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Word, the seed – combined with faith:
When the world that you were counting on to be solid and stable, is shaking all around you, the truth of the Lamb of God having been slain before the foundation of the world, makes perfect sense. And, being led forward on a firm footing by the Spirit of God, does too. It is what the psalmist has vocalized in his fervent prayer, saying – Teach me to do Your will, for you are my God; And may Your good spirit lead me on level ground. [Psalm 143:10]
Special – for God is with you:
And the life of Moses in the scriptures, bears witness to it, in the manner in which the all powerful God, the God of all possibilities, led him to be able to lead His people out of bondage in Egypt, and in the wilderness journey, to the very threshold of the promised Land, the land of milk and honey. Moses certainly did not begin as the towering leader that he ultimately became. It was the call of God upon his life, and His presence with him to guide him, and empower him, that even in his own eyes made him special and distinguished, to be able to fulfill his calling.
It is therefore a truth that can in the generations to come, and even in your life and mine, shine encouragingly and brilliantly, to give confidence, that does not shrink back from being led forward in His path of righteousness, as He keeps His eye upon you to guide you, holding your right hand in a covenant relationship that affirms to be with you, to bless you.
Guided and blessed – even in famine:
And, there could be times of famine, lack and unforeseen difficulties, challenges that arise out of the blue, even in the life of the faithful is what the life of Isaac, the promised son of Abraham testifies to. It is a truth that can keep you strong, in your time of famine or lack. For fear and doubt concerning your walk with God can certainly arise in such times. And it establishes therefore, a very vital attribute that needs to be active in you.
The role of faith:
Even in a time of famine, the God who has promised never to leave you or forsake you, is with you to lead you in His ways that are higher than man’s in order to bless you. Isaac went through such an enlightening experience; and recorded in the holy scriptures, it serves to illuminate you and teach you the manner in which you need to approach a time of lack or inability in your life, so that you may not be overwhelmed, but rather overcome it instead.
The word of God, came to Isaac as a seed of promise, even as he followed the procedure that accompanied it, in order to see it come to pass. And thus it was that, having sowed the word of God, as a spiritual seed, in the soil of his heart by faith, Isaac stayed in the place of God’s appointment, even though it was famine struck, instead of going away to a more fertile place, that would have been the common sense approach to it. And he then went on to sow in the same land, to experience the blessing of God. [Genesis 26:3 – 10]
The narrative teaches you and I, God’s unchanging and everlasting principles of sowing and reaping, and also the connection between sowing the seed, the seed of God’s word in your heart and faith. For, as the Lord Himself has described in the parable of the sower, it would then end up as the seed that fell by the wayside, that the evil one immediately took away, before it could take root within. It is the reason why the word of God, in the book of proverbs, advocates the need for having understanding regarding His word, in every aspect of life. For, The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens. [Proverbs 3:19]
A right understanding:
Therefore, a right understanding about the nature of the seed and the Seed – giver, becomes vitally important in the promise of God becoming your life style, or in the working out of the procedure that goes along with the promise. And it is so because, His ways, and His thoughts, are higher, and far superior in their nature, to man’s own limited thinking, and level of operation. He has made it clear, in His words through the prophet Isaiah, in declaring, ‘For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, but water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower, And bread to the eater; So shall My word be, that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to me void; But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it’. [Isaiah 55:10,11]
The Seed-Giver and the seed:
God’s word comes to you as a seed that you need to sow; a seed that is imperishable, and therefore one that will surely bear fruit, as you by faith receive it in your heart, to make it your lifestyle, in following the procedure, laid out in the promise. It comes to you from the mouth of the Seed Giver who is all powerful, and is always so. He is the God of all possibilities, for whom nothing is impossible. It is the understanding that needs to be in you, when you sow. For, He is the One who causes the growth of the seed that you sow, the One who causes the increase. The apostle Paul has described the process wonderfully, to say what needs to be the conviction, even in your heart and mine, I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. [1 Corinthians 3: 6,7]
Your responsibility:
When it is your talents and God given gifting, that you seek to sow in the kingdom of God, opportunities that it may be displayed for the glory of His Name comes from Him. It is how He causes the increase. And you also, sow the seed of God’s word when you speak it out in faith, out of the fullness of your heart, in the situations of life, as they demand it. Thus, when it is healing that you desire, you sow the word of God, as you speak His word of health and healing. And, it will not return without accomplishing its purpose, which in this case is a healing, health and wholeness of your being. When it is fear that is trying to overcome you, and pull you down, once again it is the scripture that God gives you as a seed that you need to speak forth, as you receive it in faith. [Hebrews 13:4,5] For, it is the sowing of the seed that is your responsibility, in seeing God causing the increase, or the fulfillment of it.
