The Harvest: a Bible Study

Today, I re-read this Bible Study from John, chapter 4, that Mike prepared for a Sunday School lesson. I know you will be blessed by these thoughts from God’s Word.

The Sower and His Seed

I learned a lot from Joe Jack Dement. Since the excellent video on the Parable of The Sower, featured in the last post, is only on the web temporarily, I am posting some thoughts I gleaned from this 80-year-old wheat farmer. Jesus explains the seeds and the meaning behind the birds, the footpath, and the other parallels in His parable. Mr. Dement’s knowledge of wheat farming adds to our understanding of the parable.

WHEN and WHERE
Just as the farmer casts the seed away from him, we can drop a little word about Jesus, a Bible verse, or a Scriptural truth as we interact with people every day. For instance, one day last week, I ran errands to five different stores. What normally would be drudgery for me was a joy as I shared a little conversation and tracts with nine people! My perspective was sowing, not shopping, as I went about my work.

WHO
We do not choose who gets to hear God’s message. God wants everyone to hear. God promises His Word will be active in a person’s life, even if we don’t see it. The seed becomes a fruitful plant over time and under the right conditions.

According to Mr. Dement, birds gather around the farmer, waiting for the seed sown on the path. Pray for the people who are not open to God’s Word to retain even a little bit of what you have sown. You do not need to fear that “the enemy” knows you are sowing. Pray for those who need to hear what you have to share with them. They are really the ones under attack!

Shallow soil means the plant will have no resistance and will dry up and die before maturity. To grow in Christ, people need to grow in their knowledge of the Word. As much as you possibly can, help this person get into the Word and into fellowship with believers. Even so, they may still have trouble when their faith hits the bedrock in their soul, so again, prayer is needed.

The seed growing in a weedy area was competing with a huge weed and did not yield fruit. Many people, rich or poor, are worried about their things and other financial concerns. When I share my faith I may even find that the Christians that I meet have not dealt with the weeds in their life and bear very little fruit for God. I suspect a lot of Americans are in the weedy category. Perhaps God will use the current economic woes to bring more people to follow him wholly.

I was very fascinated with the seed planted in good soil. One seed resulted in twelve plants, each with its own head of seed. I could not help but think of Jesus’s twelve disciples with their disciples. Farmer Dement said that 85% is a good, and a typical, yield. What if EACH Christian could leave a legacy of 85 mature Christians who are also telling others about Christ?

WHAT, HOW, and WHY
I named this blog The Sower because I envision that my Christian readers will be encouraged to speak about Christ frequently and everywhere. Thank you for visiting and please come back for more stories and answers to your questions to help you share your faith.

The Sower: Explained by a Farmer

With the start of a new year, and a less hectic schedule before me, I plan to return to posting every ten days or so. Thank you for your patience!

A friend directed me to a great video which explains the parable of the Sower. The film follows an 80-year-old wheat farmer who explains about growing wheat and how weeds, poor soil, and other factors Jesus mentions in his parable will affect wheat plants.

This complete video is only available for a limited time, so you may want to watch it ASAP. I posted my thoughts after viewing the video because at some point, you will not be able to watch the entire video online.

Click here for more about all six parables in video format. A few of the videos would be useful for evangelism.

The Moral Choice

“Are you reading the Bible?” I asked as I sat at the kitchen table with a friend of our son’s, Aadesh.

“Yes,” he replied. Aadesh had asked for a Bible earlier this summer after I had told him that the Bible had a lot to say about financial principles.

“What are you reading?”

“Romans,” he replied.

Wow! I thought. What a deep book of the Bible to start in!

Aadesh explained that some other people had recommended Romans as a good place to start with to learn what God says about finances.

He was very interested and seemed to agree with me as I explained how Jesus’ resurrection validated His claims to be God. I had never talked to Aadesh before about his spiritual background and was not surprised to learn he comes from a strong Hindu background.

Aadesh is leaving for Oxford in a few months and feels he needs to make a decision about his faith now because he knows he will face moral and ethical decisions as a neurosurgeon. I was really impressed with his humility in recognizing this need. He was willing to take a book from me called Choosing Your Faith by Mark Mittelberg which I had purchased with him in mind.

Our conversation went very well, but I later realized, because of his background, Aadesh views Jesus as one god among many. He is exploring which god to choose and I was really not on the same wavelength as he was. In the future, I will need to write to him about Jesus’ claims to be the only way to God.

Today, I am sending him a narrative version of The Roman Road and am trusting God to speak to Aadesh through His living Word.

The Message of the Herald

Last time, we learned that we are Christ’s heralds and we learned that a herald completely represented the king. He had his king’s protection and was “the voice of the crown”.

