Sowing and Reaping

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” 

Galatians 6:7

Those who go to the trouble of sowing also expect a harvest. If a farmer sowed seed in the spring without intending to harvest it in the fall, one would consider him foolish. In reality, a farmer looks ahead with anticipation to the time of harvest when he can gather in the reward for his labors. A young person who prepares for his or her career by going to school for a long time expects that to pay off when they have finished their studies. A person can only expect to harvest that which they have sown. If you sow wheat, you cannot expect to harvest oats. If someone learns the trade of a carpenter, he will not expect to be a computer technician when he is finished. 

A farmer had a worker named Lukmann. He told Lukmann to sow barley in his field. Lukmann went and sowed oats. When the farmer went out to see how his harvest was doing, he found that he had oats instead of barley. He called his worker and said, “Didn’t I tell you to sow barley? Why did you sow oats?” Lukmann answered, “I was hoping that barley would grow from the oats seed.” He retorted, “What kind of fool are you? Has anyone ever heard of such nonsense?” “Well,” said Lukmann, “you do the same thing. Every day you do things that are not right, and you expect that on the Day of Resurrection all will turn out well. So, I thought I could sow oats and expect barley as well.” The farmer was so shocked at the practical lesson Lukmann tried to teach him that he began a new life with Jesus and was a changed man from that day on.

If a person lives a life of sin, it will not take long until sin starts bearing fruit. There are consequences. The harvest will come. It is only a matter of time. A person may be doing wrong without fearing the consequences, yet one day he or she will be astonished by the unexpected negative results. 

King Saul persecuted David and tried to kill him. But the day of disaster came for Saul, and Saul, having no way of escape, even took his own life. King Herod, who persecuted the disciples, relied on his power until he succumbed to a horrible illness that ended his life. Those who cause tears will reap tears. Much wind produces storm. “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life” (Galatians 6:8). 

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7). In the narratives of the Bible, we see this verified over and over again. What we sow is important. If we look into our own lives, maybe we too should be shocked. We should cry out to God and ask Him to be merciful and show us grace. We can ask God to forgive us and save us from the evil intentions of our hearts so that from now on we sow good seed in the soil of our lives.

How foolish it is for people to think that they can conceal the wrong that they have done and keep it a secret. The day will come when it will surely come to light. “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy” (Proverbs 28:13). Unforgiven sin will keep on sowing seeds of malice. Those who allow evil to have room in their lives will become enslaved to it. Do not allow unforgiven sin to remain in your life. There is forgiveness for everyone. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Do not delay to come to Jesus Christ in order to be saved from sin. Come to Him while there is time. 

We do not reap merely that which we have sowed. Whoever sows a handful of seed will reap a much greater amount than what was sowed. It is no different in life. We reap much more abundantly than that which is sown. Isn’t that serious? How can we expect to stand before the judgment seat of God when every evil word spoken bears fruit?

If we reap what we sow, then where does the grace of God come in? Did Jesus not die for the sins of the world? Yes, He died for all of our sins! And whosoever believes in Him will be saved from the eternal wrath to come. But that does not negate the fact that here on earth we will reap the consequences of what we sow. Psalm 103:10-11 says, “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities, for as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him.” When we have received God’s forgiveness, He does not deal with us according to what we deserved but, nonetheless, there is often a lifelong memory and sometimes remaining consequences of sin while we are yet on earth. 

The law of sowing and reaping is not a fantasy but a reality, both physical and spiritual. Therefore, let us flee from sin and find our refuge in Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, who saves from sin. Then the seed we sow from now on will yield a good harvest. Then we will not be ashamed on the great day of the Lord. And even if we must sometimes sow with tears, we await a day of harvest, which will be a day of inexpressible and unimaginable joy.

D.L.M.