Friday, January 23, 2015

The Seven Laws of the Harvest

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. James 5:7-8.


The past few weeks Brother Van’s sermons have been on the Seven Laws of the Harvest. The first five laws of the Harvest are:
  • Law 1 … Considering …We reap much we did not sow
  • Law 2 … Identifying … We reap the same in kind as we sow
  • Law 3 … Waiting …We reap in a different season than when we sow
  • Law 4 … Remembering …We reap more than we sow
  • Law 5 … Doing …We reap in proportion as we sow
This Sunday the sermon will be on Law 6 … Persevering …We reap the full harvest of the good only if we persevere; the evil comes to harvest on its own.

Persevering is always a good message for Christians to remember.  Life is hard and as Christians, it is not any easier, but we have great tools and a Savior to help us make it through.  However, this message about persevering is about not giving up, not quitting, like a farmer tending his crops.  When we plant seeds, we can’t just walk away and expect a plant to pop up.  We need to water it and nurture it, keep the weeds away. 

Weeds – now there is something that does not need nurturing.  Many times they have grown and taken over my flowerbed when I am doing everything I can to prevent them.  They grow without invitation, without seed planted by us, and without our tender loving care. 

The Plants and the Weeds – the Good and the Bad
When we plant spiritual seeds in life, sometimes it takes a long, long time to see the fruit of our labor.  But if we keep working and nurturing the seed we have planted, we will eventually see the full harvest.  We can’t give up no matter how tired and burned out we get.  That is what this Law of the Harvest means.  You have to see the seed all the way through to get the full harvest.  You can’t quit in the middle of the season and expect to get a full return.  It takes time and sometimes a lot of it! 

The law says We reap the full harvest of the good only if we persevere; the evil come to harvest on its own.  This makes me think of the weeds in my flowerbed as being like the evil and sin in our lives that comes to try to throw us off track.  Sin and evil can appear from nowhere.  They are not invited often, like weeds.  They are usually not seeds that have been planted or nurtured.  Weeds are bad for the crop and can keep it from coming to full harvest.  They are useless and unwanted and they take nutrients away from the crop. Be careful of the weeds – the sin and evil that waits so willingly to get in and destroy the work you have been doing for God. 

Come this Sunday and 9:30 and 11:00 to hear about Law 6.  See you there!

Scripture to claim: 

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.   II Timothy 2:15

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