BEN F. VICK, JR.
Just as the laws of God govern sowing and reaping, seedtime and harvest, in the physical realm, so does he govern sowing and reaping in the spiritual realm.
When a farmer plants a crop of corn, he knows that he is not going to reap a harvest in the fall unless he first prepares the soil to receive the seed and tills the ground or, in some manner, prepares the soil so that the weeds will not choke out the corn.
If we fail to prepare our hearts to receive the word of God, which is the seed of the kingdom, we may expect it to lie there and be devoured by the devil before it can germinate in our hearts and be fruitful, as we are told in the parable of the sower. (Matt. 13; Mark 4; Luke 8.) Neither can we allow the cares of the world to choke out the growth of the seed of the kingdom in our hearts.
Sometimes, due to drought or some catastrophic hindrance, such as hail, insects, wind, etc., there may be little yield in crops planted. But in such a case, we do not become weary and disheartened to the extent that the next year we refuse to plant again, thinking that the same thing might happen. We patiently go about our work, realizing that “in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”
We would not expect much of a yield if we planted only a handful of corn in a 20-acre field. It is also possible that our faintheartedness at the lack of visible results in the kingdom of God is resultant from the fact that we have sown “sparingly.” Remember that the apostle Paul said, “He which soweth sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” (2 Cor. 9:6.)
In the plant kingdom we also expect to reap that which is sown. If we sow wheat, we shall reap wheat—not barley or rye. So it is in the spiritual kingdom. The apostle Paul told the Galatians: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to the flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Gal. 6:7-9.)
Sometimes in our work for the Lord we become discouraged and morose when we have done all that we think we can possibly do and yet we see no results; and as a result, we become so “weary in well doing” that we fall by the wayside. But think how weary the God of heaven would get at our slothful behavior if he were as we are. The prophet Isaiah said, “Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?...” (Isa. 40:28.)
Just as surely as we can expect to reap a golden harvest if we are obedient unto the Lord’s commands, we may be assured that we will likewise reap an evil harvest if we sow to the flesh instead of to the Spirit. We may think we are “putting it over” on our friends, our parents or our fellow Christians; but be assured that God has an all-seeing eye and that he is watching us in all situations. We are going to reap that harvest also. Speaking of the infidelity of the Israelites, the Lord spoke through the mouth of the prophet Hosea, “For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind:…” (Hos. 8:7.) Also, when the Lord had dealt so patiently with the children of Israel from the time of their Egyptian bondage and when they had become so wicked, God warned them through the prophet Micah that they might expect to sow and not reap any benefits from their labors. He said, “Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olives, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil; and sweet wine, but thou shalt not drink wine.” (Micah 6:15.) They had sown to the flesh and would of the flesh reap corruption.
If we would reap “life everlasting” with our heavenly Father, we must not be like Felix who sought a “convenient season” to hear the word of the Lord. We must let his word chasten us and not “faint when thou art rebuked of him.” (Heb. 12:5.) Our Lord himself while on earth taught his disciples that men ought “always to pray, and not to faint.” It behooves us as children of God to be “instant in season, out of season,” never fainting and falling by the wayside, for it is not for us to know when the reaping time will come.
—W. L. Totty
HOSPITALITY: WITHOUT GRUMBLING
The story is told of a young woman who invited friends to lunch one Sunday noon. When seated she asked her young son to say the blessing. He replied that he did not know what to say. She told him to just say what he had always heard her say. He bowed his little head and obediently repeated, “Oh Lord, why did I ask all of these people here on a hot day like today!”
This is not the kind of hospitality our Lord intended us to offer. The word “hospitality” is “to receive and entertain with kindness and without reward.” Paul said, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by doing so some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” (Heb. 13:2.)
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