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| Pastor Abraham |
We
think of paying the consequences for sinful actions or foolish choices, but the
laws of the harvest are not just negative. These laws are also positive, very
positive, and stand as a promise of blessing for sowing that which is good as
well as a warning against sowing what is bad. We see this in (Galatians
6:7-8).
Do
not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also
reap. For the one who sows to his own
flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit
shall from the Spirit reap eternal life.
LAW-1:
WE REAP ONLY WHAT HAS BEEN SOWN
WE REAP ONLY WHAT HAS BEEN SOWN
Life
is filled with choices; choices that affect us on an everyday basis in
everything we do which means our everyday choices are not without significance.
Our choices affect us and others in dramatic ways whether we see it immediately
or not. While earth remains, no man will mock God by changing for even one time
these laws of the harvest.
This
study is not meant to intimidate us from making choices, for even a failure to
make choices is a choice. Rather, it is designed to motivate us to wise choices
that we may redeem the time.
(Ephesians 5:15-18). Therefore
be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of
your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand
what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is
dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.
Why do we need wisdom? So we can
make wise choices!
Stop and think about this! All life
comes from antecedent life: from the labor and sowing of others. What we reap
was planted either naturally or purposely, either by God or by man, and for
either positive or for negative results. We reap the fruit of much for which we
have extended no labor because we enter into the labor of others either for
good or for bad. In other words, this law of the harvest, We Reap Only
What Has Been Sown, has both a positive and a negative side.
THE POSITIVE SIDE
Though
we are benefactors of much for which we have extended no labor, we still have
the privilege of entering into the labor of others (John 4:35-38).
Blessings We Reap Because of What God Has Done on Our Behalf
(1) The Blessings of Common Grace (Matt.
5:45; Acts 17:24-28; James 1:17; John 3:27). God is gracious toward
all men whether they realize it or not, or whether they ever give Him thanks
for His blessings. In fact, every good gift we enjoy comes from God (Acts 17:24-28; Jam. 1:17; John 3:27).
(2) The Blessings of Salvation Grace (Matt. 21:37; John 3:16; 6:27-32; Rom. 10:6-8; Jam. 1:17-18; 1 John 5:9-12). Regardless of man’s lack
of thankfulness, God has given man the greatest
gift of all in His Son who became man that we might have life by faith in Him.
Blessings We Reap Because
of What Others Have Done In Our Behalf
The Fact (John 4:35-38; Deut. 6:10-11 and the laws of inheritance). Our Lord’s
statements in John
4,
though dealing with the ministry of evangelism, are nevertheless based on this
general principle of life. Deuteronomy 6 and the laws of inheritance further
illustrate this principle, but it is true even for that person who brags about
being a self-made man in dozens of ways. Whether he realizes it or not, his
talents, the opportunities for success, and the fruitfulness he has experienced
are all given by the grace of God.
Not
only are we blessed because of what God has done in our behalf, we are also
blessed by what others have done. Others have labored and we have entered into
the blessings of their labors. Any honest study of Western civilization must
admit that the blessings we have enjoyed in the Western world, of freedom, of
law, of ministering to the suffering, the poor and the like, are all the
by-products of Christianity and our godly heritage.
to be continued ........
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