The Principle of Sowing and Reaping

Genesis 8 : 22, "While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease." NKJV

Galatians 6 : 7 – 9, Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. NKJV

I have given you two passages of scripture today in order to establish a truth about sowing and reaping. Did you know that in a later season in life, you will reap what you are presently sowing? In fact, you are reaping today from the deeds that you have sown in the past. Most of our lives, or at least most of what affects our lives is the direct result of us either sowing good seeds or bad seeds. Jesus tells us that whatever we would want men to do to us, we should do to them.

However, you may be saying, “I’m a good person, and yet I’ve been abused and rejected my entire life.” I’m glad you brought that issue to the table; let’s address it. Between springtime (sowing) and fall (harvest) the seeds and plants that are sown in a garden have to overcome many obstacles before they can begin to produce fruit for the planter to consume. Our being “good” doesn’t mean anything to Satan; he attacks us and seemingly gets away with it when we are spiritually ignorant or immature. Nevertheless, once we hide the Seed of God’s Word in our hearts so that we won’t sin against it, it will give us victory over the enemy, who tried to destroy us while we were “sprouts.” Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

In other words, while we’re getting to know God, His Word, and His ways, Satan will attack us until we come to the knowledge of the truth and counterattack him, defeating his weapons of destruction. My wife was abused as a child by a wicked step-father; even so, she believed in God while she was being abused. It wasn’t until she grew up spiritually that she was able overcome the abuser; because of her strength over him, Satan was not allowed to carry out his plans (through her step-father). Consequently, he was unable to affect her adversely as an adult.

God is a debtor to no one. He has seen everything that man has done to you. Oh, by the way, he has seen what you have done to others. We will all reap what we have sown; the only way to have “crop failure” for the bad seeds we have sown is to ask God for His forgiveness. Unforgiveness holds on until rotten seeds have enough time to grow; then they are able to hold us in debtor’s prison or emotional bondage. Just let go of the hurt feelings and the unforgiveness, and let God forgive you of your past.

You see; just being “good folks” won’t keep the enemy from trying to pluck us out of God’s Word and uproot us. However, if we’ll keep ourselves rooted and grounded in God’s Word, despite Satan’s attacks against our immature faith, then eventually we will grow up spiritually and be strong enough to destroy his work.

So while there may be short seasons when we sow this month and receive a harvest the next month, spiritual growth takes years and even decades; nevertheless, we must remain consistent in not giving up when attacks come. If we remain faithful to God until the end, He has promised to save us from this wicked and vile world. We will be able to reap an eternal reward in exchange for the few decades that we chose to serve God by sowing toward our spiritual retirement in eternity.

Sowing in Sorrow and Reaping in Joy,
Pastor Asa Dockery