Opportunity series/Do not give up on planting
Galatians 6:7-10
Good morning everyone, Glad that you have joined us.
I want us to look at planting seed into our own lives and the lives of people around us.
Let’s Pray-
Father would you anoint our listening ears to hear what you have to say to us this morning. May we allow you to plant seeds of faith in us and we would allow you to use us to plant seeds into people we come into contact with. In Jesus Name…Amen.
Galatians 6:7-10 Read from the Bible
We’re going to explore what it means to live a life of faithful sowing and reaping.
Our Christian walk often reflects that of a farmer—(1) planting seeds of faith, (2) nurturing them through different seasons of our lives, (3) Waiting patiently for the harvest to happen.
As cold as it has been here in Pennsylvania lately, if we were farmers we would have been leaving the planting to someone else because the ground is hard and it takes a lot of energy to stay warm and plant a seed into a field.
Galatians 6:9- “And let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season, we shall reap, if we faint not.”
Think about people who have invested into your life?
Some have sown financial seed, some have sown educational seed, some have braved rejection to talk to you about spiritual things and they planted seed of the gospel.
Think of the People, churches, leaders, teachers, neighbors and some loved ones who have experienced Christ as Lord and have planted seed into your life.
Seeds sown are love, kindness, forgiveness, and patience into your life and into their relationship with you.
Some of us know that it was a God thing because we were not or we are not the easiest person to talk too about spiritual things and changes in our lives.
Maybe where you are at right now…you are trusting God for a desire in your heart to burst forth into your life, but have gotten discouraged during the time of waiting between the seed sown and the harvest reaped.
ANYONE KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT?
I want you not to give up or be discouraged before you receive the harvest that you are expecting. Sometime it takes a while.
Know that you have to be intentional about not letting yourself be discouraged and you have to be intentional to believe God’s word about seeing a harvest from the seeds you have planted.
God certainly will not fail to perform His word.
We can be our worse enemy in the planting and growth stage of seeds already planted.
When we plant seed and nothing seems to be happening. You begin to get anxious because you do not see….growth. You do not see…results in the person’s life.
You think that you have to dig up the seed and see if it is defective!!!!!
You meticulously plant the seed…but when nothing happens…you begin one by one checking to see if it had growth.
You check the seed to see if it is defective.
You see after you have disrupted the seed that it had a little growth on the seed but because you could not wait or trust God, the seed is uprooted and you are holding what could have been instead of seeing the growth break forth at appropriate time.
You became impatient and cannot wait for “due season”
Think about this for a second before we look at reaping a harvest-
Jesus explains seed throwing in the Parable of the Sower. (Mt 13) Someone planting seed in four soils of the heart concerning receiving the gospel and Jesus into our lives.-
The hard path
Rocky
Thorny
Good soil
Each one having it challenges- other than the hard path, each one had the potential of producing a plant of some sort.
Keep in mind the Lord planting seed in your life and you being a vessel He can use to plant seed in others life.
The Physical Act of Sowing
Paul tells us verse 7 “God is not mocked” remember last week, Paul tells us that there is a difference between man’s wisdom and Godly wisdom and if you are not seeking His wisdom, you are foolish.
He is not mocked…You will not get away with doing things against His design and will and it is foolish to not seek godly wisdom over man’s wisdom.
We will reap what we sow!!!
Sow discord and go against His will, you will answer for it. You sow good things and you will be rewarded for them.
6:4- Paul tells us that we should not compare ourselves to others… “For each one of us should carry his own load.”
Ecclesiastes 11:6- “Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed.”
Throw seed as you have opportunity…because we do not know what the Lord will do with it in someone life.
The act of sowing represents our responsibility to plant the seeds of faith in our lives and in the lives of others.
Each one of us who has been saved has been entrusted with the seed of the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus Christ. And as followers of Christ, we are called to share that Good News—to plant seeds in the lives of those around us.
Every time you pray for someone, encourage someone, or share a Bible verse, you’re planting a seed.
Imagine a diligent farmer rising early in the morning, seeds in hand. He steps out into the field as the sun is just beginning to rise, and he starts to sow the seeds. Now, the farmer doesn’t know which of the seeds will sprout, how many will grow, or when the harvest will come. But he sows in faith, trusting that some will take root.
