The Harvest is Now!
With Labor Day coming on September 3, we have reached the unofficial end of summer. We still have about 20 days left before summer ends, but now is the time when we think about Fall. If we were farmers, we would be preparing to reap our harvest. If you're a student, you're headed back to school.We have our "official" dates, but we tend to think in seasons. Most of us are not farmers, but we know this is the season of the natural harvest. Sometimes, natural seasons stir up thinking about spiritual seasons.
Jesus used the example of a harvest to teach His disciples about preparation and action:
31 In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” 32 But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” 33 Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?” 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! 36 And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. (John 4:31-36)
Christ sat with His disciples, not eating as He normally would, but probably lost in thought while looking at a field that was coming closer to the time of reaping. As usual, the disciples pressed their natural concerns, while Jesus always looked at the big picture. When offered nourishment, He stated that His nourishment was to do God's will and finish His work.
Jesus didn't react to the disciples' complacency about the time of harvest being four months away. He responded, with purpose and passion, to the "white fields" of souls that are always ripe for harvest! He looked at the farmers' future harvest, but considered present human needs, and trained His disciples (and us!) to do the same. As Creator, he might have contrasted the whole process of "seedtime" and "harvest" in light of both natural and spiritual transformation. The seed of God's word will produce a harvest of salvation and blessing for those who trust Him.
We don't need natural seasons to motivate us to action, we only need to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ! We can sow and reap based on our obedience to God and our love for souls! Faithful actions will cause us to rejoice together as people discover new life in Christ!
