Sowing and Reaping

This is part of our "expanding" effort.

I've heard many, many sermons on "Sowing and Reaping", and I'll admit, they sounded good to me at the time.  There are a lot of versions out there, but the most common I've heard, are the ones that are given before an offering is taken.  You know the one; sow money; you'll reap money. Oh, sure,  they'll throw in a few other examples for good measure, like- kindness for kindness,or being a good friend for having a good friend.   But, Jesus talks a whole lot about the kingdom of heaven, which he said, by the way "is at hand". 

Galatians 6:7 That whatever a man sows, that and that only shall he reap.  It seems to make perfect sense to the natural mind, taken with the above doctrine- that is , if you stop right there and don't read the next verse." For he who sows to the flesh, will from the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit , will of the Spirit reap life."  There are only two things people can sow and reap from; the natural realm and death,  or the Spiritual realm( or the Kingdom of Heaven) and life.

It would seem to me that money is definitely something from the natural world.  ( None of those very large, and very sacrificial offerings multiplied back into my bank account ,by the way.) Jesus said you can't serve two masters, God and mammon(which, truthfully can be any thing from the natural world- and money is certainly symbolic of that.) Now if I am sowing money, to reap back a larger harvest of money- I am in essence only making my "god"(mammon) bigger.  And consequently will reap bigger death/corruption.

So, how then do we know when we are sowing to the Spirit or the flesh? Well that's obvious, some might say.  However, even if something looks like a good deed, it may not be sowing to the Spirit.  Jesus said, I do only that which I see my father doing.  If God did not say do it- it is dead works, man trying in his ability to please God ( i.e. the Law/ Religion).  All of which is from,in, and belonging to the worldly kingdom. For the sons of God will be led by the Spirit of God (Rom.8:14).  How liberating it is to not be slaves, serving a religious institution trying to be "good Christians" doing our duty.  I can't tell you how many times I've jumped into serving in various church ministries without even consulting God, because it naturally seemed to me to be a pleasing thing to God. Proverbs 3:5,6 says not to lean on our own understanding or reasoning. " For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways , my ways" (Isaiah 55:8).  We must discern, by the Spirit, which homeless person to help, which ministry to give to, or be a part of- otherwise, it will only bring discouragement, burnout, confusion-death.

Heather

Comments

[Rick Creech]

Wonderful post! May God give us all eyes to see and ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to us in these days. I'm looking forward to the new contributers.

[derick]

Thank you for your space that allow me to post a comment.
We are at the endtime zone and rapture is around the bend sounded farfetch? I am a witness to tell not telling a story but the truth as this was revealed at the endime church by God's endtime prophet.I am a witness to GOD'S prophecy. As we look around we see the tell tales sign of the endtme events,like America was judged when the World Trade Center twin tower came falling dowm! US worst natural disaster the Katrina, and many other worldwide weather dissaters either extreme flood or heat waves in China, Europe, Australia and South east Asia, Tsunami stricked and shook a third of the world population, earth quake, volcano eruption and weird criminal crime. The global warmig has a direct impact affecting the world's crop production and reduces it harvest, the life stock production declines and sea harvest is also decline. Sickness and diseases strange pleaque surface againt unkown to modern scienctist.
This the aftermarth of the spiritual warfare where God sent his warring angels,cherubim and sherufin to destroy Satan's spirutal weapon which controled the weather that are suspended in the space and on earth and in the sea had caused the weather to go haywired and triggered the natural disasters.

Thes are the signs of the endtime as Jesus Christ said by the look of the sky one can foretell the tomorrow's weather same these at the indications.
The sower is the endtime prophet of God and the reapers are the angels is stated in Matthew 13:39 why? man had rejected God's truth and embrace their own doctrine concorted by their traditional and believe emotion and sentiments and make Jesus' divinity God and worship him with no scripturals backing. Therefore the Father rejected the world church, that are tainted with dark knowledge. How can God use them when their mind are tainted with Satan's doctrine-dark knowledge dark influences and in the end Satan will come to claim the soul because partly is his affort. So church's preacher don't waste your time and money to preach the gospel that explain why all the soul so called saved came in through the front door and exit at the back to the world again. Satan can claims all of them are his because they were saved by preachers tainted with his dark knowledge-sourced from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
The truth as revealed by the Father through his endtime prophet there are not one preacher on earth that are not tainted with dark knowledge that's explain why all the preachers' lives are terrible and miserable burdensome life.