Sowing and Reaping

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
Gal 6:7
The law of sowing and reaping is the great overarching principle that governs the experience of all of humanity. God has ordained this law and woven it into the fabric of the both the spiritual and physical universe. Anyone who thinks they can mock God and evade its implications and outcomes, will themselves be mocked by its tireless and persistent creep. No person is exempt from this continuous and all encompassing cycle of cause and effect. There is no place to hide from it. Do not be deceived, what we sow, we will reap.
Ask the athlete how they stay in top physical condition. Ask the scholar how they have become so learned. Ask the wealthy entrepreneur how they obtained their financial success. They will all give you the same answer. They pursued a relentless and incremental path towards their goals. Day in and day out they sowed by eating healthy, exercising, studying and working diligently at the right things to reap their desired outcomes.
Unfortunately, for those of us less motivated, the law doesn’t relent. We can fool ourselves into thinking we’ll accomplish the things we desire but reality confirms the absolute truth of God’s word. I may not like the way I look or feel but if I am not willing to eat right and exercise I will continue getting the same unhappy results. Wishful thinking is a form of self-deceit and will not produce the results we want. If we don’t understand this we will be tempted to blame our misfortunes in life on circumstance and sometimes even on God. But God’s word is clear. We live in a fallen world and progress in any area of life comes from the hard work of sowing.
What about our relationship with God? Is it subject to this law as well? It most assuredly is. If we wish to grow spiritually we must sow to the Spirit (Gal 6:8). A healthy relationship with Him requires the intentional prioritizing and practice of the daily spiritual disciplines of prayer, meditation, reading and study. Not because these ‘works’ gain us favour with God, but because if we don’t sow to the Spirit we will die spiritually and we will reap spiritual destruction. By daily communing with God through prayer and his word, he creates in us spiritual hunger ad crucifies our sinful carnal desires. It is no accident that the bible uses the words disciple and Christian as synonymous terms. Without the disciplined work of spiritual sowing, our sinful natures overwhelm our spiritual desire. Again, some might accuse me of promoting legalism or works, but nothing could be further from the truth. Daily devotional time doesn’t make God love us more or save us. But without it a Christian will not grow in their relationship with the Lord. Without it God cannot pour his Spirit into us. Without it we will not hide his word in our hearts. Without it we will not experience intimacy with him. We won’t overcome habitual sin or experience victory in our daily walk with Christ. We’ll miss out on the blessing of answered prayer and spiritual insight. We won’t live our earthly lives with Heaven’s perspective and his joy will not be our strength. The inevitable result will be backsliding into a Laodicean state and eventually even turning our backs on Christ completely.
Let’s make it our goal to enjoy a vibrant and dynamic relationship with the Lord Jesus. Let’s count the cost and be realistic about what it will take to have this kind of relationship with him. And, lets purpose in our hearts to sow to the Spirit and deny the flesh so that we will experience personal and corporate revival in these last days!