Heralds during the Middle Ages made proclamations of royal commands or invitations to tournaments. As Jesus’ herald, we can proclaim that God is Creator, or Jesus is returning, or He is displeased with sin. We can invite people to the marriage feast of the Lamb which will be held in Heaven for all who know Him personally.

Contrary to popular thought, a herald did not blow a trumpet when announcing the king’s message. However, he might have had a trumpeter with him to alert people to listen to the king’s message. The message itself did not do the attention-grabbing. In the same way, we should not be loud or draw attention to ourselves. The message we deliver should also clearly be from the King. So, whenever we talk to people about Jesus, we should use the Word of God to ground our statements. God promises in Isaiah 55: 11 that His word, “always produces fruit.” He promises that His Word will have an effective impact on people’s hearts the way He wants it to.

If you feel uncomfortable relating what God is saying in His Word, especially when your message goes against popular thinking or opinion, keep in mind that it’s God’s message, not yours. If someone disagrees with God’s law, and calls you narrow-minded for believing what you do… then remember as a herald that they are criticizing God, not you.

Of course, we need to deliver God’s message as He would, lovingly, not rudely or insensitively. 2 Timothy 4: 1 – 2 commands us to proclaim the Word of God, to explain Who Jesus Christ is, and specifically, to explain that He is the returning Judge and King. Verse two goes on to say that we are to “be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.” Verses 3 and 4 state that because the time is coming when the world will turn from the truth, we should preach the Word even when our message is unwelcome or the time is inconvenient:.

We don’t even have to be speaking in order to be a good herald. A herald fully represents the king, so every action should reflect the quality and purpose of the king. Of course, if the herald never talks, no one will know what on earth the king has to say. 2 Corinthians 5: 20 explains how to deliver the message we carry with us as we represent Christ wherever we go: we are given “the ministry of reconciliation – that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him.” Actions are as important as words in being a good herald.

What higher calling is there, than to be a herald from God to a desperate world?

Part 2 of 2 < Prev Next >

God’s Herald

I opened my Amplified Bible to II Timothy 4: 1 – 2a and read:

“I charge [you] in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the dead, and in the light of His coming and His kingdom: Herald and preach the Word!”

I knew about 2 Corinthians 5: 20, where Christians are referred to as ambassadors for Christ. I knew that either an ambassador or a herald could be an official representative for a king, but wondered how they might differ. I was curious to learn how I could “herald the Word.”

To represent a king as a herald in the Middle Ages meant more than what we would expect of an ambassador today. The herald was the only servant allowed to wear the king’s shield of arms. His clothing looked like he was wearing the king’s banner. The herald completely took the king’s identity in this way. It was even considered treason if a fellow countryman harmed a herald while he was wearing this tabard. The herald represented the king so completely that he was considered “the voice of the crown.”

During war, the herald would take a message from the king into the enemy’s camp. The herald could not be harmed while he was there. The rules of war protected all heralds from harm. The following two verses relate to this image (I could have found more):

• “On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them.” ~ Mark 13: 9b
• “His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day.” ~ Psalm 91: 4b – 5

In the next post, we will look into the herald’s message.

Part 1 of 2 < Prev Next >

A Shot in the Dark

I was already awake at 3 AM, but this was not that unusual. It was only the second night and the hotel bed and I were still getting acquainted.

As I tried laying on one side and then the other, two muffled gunshots turned the night on like a key in an ignition. The once still night air was now filled with loud voices. I got up to peer through the curtains.

Just fifty yards from the hotel, a Waffle House parking lot was swarming with people, talking loudly. Most were in two large groups and more were inside the restaurant. I couldn’t help but think of a nest of agitated hornets. No one screamed and very few left in the next hour, instead, more cars kept coming. By the time the police arrived, every inch of the parking lot overflowed with cars and people. With binoculars, I could see the waitresses still working behind the counter. The crowd seemed unconcerned about the gunfire.

Although disruptive and disturbing the peace, the crowd spent many hours together. They probably started their night out several hours before midnight. Their need to belong and spend time together was out in the open for anyone to see. They were still buzzing loudly at 4 AM when I finally fell asleep.

In just a few hours, I was joining 3,000 people as we gathered in a very large auditorium for Sunday morning worship. I could not help but think about the contrast. Since we were visiting that day, we went in and out of a building in one hour’s time. The group we joined that morning was larger than the Waffle House crowd, but probably very few people outside the building were aware of us or what we were doing.

In John 13: 34 – 35, Jesus gives us a command and a promise: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this ALL MEN WILL KNOW that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

If we want people to know we are followers of Christ, then we must think of ways to show love to fellow believers out in the public eye where others will see US and want to know HIM.

