The Sower in Jesus’ famous parable cast many seeds on the ground before him. He did not take one single seed, plant it in the most fertile soil, and go home hoping for a harvest. Could you image a farmer ever saying to his family, “O well, I tried planting a seed once, and it didn’t work”? So, neither should we ever imagine saying, “O well, I tried to talk to someone about Jesus once, and it didn’t work” (I borrowed this introduction from an excellent sermon by Gary Taylor).
As the Samaritans were coming to meet Jesus, he said to his disciples, “…open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest” (John 4:35). These Samaritans were part of an eternal harvest of souls. Souls harvested because the divine seed was sown into their hearts. “Thus the saying, ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true” (John4:37).
Jesus told his disciples, “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work” (John 4:38). In the case of the Samaritans, Jesus was both the Sower and the Reaper. But you can add Moses, the author of the Pentateuch that the Samaritan’s read, and all other prophets and teachers who taught them truth along the way. “Others have done the hard work,” Jesus continued, “and you have reaped the benefits of their labour” (John 4:38).
Every Christian works according to the need of the moment. Whether the Sower or the Reaper, all have reason to rejoice over the harvest.
You and I are the beneficiaries of a long list of Sower Reapers. In turn, we join the labourers in God’s field.
In all our work for Jesus, we must be careful to give God the glory. Paul knew the real source of the growth. He said:
“I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (1Corintians 3:6).
John Staiger
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