Day 10 - Sowing and Reaping

There is one who scatters, and yet INCREASES; and there is One who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty. The generous soul will be made rich: and he who waters will be watered himself.— Proverbs 11: 24,25

The divine law of sowing and reaping is an unavoidable avenue that must be traveled to obtain a life of continual

increase. The book of Second Corinthians explains this law:

2 CORINTHIANS 9:6 But this I say, He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

The Living Bible puts it this way: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:6 (TLB)

But remember this — if you give little, you will get little. A farmer who plants just a few seeds will get only

a small crop, but if he plants much, he will reap much. To Reap, You Must Sow.

I like what Professor Keith Moore taught me while I was attending Bible college in 1992. He said, “When you see ‘sowing’ in the Scripture, you will see ‘reaping’ immediately after. When the Bible talks about seedtime, harvest is mentioned soon after. And when it discusses giving, receiving is soon to follow.”

You see, sowing and reaping, seedtime and harvest, and giving and receiving all describe the same principle. We have to

plant something first in order to receive a harvest. This principle is true in every area of life. For instance, look at the following passage:

LUKE 6:35-38 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High: For He is kind unto the unthankful and evil. 36 Therefore be merciful, as your Father also is merciful. 37 Judge not, and you shall not be judged: Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned: Forgive, and you shall be forgiven: 38 Give, and it shall be given to you; good measure,

pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure

that you use, it shall be measured back to you.

If you want to be judged or condemned, just make a practice of judging and condemning others. On the other hand, if

you want to receive mercy and forgiveness, you should sow mercy and forgiveness. Give because you love people, and

people will love you.

A tiny tomato seed has power to produce stocks with fruit way larger than itself. With the right cultivation, time, germination, and generation it can multiply a harvest that is big enough to produce a ketchup factory.

Think about a farmer who sows in the natural. If he wants a harvest of corn, he better sow some seed. Suppose the

farmer sits in his house and says, “I’m going to have a gigantic crop and a great increase in my harvest this year.”

You ask him, “Brother, how much seed did you plant this year?” He responds, “I don’t believe in that sowing business —

but I’m waiting on God” If that farmer waits all day long, every day of the year, but never sows any kernels of corn as seed, he won’t reap a harvest of corn. The principle is clearly scriptural: “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked: for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Gal. 6:7). In order to reap a harvest, a farmer must plant seed.