Open Their Eyes

“Tell them the good news of Christ from a heart of love and a life of service.” ~ John Piper

I am keeping this post short, again, because I know you will enjoy one of the articles from The Sower’s online newspaper. (The newspaper typically changes near the beginning of the month and has a few articles from other web sites and a story from The Sower’s archives.)

In his sermon, “I’m Sending You To Open Their Eyes,” John Piper explains the New Birth and how God wants to use us to reach people with the Gospel, including good, practical advice:

“I say to you what Jesus said to Paul in Acts 26:18: I send you to open their eyes. Don’t stop because you can’t. Of course you can’t. But the fact that you can’t make electricity or create light never stops you from flipping light switches. The fact that you can’t create fire in cylinders never stops you from turning the car key. The fact that you can’t create cell tissue never stops you from eating your meals. So don’t let the fact that you can’t cause the new birth stop you from telling the gospel. That is how people are born again—through the living and abiding word, the good news of Jesus Christ.” Read the entire sermon.

The Jesus Memorial

I was not going to answer.

The doorbell rang this morning, and when Mike is not home, he has told me I do not need to answer the door.

Peering through the peephole, I saw an older man and a young boy. I still was not going to answer, just because I did not want to, but I felt compelled. I picked up a few tracts I keep by the door and turned the door knob.

The twelve-year-old boy held out a glossy flyer with a face of Christ on it. The man stood behind him holding a stack of flyers. “Would you like to go to a Jesus Memorial next Saturday?” the boy asked. “Would you take one of our flyers?”

“Is your church having an Easter service?”

“Sometimes we use the rodeo arena,” explained the older gentleman, “but this year we are meeting at Kingdom Hall.”

“Oh!” I replied. “We do not believe in the same Jesus. He is fully God and fully man.”

Just that quickly, the man mumbled something and left. I was a little surprised because Jehovah’s Witnesses would usually want to get into a discussion. I suspect he did not want to do that with the boy present.

The whole idea of a memorial service for Jesus struck me as so odd. Again, in hind sight, I think I would have said something to the effect that Jesus is alive, not dead!

Also, I did not want to open my door and I did not pray before opening my door. If I had been thinking about THEM, instead of ME, I could have had a better attitude and said a quick prayer, which may have resulted in a different ending to this story.

So, I offer this story in case someone comes to your door this week and invites you to a Jesus Memorial. You can be better prepared than I was. I also wrote on my Sower Tools website this week about some different ideas you might try for reaching out to people at Easter.

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” 1 Peter 3:15b NIV

More help for reaching Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Tuned in to God’s Plan (excerpt)

“Craig Lawrence… started and ran two TV stations and owned an advertising agency in his home state of South Dakota. Yet he felt a growing sense of discontentment. One day he traveled to a retreat center to talk to God. He told his wife, Marcia, ‘I’m not coming back until God speaks.’ At the retreat center he dropped to his knees and cried tears over his seemingly wasted thirty-four years. He told God, ‘I’ll do anything and give You everything.’ Craig gave Christ control of his life that day, and the Holy Spirit stepped in to give him the power to live a meaningful life for God.

“[Dr. Bill Bright] met Craig shortly after his decision to live under the control of the Holy Spirit, when he agreed to serve as [Bill’s] communications director. His life completely changed and became an adventure in a way that his business success had never provided. In the 1990s Craig and Marcia felt God leading them to Mongolia, a country that had just been opened up to the gospel. The couple and their team were the largest delegation of Americans ever to visit the Communist nation at that time.

“While they were in their hotel room, a detail of Mongolian soldiers came to take Craig and the team members to a government office building. When a group of Mongolian politicians asked the group who they were, Craig replied, ‘We are men whose hearts have been changed by Jesus Christ. When we asked Him where we should go to tell of His love, He sent us here.’

“At that moment, a Mongolian committee was drafting a new constitution for the Mongolian people. The committee was stuck on the topic of religious freedom – they didn’t know how to write it into law. The leader asked the Christian team from the United States to help them write their constitution.

“. . . Eventually the team not only helped write the constitution but also helped start a TV station in Mongolia, a task that fit Craig’s past business experience so well. The new TV station carries many Christian programs, including testimonies from Mongolian Christians. Craig will tell you that he is an ordinary man but that God has turned his life into an extraordinary journey through the power of the Spirit.

“God calls each of us to serve Him in a unique way. Whatever He has designed for your life will fit your personality and will give you more joy and pleasure than any worldly attainment.”

–[Excerpt from Discover the Real Jesus by Bill Bright, pages 84-85]

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. ~ Ephesians 2: 10 NAS