Just Sow
By Shirley Mitchell
“He also said, ‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain – first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.’ ”
Mark 4:26-29
When the people heard Jesus’ words, “The kingdom of God is like,” they must have thought He would compare it to the majestic mighty mountains. Maybe they thought the kingdom was like the Mount of Olives, Mount Moriah, or Mount Carmel. Perhaps they imagined it to be like the political and spiritual center of their nation, the city of David, Jerusalem. The city is beautiful, but it is also a fortress. Perhaps they had images in their minds of the might of the kingdom to be as mighty Sea of Galilee or the waves of the Mediterranean Sea.
Instead, Jesus said the kingdom of God was like a man who scatters seed. The grain grows, and the man harvests when it is ripe. Jesus told them that the mighty kingdom of God was as simple as a common task of sowing seed and harvesting the grain. Since the world was mainly an agrarian society (agriculture-based), they understood this comparison with ease. Since they were small children, they had seen their fathers sow the seed. Then the community came together to harvest the crops and celebrate the harvest.
The people could not explain the science of how the seed grows into a crop. The farmer didn’t understand the inner workings of the seed. However, there was life-giving power in the seed so the farmer tended to the field. He made sure his crops were watered and that no critters dug up the seed or ate the crops. All along, he had no ability to change the seed into the harvest.
The kingdom of God is just like the natural realm of sowing and harvesting. When we sow the seed, there is a supernatural work going on that sometimes we can’t see, explain, or imagine. We can’t make the seed grow. The seed grows in the hearts of men because of the power God has given it.
You and I are called to sow. We need to understand there is so much power in the truth of God’s Word, which is the seed, and in His kingdom. We can sow His love. We can sow His joy. We can sow His hope. We can sow His friendship. We can proclaim His goodness. We get to a point where we must speak about who our God is. There may be a time when it seems like our words are just buried in the ground. We see nothing from it. However, after some time has passed, we will see a harvest. We must have the patience and faith of a farmer. The seed will grow! The kingdom will grow!
We can’t depend on getting encouragement from seeing the results. We may never see results. I just told my husband this regarding a beautiful young girl we are trying to encourage to walk with Christ although she continues to make destructive decisions. I told him, “She may continue to go down that destructive path, but someday she will hit rock-bottom. Although that may be a far fall, she might remember all that we have sown into her. We must sow the seed into her.” We can’t get discouraged and forget about the power of the seed.
We don’t depend on our abilities, money, or strength to grow the kingdom or we would be stopped. We depend upon the power of the seed. The Gospel can’t be stopped. The Gospel prevailed over Rome which ruled the western world. The Gospel prevails. The kingdom of darkness can’t stop the Gospel so let’s join the harvest workers, beloved. Let’s sow the seed abundantly and share the gospel uninhibitedly. Let’s sow in households even if no one else is living for Christ and exemplifying His behavior. Let’s have the mindset that when we sow, a harvest is forth coming!
Pray with me: Oh, Lord, show me where to sow the seed. Tell me who You want me to sow into today. Help me to see the opportunities to sow spontaneously. Show me who to sow into for a longer period of time. I want to be a deliberate sower. Make me someone whose first instinct is to give generously. Help me to know when You are asking me to sacrifice my time, energy, sleep, comfort, and any other resource to sow You into others. I ask all of this because I love You, and You are the greatest part of my life. I just want everyone to find what I have in You. It’s in the Name above all names, in Jesus’ Name, Yeshua’s Name, I pray. Amen.