Two Laws of the Spiritual Harvest
Two Laws of the Spiritual Harvest!
October, 27th 2013 Lafayette, IN PM!
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Introduction: Passing Down Heirloom Seeds!
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I have been thinking a lot about the transition of leadership in this church, as I am sure
many of you have likewise. There are a lot of questions that we will all have to answer
together in the coming years, but in one thing I am confident: this is not about our
talents, resources or even implementation of ideas and strategies. This is about Jesus
and His children. The answer to every question will ultimately be Jesus or we’ve missed
the point. I’m confident in this network of people, in our community. I’m confident in the
heritage of this local church. and this got me thinking about tomatoes… !
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Heirloom Tomato: An heirloom tomato is an open-pollinated (non-hybrid) heirloom
cultivar of tomato. Heirloom tomatoes have become increasingly popular and more
readily available in recent years. They are grown for a variety of reasons, such as
historical interest, access to wider varieties, and by people who wish to save seeds from
year to year, as well as for their taste, which is widely perceived to be better than
modern tomatoes.!
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If we are going to experience a spiritual harvest in the coming years its not going to be
modern tomatoes. It is going to grow with the heirloom seeds that is passed down from
generation to generation. Newer isn’t always better. In fact by comparison, new
hybrid tomatoes may be larger, redder, more juicy… but the herbicide, pesticides,
hormones, and round up take away from the taste and purity of the tomato. Im not
looking to pastor a church that looks like 1945, 1975, 1995… those aren't old enough
and my heritage goes further back than that. I want to be a part of the church that was
founded on the day of Pentecost, with a savior that has not changed, a spirit that has
never been quenched, and a calling that is sure! Im talking about the Apostles Doctrine.
Im talking about the Holy Ghost inspired word of God! !
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Part One: Law #1 Purity is Essential!
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The first law of the spiritual harvest is that purity is essential. It is not time to start
creating hybrid spirits in the church. We can’t marry the pollutants of this world
with the purity of this word! I don’t want a mutant tomato! Nor do I want a church
that creates mutant Christian, half spirit filled and half pleasers of men. !
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Titus 1:15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and
unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. !
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New tomatoes are grown in special farms, they are injected with growth hormones to
make them plumper, juicier. They have additives in the soil to give it that perfect red
coloring… that studies show consumers prefer when selecting them in the supermarket.!
Two Laws of the Spiritual Harvest
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The exact same principle is occurring in local churches all over America. The desire to
be bigger, more attractive is polluting the message the very core set of beliefs that
Jesus built His church upon. But studies show… consumers prefer… !
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Hear me, we may not be as big, we may not be as fancy. But we have been
handed something that is sweeter than anything the world can try to imitate. We
have been handed something that is pure, undefiled. And if we seek to grow some
thing in midst of the thorns and the weeds of this city, purity is still essential. Hey if you
want a lasting marriage that gets sweeter as the days go by, purity is still essential. If
you want an bridled supernatural move of the Holy Ghost, then we must go after purity. !
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We don’t need to fight for Jesus because Jesus can take care of Himself… but we
do need to fight for purity in our lives. Monsanto round up has been known to literally
blow from one farmer’s land that is using it to another farmer’s land that chose not to
defile his crops. “We are wrestling not against flesh and blood…” Contend for the faith. !
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Revelation makes it plan, Jesus isn't coming back for an unnaturally large church, an
attractional church… He is coming back for a church that is pure and holy. One without
spot or blemish, who have washed their robes in the blood of the lamb.!
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Part Two: Law #2 Don’t Consume More than You Produce!
Now here is where the transition gets difficult. How easy it would be if this process
was nothing more than one generation handing the spiritual heirloom seeds to
the next, charging us to “have at it.” And sadly this is the strategy in too many
churches, too many families. We equate access to the heritage and knowledge of the
growth. More young ministers / pastors / preachers leave the doctrine of the
Apostles, not because they cease to believe it, but because they don’t know how
to produce it.!
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They have been taught all about the seeds, but they have not been shown how to
plant, water, wait. grow, and harvest the seeds for themselves. They have had the
privilege of consuming the fruit but never been taught how to produce the spirit. !
The second law of the spiritual harvest is simply not to consume more than you
produce… this is a law of the natural harvest as much as it spiritual. Unfortunately it is
the law most broken daily in our culture and nation. We have absolutely trained this
present generation to be consumer of any and everything. Produce nothing,
consume everything.!
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A Nation of Consumers!
In the United States: Americans constitute 5% of the world's population but consume
24% of the world's energy. On average, one American consumes as much energy as 2
Japanese, 6 Mexicans, 13 Chinese, 31 Indians, 370 Ethiopians.
Americans eat 815 billion calories of food each day - that's roughly 200 billion more than
needed - enough to feed 80 million people. Americans throw out 200,000 tons of edible
Two Laws of the Spiritual Harvest
food daily. The average American generates 52 tons of garbage by age 75. There are
more shopping malls than high schools.
Americans spend nearly $818,000 every day, or about $300 million each year, on their
beloved Oreos. 205,000 bags
Krispy Kreme businesses pull in more than $1.5 million a day on Original Glazed
doughnuts alone. That's not including jelly-filled doughnuts, or coffee.
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Numbers 11:4-9 And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the
children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? We
remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons,
and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there
is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes. And the manna was as
coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium. And the people went
about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans,
and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil. And when the
dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.!
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Consumption Holds Hand with Lust!
James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it
upon your lusts.!
We take for granted the provision of God when all we do is consume His Blessing
but never Labor to Produce a spiritual Harvest.!
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Conclusion: A Natural Transition!
The success of this church does not rest on the pastor’s shoulders alone. As much as I
would like to take that burden, it simply wont work. It is going to take a total team effort
of every single member of this church to work as a team. !
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1 Kings 19:19 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was
plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah
passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.!
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2 Kings 2:13-14 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went
back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell
from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and
when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went
over. !
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God is calling people who are willing to work… laborers not consumers. In Joel chapter
two, the very chapter where he prophesies the falling of the Holy Ghost, Joel
speaks of locusts… that consume the fields of God’s people. Spiritual Locusts
that move from church to church consuming everything and producing nothing
until all is gone, dead, and barren. But!!!! God said I will restore to you the years
that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the
palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.