“Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.” (Galatians 6:7-10, New Living Translation)
I have tried my hand at gardening a few times over the years. It would probably be more accurate to say that I have made a number of unsuccessful attempts to have a garden. My problems have usually centered around making the necessary maintenance adjustments to compensate for brutal North Texas summers and my travel schedule.
But there are a couple of things that have never happened:
1. I have never harvested something different from what I planted. Tomato plants never produce cucumbers.
2. I have never harvested what I failed to plant. Seeds that remain in the seed packet do not produce on their own.
So, what spiritual lessons do I learn from this? If there is a “crop” I want to harvest, I am going to have to be intentional about what I “plant.” I will not harvest peace if I plant discord. Neither will I harvest peace if I fail to plant peace.
There are other spiritual lessons from this “harvest” passage in Galatians, but I’d like to hear what you see here.
Question: What other spiritual applications do you see in the law of the harvest?
Leave a comment below. I’m excited about what I will learn from you.
