Your Harvest Is Coming Part 3 Series

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.