Sunday 12th October 2014. Harvest – The Hardworking Farmer
2 Timothy 2
6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on
what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.
Galatians 6
7Do
not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who
sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to
please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing
good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we
have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family
of believers.
In many ways Harvest Sunday seems a little out of place with most people’s way of life living
in a town like Weston. To get our food, we simply drive a short distance, park in a bay and
wander round the supermarket aisles, choosing whatever we need and feeling satisfied if
we can get some bargains or 3 for 2 offers. Online shopping means we don’t even have to
do that anymore. You click and a van delivers.
Yet giving thanks for our food has been ingrained into every culture since people first
walked on the earth. Harvest is probably the most ancient of all festivals and the ritual of
bringing a portion of food as a thanksgiving to God stems back to Cain and Abel in the
opening pages of the Bible. Our word harvest is actually from the Anglo-Saxon hærfest,
which means "Autumn", but apparently harvest was often celebrated earlier on August 1st
when the grain was first harvested and was called Lammas, meaning 'loaf Mass'. Farmers
made loaves of bread from the fresh wheat crop. These were given to the local church as
the Communion bread during a special service thanking God for the harvest.
The bible is full of references to farming and some of Jesus’ most famous stories are all
about People sowing seed and harvesting the crops. But this is because growing crops
requires vision, patience and a good deal of faith and endurance too.
In the letter of Timothy that we have been studying together over the last few weeks the
Apostle Paul says this: 6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the
crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.’
Even though Paul is in prison on death row, he is writing to encourage the young church
leader Timothy to devote his energies to what is really important in life – sharing the good
news of Jesus with as many as will listen before that final day when we all have to stand
before our maker to give an account of our life. As Paul was writing he probably knew his
time was running out, and this brought the urgency of his mission more closely into focus.
1
One of my favourite quotes is by an engineer, Robert Louis Stevenson: He said ‘Judge each
day not by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you sow’. In our results driven society, I
suspect we would be a lot happier people if we all lived by this principle!
Now I wonder if you can guess who the individual is that I am talking about:
1)
He was the son of a pastor.
2)
He worked in a bookstore and as a salesman whilst studying.
3)
He worked as an evangelist in Belgium.
4)
His brother was manager of a gallery in Paris.
5)
Through his brother, he came into contact with some famous painters.
6)
He struggled to make a living and had two failed romances.
7)
He suffered from mental health problems which eventually caused his death.
8)
Although he produced hundreds of paintings he only ever sold one during his own
lifetime.
9)
He only had half an ear
10)
He was probably one of the greatest artistic geniuses of all time.
Yes it was Vincent Van Gogh. He had a Christian faith and described himself as wanting to
create happiness by painting beautiful things in vibrant colours. But despite his efforts, he
never saw the fruits of his labours. We are the ones who benefit now – we have several Van
Goghs hanging on the wall at home – I just wish they were real! Van Gogh managed to
create things of beauty, which is something very close to the heart of God. Destruction takes
a moment, but creativity takes a lifetime. I find it fascinating that one of the subjects he
chose to paint several times was ‘the sower’, as you can see.
Sowing used to be hard work in the days before tractors. These days seed drills place seeds
at a precise depth of soil at the optimum distance apart. But in former days it was a more
risky affair. You could lose a huge percentage of seed to birds, the seed could fall in the
wrong place or not germinate properly. For many people even today, sowing seed is a very
painful process because you literally have to throw away your last remaining food. A
missionary Del Tarr tells of his experience of the going to Sahal – a vast stretch of savanna
just under the Sahara desert. In that place rains come for only four months of the year –
from April to July. November is the best month because the people eat two meals a day
2
from the harvest and there is dancing and happiness. But the foodstocks dwindle until in
March and April, there is barely enough food for a single meal a day. Children and babies cry
with hunger. It’s so painful, and then it happens. One of the children discovers whole sacks
of grain in the shed. ‘Daddy daddy we’re saved! We have grain!’ Imagine the temptation to
fill hungry tummies but the dad says. ‘I’m sorry. We cannot eat this grain. It is for the
harvest. And with tears rolling down his cheeks, he takes the grain out and scatters it in the
field. That is why the famous verse in Psalm 126 in the Bible talks about ‘Sowing in tears’.
But what does the rest say? ‘Those who sow in tears will reap in joy’. Even if you are crying
with hunger as you sow your grain, it will be worth it in the end. Even though investing in
the hidden place can be painful, we will reap in joy eventually.
I suspect though that sowing in the hidden places of life is increasingly counter cultural. It
was report last month that the Association of teachers and Lecturers are concerned that
children believe celebrity status is an option for everyone. ATL general secretary Mary
Bousted said that children ‘do not understand the hard work it takes to achieve such status
and do not think it is important to be actively engaged in school work as education is not
needed for a celebrity status’. People like Paris Hilton who seem to be simply famous
because they are famous are becoming the role models. The ATL will debate a motion that
argues the ‘decline in this country into the cult of celebrity’ is ‘perverting children’s
aspirations’. But I want to go further, that this culture that celebrates fame and public
performance actually undermines healthy roots.
So my question to you this morning is this – how much does this culture affect you? Do you
find it difficult to grow in secret? Jesus assured his disciples before their first mission in
Matthew 10 verse 26 ‘So do not be afraid of them, there is nothing concealed that will not
be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known’. In God’s economy, it’s the things done
in secret have the highest value.
God is the ultimate hardworking farmer. He has created the universe as a place to grow
people who will love and serve him. He planted you and me here in Weston-super-Mare to
be fruitful for him and he is patiently waiting for the harvest. In John 12v24 Jesus said ’24
Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a
single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.’ Jesus died on the cross and was buried in
the tomb, like a seed being planted. But on the 3rd day he rose again and the new life he
brought with him started to multiply, until now there are millions or even billions of
followers of Jesus, who will love and serve God forever. It all started with Jesus not clinging
on to his own comfort but sowing everything he had.
The Christian life is one of hard work in hidden places, but it says in Galatians 6,
7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who
sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to
3
please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing
good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we
have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family
of believers.
George Muller achieved amazing things during his life including building orphanages to
house 1000s of children and he wrote this:
Here is the secret of great success.
Work with all your might, but don’t trust in the least in your work.
Pray with all your might for the blessing of God, but work at the same time with all
diligence, all patience and all perseverance.
Pray, and then work.
Work and pray
And still again pray, and then work.
And so on all the days of your life.
The result will surely be abundant blessing.
I had a dream when I was preparing this talk. In my dream I saw a salmon jumping up
waterfalls to reach the freshwater pond in order to spawn. Sea salmon make incredible
journeys in order to reach safe freshwater pools that they can spawn in. And I felt that the
Lord was saying to us ‘return to the source, and it takes effort to get there’. Jesus is the
source, that pool of his presence where can if you like, give birth to wonderful things.
Our harvest will come as we make the effort to get into his presence, as we come back to
him, the source.
4