Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. Galatians 6:7
The author Robert Louis Stevenson once said, ‘Sooner or later, we all sit down to a banquet of consequences’. Just think about all the decisions that you make today. Every one of them will make a difference in what happens after you make the decision. Some will be insignificant, such as whether to put one or two spoons of sugar in your coffee or which shoe to put on first. Some will be major, such as whether to accept an offer of marriage, buy a new car, or visit a dying friend in the hospital. But there are consequences to everything we do. Our text brings up the picture of a farmer sowing seeds in a field; he will reap no beans if he plants barley, and no amount of cabbage seeds will produce corn. Our text is often used in the Gospel, warning sinners that the wages of sin is death, and the danger of neglecting salvation is judgment. But there is a harvest that we as Christians reap with our actions and attitudes, a harvest that can be good or bad.
There is good seed that we need to sow if we are to amount to anything in our Christian experience. If we sow the time to read and study the Word of God, we reap knowledge of God, an appreciation for the character and purposes of God, a knowledge of how we are to conduct ourselves in every aspect of our lives. And so much more. If we sow prayer, we reap a relationship with our Father in Heaven, an ability to grasp by faith the promises of God, and an appreciation for the presence of God. If we sow tears of compassion for those around us who are suffering, we reap a heart that God can use to bless others. If we sow deeds of kindness to the Lord’s people, we reap the joy of doing that which marked the life of the Lord Jesus. These and many more are just the start of planting seeds that will reap a bounty of rewards that will endure for eternity.
But we can plant bad seeds too. If we sow too much time in the company of the profane and godless folks of this world, we reap a character that rises very little higher than they do. If we sow habits of discontentment, complaining, and negative attitudes, we reap a sour disposition that few will want to share the company of. If we sow the world’s entertainment, reading materials, and pleasures, we reap a life that is wasted as far as pleasing our Lord. The world has many other forms of bad seed out there, and delights in helping us sow them. But they will all produce a crop that we don’t want to see.
We deceive ourselves if we think our negative behaviour won’t cost us. But we enlighten our souls if we can grasp the glorious opportunities of sowing in our Master’s garden. – Jim MacIntosh