Confession – a sign of faith that sows:
And more than anything else, sowing God’s word within you, to also speak it out, is a sign of your faith in God, and His word. It is the action, or the work that needs to accompany your faith, to see it bear fruit, in the manifestation of the seed of His promise to you. It is what the Bible refers to in saying that faith without works is dead. [James 2:17] And it is also true, that any self dependent act, that does not proceed from faith is nothing but sin. [Romans 14:23] For, it is the blessing of God that brings fullness and satisfaction in your life; a blessing that is yours, as you receive by faith, and sow the seed, or the word that He gives you, to meet your specific need, whatever it may be. You have an all powerful God, the God of all possibilities, who meets you at your point of need, to bless you.
But then again, even in a scenario of having the seed in your hand, it is your attitude towards sowing God’s word in you, to make it your very lifestyle, that plays a pivotal role in receiving, what the Giver of all gifts, loves to give to you. It is where, it all becomes incumbent on the level of your faith. And there could be many hindrances that go on to contribute towards a not so healthy attitude towards sowing.
1.Sowing – hindered by fear and doubt:
Fear made it’s destructive entrance in man, after his fall. The third chapter of Genesis details the sadness of it. How it must have pained the heart of God, and how great was His redemption plan, that involved the sacrifice of His very own Son. For fear is costly, and it still lingers in the heart of the one in whose heart Christ is not Lord of all. And it is with faith in God, and trust in His adequacy and wondrous power, that you can be led to let go of the seed, that He has provided in your hand, and not hoard it, only to end up losing much, and not experiencing the blessing of God.
Doubt in your heart, regarding the nature of the true Living God, whose goodness never fails, will inhibit you too, and lead to double mindedness in you. And as the word of God soberly warns you and I concerning it, a double minded person will be unstable in all his ways, and cannot expect to receive the blessing of God; and in fact he would only be giving the devil a foothold to enter in. What needs to be your conviction and confident stance therefore, ought to be the words of Paul, as he declares how thoroughly convinced and fully persuaded he is concerning the power of God, to guard all that he has entrusted into His mighty and loving Hand. It is what will dispel the fear that can arise in you, to lead you to a position of resting and rejoicing in the promise of His word that by faith, you have sowed in your heart, to speak forth as your mouth’s confession.
2. Sowing – when it is duty bound:
It is the other aspect of what can make your sowing ineffective and unfruitful. For, when done with an attitude of ‘I have to’, there will be no excellence in your work. And the Lord has illustrated it well, in the parable of talents, in the manner in which the third servant earned the wrath of the master, on burying his talent, instead of using it to yield an increase. [Matthew 25:25,26] It is not what the Lord desires to be your attitude, when it comes to sowing or employing what He has blessed you with. For, He is the God who causes growth and increase, as you receive His word in faith, and go on to sow and nurture it, by walking in it. Burying it, on the other hand, is what the third servant did.
It only revealed a lack of expectation of growth, and a mere maintenance mode of living that falls far short of God’s will and plan for His children. A right understanding therefore, of the connection between sowing and your faith in God, and His word to you, however challenging your situation may be, is what would see you reap a harvest that brings joy in your life.
