Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. (Galatians 6:8)
I’m sure you are well aware of the agricultural law of sowing and reaping: whatever you sow, that you shall reap. If you sow corn seeds, you will reap corn; if you sow bean seeds, you will reap beans, and so on. If you sow tomato seeds, you will never reap oranges. In our verse for today, we see the biblical truth that Paul shared with the Galatians 2,000 years ago and with you and me today: We reap what we sow in our hearts.
What have you been sowing lately, Christian? And what have you been reaping as a result?
The first thing to remember about the law of sowing and reaping is that this process does not happen in a day, but daily. It takes time to progress from seed to harvest, and we must not grow impatient during that process. Often it looks like very little is happening after the seed has been planted, but we must remember and trust that God is at work. “My Father is always at his work,” Jesus assured us, “and I, too, am working” (John 5:17). To be sure, much of that work takes place well out of plain sight; nonetheless, it is happening.
Here is something else to remember: not everything ripens at the same time. Some seeds ripen sooner and others much later, but all those who are growing in the Lord will ripen, for He has promised –and it is impossible for God to lie — He has promised to bring His work in us to completion (Hebrews 6:18, Philippians 1:6).
The crops we harvest will always be determined by the seeds we have sown. Paul’s words are an exhortation to make sure we are planting good seed by sowing to and sowing by the Spirit of God. When we sow to satisfy the flesh, as many in Galatia were doing when Paul wrote his epistle, we reap from the flesh that which does not glorify God or grow us in Christ. The Galatians were heading down the pathway to destruction, and Paul rebuked them for it, urging them to repent of their self-centered behavior. But when we sow to the Spirit, seeking the glory of God and the good of others, God promises to produce a harvest of delicious fruit that will be attractive to all those who come in contact with us.
So let me ask you to consider the question again: What kind of harvest have you been reaping? If you are currently reaping something other than God’s best for your life, all you need do is sow new spiritual seed. Sow the seeds that come from the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. When you do that, you can be assured that God will absolutely, positively, supply an increase, in His time and in His perfect way.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 