Have you ever thought about Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska – you know, wheat-and-corn country? (...with all due respect to our international readers.) Even though the closest that most of us now ever come to a stalk of corn or wheat is a bag of enriched self-rising flour or a can of Green Giant Niblets, we need to stop and give a rousing ovation to the folks who actually produce the food that we so quickly and easily complain we're overpaying Piggly Wiggly for. Because without them, the collective growls from those missed-meal cramps would be loud enough to be picked by Voyagers 1 and 2. But I digress...
My real point here is that farmers understand about sowing and harvesting crops. The most basic and fundamental principle they know is that if you want to reap a crop at all, the first thing you have do is plant one – same as 'if you want your ship to come in, you first gotta send one out.' They don't go out and stand there staring at an empty 'south 40,' looking all worried and irritable, when they know good and well they didn't put any seed in the ground three months ago. They know better!
Farming is the perfect natural example of the Kingdom of God in action. It starts from a seed; the seed grows, becomes larger and matures; then it produces fruit, a crop for harvesting. The whole idea behind the seed – it's sole purpose in life – is to manufacture fruit and reproduce itself many times over. Jesus often used the process of seed-time and harvest in His teachings when describing the Kingdom (the one, according to Mark 1:15, that's at hand, here right now). Matthew 13 and Mark 4 are particularly jam-packed.
Why'd he use those examples? Well, because He was trying to get across to us that that's the way the system is set up. That's the way you do it – that's the way it's done. It's God's system, and that's how He does it. And we're supposed to do it, too. Jesus said, "Give, and it shall be given unto You..." (Luke 6:38), right? Among other folks, He came to preach the 'good news' to the poor. And what, do you suppose, would be good news to poor people? That they don't have to live in poordom anymore! He gave them the formula to get out of it.
"But poor people don't have anything to give." True, but God's also promised that He'll give seed to the sower, as well as bread to the eater (2 Corinthians 9:10). (In other words, He's quietly taken away all excuses.) He'll start the cycle for us if we need Him to. So, what we have to do then is commit to being a sower. Look, seed can either be eaten or sown – it really wasn't designed for any other uses. Just don't eat all your seed. The seed He's given you to sow, sow it. Then play farmer and expect a big crop multiplied back to you (Luke 6:38; 2 Corinthians 9:10)!
P.S.: If any of you said that seeds can also be smoked.............well...you don't get any points for that answer.
Originally posted on my blog "just the GOOD news"
My real point here is that farmers understand about sowing and harvesting crops. The most basic and fundamental principle they know is that if you want to reap a crop at all, the first thing you have do is plant one – same as 'if you want your ship to come in, you first gotta send one out.' They don't go out and stand there staring at an empty 'south 40,' looking all worried and irritable, when they know good and well they didn't put any seed in the ground three months ago. They know better!
Farming is the perfect natural example of the Kingdom of God in action. It starts from a seed; the seed grows, becomes larger and matures; then it produces fruit, a crop for harvesting. The whole idea behind the seed – it's sole purpose in life – is to manufacture fruit and reproduce itself many times over. Jesus often used the process of seed-time and harvest in His teachings when describing the Kingdom (the one, according to Mark 1:15, that's at hand, here right now). Matthew 13 and Mark 4 are particularly jam-packed.
Why'd he use those examples? Well, because He was trying to get across to us that that's the way the system is set up. That's the way you do it – that's the way it's done. It's God's system, and that's how He does it. And we're supposed to do it, too. Jesus said, "Give, and it shall be given unto You..." (Luke 6:38), right? Among other folks, He came to preach the 'good news' to the poor. And what, do you suppose, would be good news to poor people? That they don't have to live in poordom anymore! He gave them the formula to get out of it.
"But poor people don't have anything to give." True, but God's also promised that He'll give seed to the sower, as well as bread to the eater (2 Corinthians 9:10). (In other words, He's quietly taken away all excuses.) He'll start the cycle for us if we need Him to. So, what we have to do then is commit to being a sower. Look, seed can either be eaten or sown – it really wasn't designed for any other uses. Just don't eat all your seed. The seed He's given you to sow, sow it. Then play farmer and expect a big crop multiplied back to you (Luke 6:38; 2 Corinthians 9:10)!
P.S.: If any of you said that seeds can also be smoked.............well...you don't get any points for that answer.
Originally posted on my blog "just the GOOD news"