3. Sowing – in tears:
There can indeed be times in your life when sowing is painful, even to the extent of leaving you in tears. And the psalmist acknowledges it, to then point to the hope of upcoming joy , Those who sow in tears, shall reap in joy. He who continuously goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing; Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing Bearing sheaves with him. [Psalm 126:5,6]
Sowing – a privilege:
But this I say, ‘He who sows sparingly, will also reap sparingly; he who sows bountifully, will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly, or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. [2 Corinthians 9:6,7] What comes shining through the above portion of scripture is the attitude of willingness and pleasure that needs to be in you, as you sow in the kingdom of God, for it to be pleasing in the sight of God. And a revelation of this truth, will lead you to rightly conclude that it is indeed a privilege to render unto the Lord, what He has blessed you with, as you await the bountiful harvest, that will flood you with joy.
Thus to the one who sows in tears, and the one who gives willingly, counting it to be a privilege, the end result is one of joy. Therefore, you can be encouraged this day, even if it is with pain and sorrow, that you are sowing God’s word of promise in your life. It may not be easy today, but weeping remains, yet only for a night, for joy will certainly come in the morning. For, the seed that is sown is the imperishable seed of God’s word, and the Seed giver is the All powerful God. And the two, when combined with your faith in His faithfulness, can never fail.
It will result also in God being glorified, through it all. For it will be a working out of His power, in the manner that He chooses to express it in your life, and in your circumstance. It may not be quite in line with how you expected things to happen, but, even as you surrender to His good and perfect will for your life, your future glory will be more than what you expected! And Christ, lives and reigns today, as a glorious first fruit of it all!
The Son of Man glorified:
The Lord knew what had to be sown in order to be multiplied, even as He approached the cruel shame and indignity of the Cross. He did it all willingly, as He laid down His life in love, for He also knew that the hour had come, for Him to be glorified. [John 12:23] He therefore, went on to describe to His disciples, what was going to happen, in terms they could easily understand, saying, ‘Most assuredly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. And how it connects with your life and mine, is then what He goes on to lay down saying, He who loves his life will lose it; but he who hates his life in this world, will keep it for eternal life’. [John 12:25]
The Lord thus establishes the truth, and procedure of God being glorified in your life, in the process of yielding your own life, to live no more according to your own will, but being a child of God, and a servant of the Lord, choose to follow in His path, saying, If anyone serves Me, let Him follow Me, and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will also honor. [John 12:26]
The gospel writer Mathew too, states the same, in recording the words of the Lord, in simpler terms, saying, For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. [Matthew 16:25] It has been said that, he is no fool who loses what he cannot keep, in order to gain what he cannot lose! Therefore, whether you are holding on to your life, or, you have handed it over to God, that He may be glorified in and through it, is the question that you need to ask within yourself, so that you may find life that is eternal, which is to be in the safest place even now here on earth.
The story of your life:
You can choose to live therefore, – a wasted life, or, a life merely lived, or, a life that is invested, satisfying your own self, benefiting others, and bringing glory to God. The choice is yours, to be right in the sight of God, and therefore to also be able to do what is right, and to be able to say the words of Paul, ‘I no longer live, but Christ lives in me..’. And what can be said about the life of Christ? He died, and rose again, all for you and I, fulfilling the will of His Father, bringing glory to His Name! [Romans 4:25] Yes, there was suffering and pain that He endured for your sake and mine. He was the suffering Servant, portrayed with grim detail in the words of the prophet Isaiah. [Isaiah 53;11,12] There was agony and blood that was poured out, in the Seed that He sowed on the Cross of Calvary. But it was all for the joy that was set before Him, in bringing many sons to glory! It is still bearing fruit, as you and I, and anyone who has put their trust in Him, and the finished work of the Cross can testify even now!
Begin therefore, to sow the seed, the word of God in your life, saying, ‘Be it unto me, according to your word’. There will indeed be a multiplication, and richness of His blessing in your life. It will come as you follow the Lord, in the path that He has set before you, that the grain of wheat has to die, for it to multiply, and bear much fruit. And it is all because of the seed that is the imperishable word of God, and the All powerful Seed giver, the God of all possibilities! May a joyful harvest be yours, as you continue to sow the seed, in His Kingdom purposes, that His Name may be glorified.
In the Name of Christ Jesus Amen.