In the same way, we sow seeds of faith without always knowing the outcome. The morning of our spiritual life is the time of planting—whether it’s when we first come to faith, when we start a new venture for God, or when we decide to deepen our relationship with Him.
What seeds of faith are you planting in your life right now? Have you intentionally set up a time of study everyday for yourself? Are you reading and praying on a daily basis?
Are you investing time in your relationship with God?
Are you planting seeds of love and encouragement in the lives of others?
You can’t expect a harvest if you haven’t planted any seeds!
There is labor in sowing seed
"...and keep busy all afternoon..." (Ecclesiastes 11:6b, NLT).
6:9- “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
The need for perseverance. It’s one thing to plant seeds, but it’s another thing entirely to tend to them, to nurture them, and to continue working when the results aren’t immediate.
Galatians 6:9 gives us a powerful reminder: "let’s not get weary of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up."
Farmer sows the seeds…but that’s just the beginning.
The farmer must continue to water the crops, pull out weeds, and tend to the soil, even when he doesn’t see any immediate signs of growth.
In the same way, we must persevere in our spiritual labor. It’s easy to grow weary when we don’t see immediate fruit.
We are called to keep going—to keep praying, to keep reading our bibles, to keep sharing the Good News, even when it feels like nothing is happening.
Don’t give up, because God’s Word promises that the harvest will come in His perfect time.
Embracing the times of Uncertainty
The verse brings us face-to-face with the times of uncertainty:
"For you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both." (Ecclesiastes 11:6c, NLT).
“For at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up”
We don’t always know what the results of our efforts will be. The farmer plants the seeds, but he doesn’t know how many will take root or how bountiful the harvest will be.
There is an element of uncertainty, but that doesn’t stop the farmer from sowing the seeds anyway.
1 Corinthians 3:6 Paul says," I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
It is ultimately God who causes the growth. We don’t have to carry the burden of making everything happen. Our role is to plant and water the seeds, and we can trust that God will bring the increase.
We might not see immediate results from our prayers or acts of kindness, but we can trust that God is at work behind the scenes. Even when we can’t see the full picture, we can trust that God is bringing about His purposes.
Faithful Stewardship
Galatians 6:9 tells us, "At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up."
There is a promise here—a promise of a harvest. But that harvest only comes if we are faithful, if we persevere, and if we don’t give up.
Think of the joy when the harvest finally comes. After months of planting, watering, and tending, the fruits of his labor are ready to be enjoyed. In the same way, when we faithfully sow seeds of faith, God promises that a harvest of blessing will come—whether in this life or the next.
Winding down to some final points
Each one of us who profess Christ is called to sow seeds of faith.
The word “Weary” (Ek-ka-keo) means to give in. Where it used and how it is used means we are not to give in to evil, an unjust person, do not surrender to the temptation to become weary and give up.
The word well is the Greek Word kalos (Ka-los), which means good but is better translated useful. Paul tells us to focus on works (ministry) that are useful to measurable kingdom work.
We must persevere in our labor, even when it’s difficult.
We need to embrace the uncertainty of life, trusting God to bring the results.
“Doing” is from the Greek Word “Poi-eo” Sometimes we have to get creative to get beneficial things done.
And finally, we must be faithful stewards of the seeds we’ve been given, knowing that a harvest will come in God’s perfect timing.
Paul tells us that in due season we will reap a harvest- we do not know most of the times when due season happens. He says that we shall reap a harvest for our efforts. We cannot handle and pull the seeds out of good ground to keep checking on the progress that we are expecting God to do in the unknown growth of seeds we can no longer see.
Be encouraged today to sow seeds of faith, trusting that God will bring forth the harvest in His way and in His time.
Closing Prayer
Heavenly Father, help us to be diligent sowers of faith. May we rise each day, ready to plant seeds of trust in You. Give us strength to persevere, even when the results are unseen, and grant us the faith to trust in your perfect timing. Help us to remain faithful stewards of the opportunities you give us. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
Invitation:
If you are here today and you have never placed your faith in Jesus Christ, now is the perfect time. The Bible says that now is the day of salvation. Jesus, the ultimate sower, invites you to come into His family, to receive forgiveness, and to experience new life. Will you say yes to Him today? If you’re ready to take that step of faith, come forward, and we’ll pray with you.
