Jesus teaches us a great lesson of sowing and reaping in Luke 8:5-15: “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it. Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

Then His disciples asked Him, saying, “What does this parable mean?”

“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 13 But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.”

Everything in the Garden of faith starts with dirt; we are the dirt. Every dream, every achievement, every nation of people, every church your life depends on the readiness of the dirt. I was recently visiting Williams Country Club, hearing about the many renovations taking place. I asked, “what is the main thing being done to the golf course?” The answer came quickly, “We are changing the dirt. We are infusing the dirt with sand to make it more firm and more to the standards of the PGA.” To be ready for the planting of the Lord, we too must at times change the dirt, that is changing our willingness to receive His will and ways for our lives.

Secondly, no matter how good the soil, nothing happens in the garden of faith until a seed is planted. The seed is the Word of God, the Bible. We must open the package so as to get to the seeds. We plant the seeds by reading, memorizing and above all obeying God’s Word.

Third, When I have a need, I plant a seed. A farmer with no crops doesn’t gripe or complain or even pray! He readies his dirt and plants the seed. Whatever I need more of, I need to give away. The Bible is clear, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38). I can only reap what I am willing to plant.

Fourth, I am not the only sower. We are reaping both the good and the bad of those who have gone before us, those with us and those who will follow us. “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12). We, as the Body of Christ, when we work and give together, there is nothing of the Lord’s will that cannot be accomplished.

Fifth, We always reap in different seasons. As plants take time to grow, visions and dreams take time to come to fruition. There is seldom instant maturity or self-gratification in the garden of faith. There may be instant fame but no instant success! It takes time to gather wisdom.

Sixth, We will reap more than we sow. It is the law of sowing multiplication. “Some fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” We will increase our faith harvest by expanding our gardens. Remember the prayer of Jabez, “Oh that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory.” 1 Chronicles. 3:9-10

And Seventh, We plant by faith, not by feelings. We know that without faith we cannot please God. (Hebrews 11:6). Faith is an equation; it reads something like this: Faith (Biblical faith) = Believing + Trusting + Obeying. If any part of the equation is removed, we are attempting to grow by feelings instead of faith. To sum up the seven laws of sowing and reaping in the garden of faith: No faith, no harvest. know faith; know harvest (www.discoverthebible.com).

(“From the Pulpit” is a weekly sermon provided by the clergy members of The Weirton Ministerial Association)