we are sowing good seeds – the actual Word of God – in our hearts. When Paul closes his letter to the Galatians, he encourages them by telling them, “(7) Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. (8) For he that sows to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that sows to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Galatians 6:7-8) Our harvest will come if we do not give up on it. This is a guarantee. Remember Isaiah 55:10-11 says the word spoken by God, and for us that is the Bible, always accomplishes what is supposed to accomplish. God knows that there will be times when we are weary and He has said in His Word that “(29) He gives power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increases strength. (30) Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. (31) But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31) God knows what we face and He is there to get us through it. But to know this we have to have an understanding and belief in His Word. We have to place it in our hearts so that when the trials and tribulations come we have the Word to stand on which will produce an absolute and uncompromising trust in our Father to deliver us.
And New Light, we cannot do this by treating the Word like it’s an “annual” plant. Remember the correction you all gave me last week when I talked about a flower that blooms every year versus one that must be planted annually? Perennial plants regrow every spring while annual plants live for only one growing season and then die off. Now listen closely to what I am going to tell you. Many of us are using God’s word as if it was an annual plant. What do I mean by this? We turn to the Word of God when we are in trouble and attempt to implant some of it in certain situations. When we are dealing with those situations we quote the Word and stand upon it. This is a panic response to a situation that pops up. Once the situation is resolved we stop quoting the Word and just like an annual flower, it dies off. This is not how Christians should treat God’s Word. We should see it as a perennial which regrows continuously. It never ceases to grow and is always available when we need it – which is every day in every situation. The Word that dies within us (the annual) will not produce the true harvest that God intends for it to produce for us. It might produce a small harvest in a specific situation, but it will not be a lasting harvest. God’s Word is designed to produce a lasting harvest with us!
I want to close with what Paul wrote to the Church in Corinth. He wrote, “(58) Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, since you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (First Corinthians 15:58) Although they are different words in the Greek, steadfast and unmovable communicate the same truth – no one and no thing came move us away from trusting Jesus in all things. New Light, the words are an emphasis to us that, as sons and daughters of God, we will die believing that His Word is true rather than turn our backs on it! You have a harvest growing – one on the inside of you and it’s based on the seeds that you have sown. You also have an enemy who cannot kill your seeds but will attempt to get you to neglect them and thus forfeit your harvest. Remember, seeds are being planted within you and it is what you do with those seeds (the Word) that will allow you to sow additional seeds and receive a harvest. Although the enemy cannot kill your seed if you remain faithful, he will try and sow his seeds alongside of yours. Never lose sight of your seeds and the harvest that will come by focusing so much of your time on what the enemy is doing. If you are feeling weary today, take a moment and assess your situation. If you are thinking of quitting, what harvest will you be walking away from? Whose life will be impacted by your decision? Do not lose your permanent harvest because of temporary frustrations, temporary tiredness, or the seeds sown by others. Focus on your seeds and do not lose sight of your harvest.
Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
(We are once again conducting live services on Sunday morning beginning at 9:15 a.m. We will continue to broadcast live on Facebook Live at 10:00 a.m.. Please tune in to "New Light Christian Fellowship Church" and like our page if you wish to watch our broadcast and be notified when we go live. If you are ever in the Kansas City, KS area, please come and worship with us at New Light Christian Fellowship, 15 N. 14th Street, Kansas City, KS 66102. We also have Thursday night Bible study at 7 p.m. via Zoom that you are also welcome to attend – please email me for the link. Also, for use of our social media, you can find us at newlightchristianfellowship on FB. To get our live stream services, please make sure you “like” and turn on notifications for our page so you can be notified when we are live streaming. We also have a church website and New Light Christian Fellowship YouTube channel for more of our content. If you would like to donate to our ministry you may do so through our website: newlightchristianfellowship.org by clicking on the PayPal or Cash App buttons. May God bless and keep you.)
