This is the faith I live by: What I sow I will reap
Message Magazine’s Online Devotional for Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Audio Link: http://bit.ly/ThoughtsinWorship
“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
Galatians 6:7
I love it when God uses nature to get His point across. We may not understand complex, supernatural matters, but we can study and learn from many of the mysteries in nature. Sowing and reaping, while it is incredibly complex in its details, the basic outcomes are simple. You can’t separate the crop from the seed. A Mango’s natural materials will never, under any circumstance, produce a callaloo plant. And a callaloo’s natural materials will never, under any circumstance, produce a fig tree. To do so is against nature. It is against the Creator’s design. Sowing and reaping teaches us that outcomes are predictable.
Check the Fruit
Our spiritual lives are just like mangos. While many believe they can sow wickedness and somehow escape the naturally encoded outcome, the truth of the matter is they can’t. We cannot mistreat the disenfranchised and continue to prosper. If we disregard the laws of health we cannot remain in good health. When we disregard the principles of God’s word we cannot reap the rich rewards of the faithful. This principle teaches us that we cannot break the law of God and still have eternal life. It’s not a matter of punitive action as much as it is the spiritual law of cause and effect at work in God’s holy order. Whatever anyone sows, as a lifestyle, that person will reap.
The following verses in a modern translation make both sides of the matter abundantly clear:
“Do not be deceived. God will not be made a fool. For a person will reap what he sows, because the person who sows to his own flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but on who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So we must not grow weary in doing good, for in due time we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who belong to the family of faith.”
Galatians 6:7-10 (NET)
We can sow for a blessed outcome, or we can sow for a detrimental outcome. But the choice is ours to make because we’re kinda like mangos. Whatever seeds we plant we can predict what kind of fruit will grow. So if you’re wondering about what you’ve sowed into yourself, just check your fruit. A mango seed will always produce a mango tree.
