SOMETHIN'S GONE WRONG IN DE FIELD

"The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." - Jer. 8:20

 

157 PATTIES PLACE

 

Many nations and areas have had their "harvest" of souls, which provokes the questions, "Why did these harvests end?" and "What is required to have a harvest?" We do not mean to presume on the more learned or knowledgeable students of the word or to pretend that we have all the answers to these matters. Still, we might provoke some thought, in this regard, by considering the basic ingredients of a harvest—the Sower, the Seed, and the Soil.

 

The Sower

 

He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. -- Ecc. 11:4

. . . He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly . . .  -- 2 Cor. 9:6

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.  --Psa. 126:5

Thou  shalt  sow,  but  thou shalt  NOT  REAP . . .  -- Micah 6:15

 

Obviously, the more sowers that sow, they will sow the more seed in a given period of time, and few laborers mean few sowers.  And if you do not sow, you will not reap, and you will reap only what you sow.

Nevertheless, what if the sowers are not very adept? What if they are lazy? What if they sow haphazardly or sparingly? What if they do not care if the blades come forth or not? What if the sowers have the attitude that if the Sovereign Lord wants a harvest, he will provide one.

What if the sowers are more interested in the size or amount of their air conditioned barns and stainless steel farm machinery? What if the sowers are more concerned about the gain that they receive from sowing? What if the sowers sow in an unplowed field, or among thorns, or rocky places.

What if a sower dumps all the seed down one hole? What if he says to the ground, "One, two, three, repeat after me, you do not need any seed." or "You do not need to believe, repent, or be changed."?  Will there be a harvest? Or, if there is a harvest, will it continue and remain?

With the wrong kind of sowers, somethin' may well go wrong in de field, with all due respect to the black preacher who so eloquently preached such a message.

 

The Seed

 

The sower soweth word. -- Mark 14:14

. . . thou   shalt   not   sow   with  MINGLED SEED . . . --  Lev. 19:19

. . . a man which sowed GOOD SEED in his field: But . . . his enemy came and sowed TARES among the wheat . . . -- Matt. 13:24, 25

 

What about the wrong kind of seed? Bad seed? The Israelites were told not to sow with "mingled" seed. If you mingle the spiritual seed of the word of God or the gospel with the seed of men, there is no telling what you might produce.

No doubt, the "Pop, Hippie, and Hollywood" type Christianity of our day is a result of sowing with the mingled seed of the American Standard Version, the Revised Version, the Reversed Standard Version, the New King Jimmy Version, Good News from Modern Man, the New International Version and so forth. Perversions, every one of them!

Then there is the seed that says, “There’s power in the tub.” OR “There is a fountain filled with water." The wrong kind of seed (TARES) or mingled seed will, no doubt, cause somethin’ to go wrong in the field. 

                                                

 

The Soil

 

. . . Break up the fallow ground, and sow not AMONG THORNS . . . -- Jer. 4:3

 

We have mentioned the sower sowing the wrong way and in the wrong places, but let us consider the "poor soil." Every farmer knows that you must clear and plow a field if you are going to have a good harvest. Yet what if the hardened ground, frost raised rocks, thorns, brambles, and so forth are allowed to accumulate without any attention?

What if the fallow ground is not broken up? What if the ground is cold, hardened, or just plain worn out? How many preachers, whom you know, are breaking up the fallow ground of this sin hardened generation in which we live? What we have today, instead, are preachers becoming a part of the sin hardened problem and sin hardened generation. Is there really only  a problem with the fields being white unto harvest and the absence of "faithful" laborers and not also a problem of bad "sowers, bad seed, and bad soil?"

 

 

The Elements

    

. . .neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but GOD GIVETH THE INCREASE . . . -- 1 Cor. 3:7

. . . the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven . . . watereth the earth . . . that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth  . . . it shall accomplish that which I please . . . Isa. 55:10, 11

"But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt NOT HEARKEN unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe TO DO all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it. The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron. The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed . . . Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it. Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them . . . All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume." ‑‑ Deut. 28:15, 21‑24, 38, 39, 42

Everyone knows, to some degree (whether Calvinist or Arminian) that God must give the increase. You may have a good sower, good seed, and good soil, but if you do not get the right kind of weather, you can forget it. In fact, good weather can complicate the efforts of the sower, but it can also offset the many deficiencies of the sower and the soil (And what if God decides to rotate his lands?).

Then there are the Catholic locusts, the JW cut worms, the Mormon weevils, and the Campbellite larvae. The brethren have not been doing too much bug‑spraying lately  (thinking that merely sowing will remedy every situation). Still, that will only work up until a point. Ultimately, it is in the hands of God, who places great value on prayerful and faithful obedience to Him. Still, we must sow in season and out of season.

 

 

The Fertilizer

 

. . .Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and DIE, it abideth alone: but if it DIE, it bringeth forth much fruit . . . John 12:24

The great revivals, in America, which produced a great harvest of souls (often without a great deal of outward effort) are obviously not happening today. Someone merely read a sermon with amazing results, while men, today, spit and sputter, sweat, walk on the pulpits and pews, and often reap a handful of air.

The great soul winning successes of the past came on the heels of a freshly fertilized soil. Our ancestors were blessed with martyred and persecuted forefathers, fertilizer for the soil in which they sowed. Russia has been fertilized, by persecuted and martyred Christians for many decades, and now, Russian believers, a few years ago, started to realize a harvest unlike anything they have ever seen.

The harvest, being plenteous, and the laborers being few may, indeed, be their problem, but is that really our problem? (We have gospel broadcasts, periodicals, books and tracts, and some of the kookiest witnesses everywhere).

Or is our problem one of bad sowers, bad seed, and bad soil that is worn out and desperately in need of NEW fertilizer and bug spray. What do you think is going to be the next step in America's farm program?

 

Conclusion

 

As thou knowest not the way of the spirit . . . in the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper . . . -- Ecc. 11:5, 6

In times of famine, after a harvest has past, a few gleanings become that much more precious and important than the harvest ‑ not less. The cry may well be that of Isaiah 8:20, "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved."

Since we do not know the way of the Spirit nor if he shall prosper our sowing. Should our response to famine due to bad sowers, bad seed, bad soil, bad elements be more of an effort in the field of the world . . . or less effort? Should we do less than preach the word, being instant in season and out of season? Even if somethin’s gone wrong in de field.