Mims Chapel Church 

Lesson 5 • Fifth Week

Seed-Time and Harvest-Time

Background Reading                          Devotional Reading
Exodus 34:21; Ecclesiastes                   Mark 4:26-29
3:2; Isaiah 55:10; Mark 4:2-20;
30-32; 2 Corinthians 9:10-11

Central Verse
"While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, and sum­mer and winter, day and night shall
not cease."         Genesis 8:22, KJV

"As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and
night."                 Genesis 8:22, NLT


Key Terms
Sow—To plant seed for growth especially by scattering; to set something in motion.
Harvest—The season when crops are gathered; the gathering of a crop.

Introduction

The harvest is a time to celebrate and gather the joys of previous seasons, but some preparations must be made for this event. There are laws of the harvest that must be observed before a believer can reap his harvest. The believer must give bountifully and cheerfully to receive the abundance that God promised in His word.

Words are seeds that will produce if they are in the right setting. They pro­duce one small seed at a time with God's help. Faith is a booster that, when applied right, will help seeds to flourish. For a person's life to be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, the person must have the "fruits of the Spirit" planted into his life, as recorded in Galatians 5:22-23.
Believer's lives are like spiritual gardens, waiting to become beautiful and flourishing. They need time and effort led by the Holy Spirit to work the soil by pruning, watering, and shining upon it. It takes time and effort to bring them to the place of fulfillment. The seed cannot be sown and brought to harvest until the soil has been prepared.

Discussion

The sower of seed must make sure that his seed (Gospel) is being sowed into good ground. The sower sowed the same seed into four distinct types of soil and each one responded differently. It is important that the sower knows the kind of soil into which he is sowing. In the parable that Jesus shared, the sower sowed, and some of the seed fell by the wayside, and the fowls of the air came and ate it up. And some fell on stony ground, where there was not enough earth, and immediately it sprang up. Because there was not enough earth when the sun came out, it was too hot and scorched it, and because it had no roots it withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, choked it, and yielded no fruit. Oth­ers fell on good ground; it wasn't too rocky, it had enough soil, and it was able to produce good fruit, which sprang up and increased and produced some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred-fold blessing.

Jesus told His disciples that the sower sows the word and the enemy, Satan comes immediately and takes the word out of their hearts. Then there are some that were sown on stony ground, who, when they heard it, received it with gladness. But it didn't last because they had no roots in themselves to endure but for a little while. For the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things come in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. But thank God there are some whose ground was good and who received the word and brought forth good fruit.

There is a process, led by the Holy Spirit, that will help the sower make the soil of the heart soft and receptive to God. Included in this process is the believer's communion with His Father God as he engages in continual con­versation with his loving, heavenly Father.

This process includes a time for seeding, planting, and watering. Each can­not succeed without the other because they all work together to give good results. The presence, the will, and the love of God help the believers to allow their hearts to be tilled and become responsive.The Holy Spirit cultivates good soil so the world can produce and bear fruit. The Spirit of God breaks up the fallow ground, and the Word is sowed and produces fruit.

Grace is the seed that makes spiritual growth and maturity possible. Grace is simple, profound, and ever-growing, deeper and deeper than the believer can ever imagine. The believers were dead, but God rescued them so that they could have grace for the ages to come. With grace or the seed of righ­teousness, life, and discipleship are possible.

God gave the command to Adam to be fruitful and multiply. He has been consistent in His command and his persevering promise that through "Abra­ham's seed, all nations will be blessed." This is relevant to each believer to­day as he seeks to live in daily obedience to God's Great Commission. Our children are our seed, and David said that he had "never seen the righteous forsaken nor his seed begging for bread" (Psalm 37:25).

In Matthew 13:18-23, Jesus taught His disciples the power of words. The seed, which is sown, represents the Word of God. The ground receiving the seed symbolizes the condition of the hearts of mankind. The fruit that came forth is the manifestation of the Word. The words the believers speak im­pacts their lives and the lives of others. It is important that believers remem­ber to speak positive things, for his words are seeds, and they will produce a harvest. Also, the power of life and death is in the tongue.

Conclusion

God has made some promises to the believer, and one of them comes to reassure him that he will never have to worry. As long as the earth remains, there will always be seed-time and harvest time. He can count on the sun coming up, and certain things will be constant. God is so wise and caring for His children. He gave the command for Adam to work and dress the gar­den, but He also told him to take time and rest. The body cannot be healthy and produce all the things that God wants them to without proper eating and proper resting.

God has given man the right time to do everything he needs to do if he observes the correct time. He says there is a time and a season for every purpose under the sun. So, seedtime and harvest must be done at the appropriate time.

Questions

What do seed time and harvest mean?
What promises did God make concerning seed time and harvest?
What was the meaning of the parable of the sower that Jesus told?
What is some of the process of sowing and reaping?

Essential Thought- "God will always give seed to the sower and the sower must prepare for the harvest."

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