THE
HARVEST
Pastor Bonnie MacDonald, Washington
LUKE 10:2
“’The harvest is plentiful, but the
laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out
laborers into His harvest.”
We have all heard this verse most of
our Christian lives. I know that now, at
this season, it is a very important that we listen to and do what the scripture
says to do in reference to the harvest.
There are steps in a harvest, and each
step is important. You cannot reap a
harvest that has not been sown. The same
way, you cannot expect an unbeliever to listen to and adhere to the teachings
in the Bible. He/she must first become
born-again to understand what the Word means and what it is
saying to them. You remember when you
first heard the word and received it, it was like a light bulb going on in your
head and you could understand what it was saying to you. Also, different seasons in our life will
place us in different stages of the harvest, so don’t ever feel guilty if you
are in a different place in the harvest than someone else.
I see the steps for harvest as follows:
1. BREAK UP THE FALLOW GROUND … PRAYER
Ground that has not been broken up, cannot be seeded.
Similarly, unless prayer has been offered, I don’t believe anyone comes
to the Lord. This is the very first step
in the salvation process. Our verse
above instructs us to pray that
the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers.
I know that sometimes we feel that we are not
soul winners unless we are going out and witnessing. We then feel guilty because we don’t think
that we have a place in the harvest because we are too shy, or too busy, or
that we don’t know how to. However,
there is a place and a time for every one of us to become a part of the
harvest. For example: at one time the Lord placed on my heart to
pray for
(Read Jeremiah 4:3 and Hosea 10:12)
2.
SEED (PLANT) THE FIELD … WITNESSING
Sowing the seed is very important. Those that have the gift of evangelism will
go out and witness to many. However, we can also witness at home, in our
family and with our neighbors. Our very
life is a witness – just seeing how we live can make the difference in our
families and friends.
Also, some teaching can be included in
this part of the harvest because I have been privileged to see children and
adults come to know the Lord from being in a Sunday School
class.
Giving to missions can also be counted
in this process. When you give and a
missionary is able to go forth because of your giving, then you are a part of
that and every soul won due to your giving is counted as part of that
harvest.
3.
WATERING IS PART OF THE HARVEST … LET
YOUR LIGHT SHINE
Matthew
Every single one of us can be this part
of the harvest because it not only means to continue witnessing to a person,
but that that person can see every one of us living the way the Bible tells us
to live. Every time you are obedient to
God and His Word, and an unbeliever sees that in your life, then you are
watering what has already been sown in them.
You are showing them what it means to be a Christian.
Again,
prayer is also a part of the watering process.
When you begin to pray for others, that God will send people to be in
their pathway that will witness to them (that they will listen to) then you are
watering. This is very effective in your
own family when sometimes they just won’t listen to you – then pray for God to
send someone to them that they will listen to.
Watering
is also sowing the Word into someone who has already heard before. You may be the very one that someone else has
prayed for to go to the person they witnessed to. Many times it takes more than one person to
soften a nonbeliever and gets them ready to receive. I wonder how many it took for you to turn
your life over to the Lord ???
2.
WEEDING – Matthew
“Jesus presented another
parable to them saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who
sowed good seed in his field. But while
his men were sleeping his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went
away. But when the wheat sprouted and
bore grain, then the tares became evident also.
The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow
good seed in your field? How then does
it have tares?’ And he said to them, ‘An
enemy has done this!’ The slaves said to
him, ‘Do you want us then, to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No, for while you are gathering
up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the
harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First
gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the
wheat unto the barn.”
Weeding
is not your job – it’s God’s! For example:
say one part of a family comes to know the Lord, but the father, mother,
sister, brother, or another part does not.
Do not reject that unsaved mate or family member because if you do, then
they may pull that saved one back into the world. We are to love them just as we love the
believer.
3.
REAPING – John
“Do
not say, ‘Therefore are yet four months, and then comes the harvest.’ Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and
look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is
gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
For in this case the saying is true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you have
not labored; others have labored and you have entered into their harvest.”
If
you have the privilege of leading someone to the Lord, I guarantee you that you
are only one in a line of people who have witnessed to this person. I always feel very privileged when I am given
the opportunity to be the one who actually sees that person receive because I
know that I am just the one who has been blessed the most in the process.
I
might add that pastors and evangelists who preach the Word are also part of
this process before the reaping.
Christian television programs and revivals are other means of getting
the Word out. Also, tapes and CD’s and
Christian meetings of all kinds are witnessing tools. There are many more – like singing in a
campground, Christian motorcycle clubs, etc., etc., etc.
4.
PREPARING THE FRUIT FOR DISTRIBUTION –
Nurturing
When the fruit ripens it must be
harvested. Likewise, after a baby is
born, it must be cared for until it becomes an adult and is able to care for
itself. The same way
with a new believer. They are new
to the faith and it is easier for them to slip away. This is where praying for,
teaching, mentoring, loving, and fellowship come in.
Everyone
needs friends. New believers and new
people to the church need those of like mind to fellowship with them. They need to be included into the family and
that is everyone’s job. Now I know that
you are not going to be able to do this with every single one, but there are at
least 1 or 2 that you can fellowship with, love and even mentor. Ask God to show you where you can fit into
this part of the harvest. He will show
you and you will be fulfilling your part of the process.
“THE
HARVEST IS PLENTIFUL AND THE LABORERS ARE FEW."
Let me encourage you to be part of the
harvest. You will be fulfilled and
others will be blessed.
END
