Harvest! A time of joy and celebration. Bringing in the crops and reaping the fruits of our labor is a God-ordained blessing. The harvest is an arduous, physical process, but also a refreshing spiritual experience. For body and soul, it provides for today’s needs and tomorrow’s hopes.
The Scripture’s harvest season concluded in late August or early September when olives and grapes were brought in. This left the people free to enjoy the fall Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. Our Jewish brethren call this time “The Season of Our Joy.”
Harvest is a promise, but it’s based in laws. These laws must be followed if we are to receive the promised harvest. Further, they aren’t limited strictly to food supply; the laws of sowing and reaping rule every area of life.
FIRST
We must plant what we want to get what we want. We can’t plant cucumbers and expect to harvest tomatoes. In life, we can’t be musicians without an instrument. Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Whatever a man sows, that shall he also reap.”
SECOND
We must plant the right amount to achieve our desired yield. We can’t plant a handful and expect a barn-full. The rocket scientist has to study more than just arithmetic. 2 Corinthians 9:6 assures us, “He who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.”
THIRD
We must plant at the right time. We won’t harvest wheat that was planted in summer heat. Likewise, it’s a waste to invest in products and technologies whose time has passed. Ecclesiastes 3:2 reminds us, “There is a time to plant and a time to reap.”
FOURTH
We must wait for the harvest. Jesus said that a seed doesn’t grow unless it dies. Growth and ripening take time. Early failures can birth later successes. King Solomon put it, “Cast your bread upon the waters and you will find it after many days.”
The harvest, like our souls, has enemies. Drought, flood, parasites, disease, and setbacks of every kind threaten. Yet, Psalm 23 promises, “You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies.”
The victory of harvest is God’s ultimate plan and promise.
Jesus compared the spiritually lost to “fields, ripe for harvest.” Imagine thousands of acres with crops fully ripe and ready, but no workers to harvest them. What a tragedy! It’s no wonder that Jesus told us to pray that the Lord would “send laborers into
His harvest.”
So, as we enter the final month of the harvest season, let us take heart and be glad. God’s laws, promises, and the blessings of harvest still live, and we have the joy of living them. Every time you share the Gospel, every time you share your faith and what God has done for you, and every good deed you do for God’s glory, you are laboring in the field to bring in God’s harvest.
It is the Season of Our Joy!