Greetings in the Name of Jesus and welcome to the PLN Sunday Night Bible Fellowship!
Last week we started a new series that is focusing on the POWER of the Word of God. This isn't just any POWER we're talking about here. What it is actually is the MOST powerful force on the planet and as believers in Christ we have the right to apprehend this POWER for ourselves to use in overcoming any problem, any trial or tribulation or hindrance so that we can fulfill our calling in the Kingdom of God. And all of that POWER is accessible, readily available to you through the Word of God, your Bible.
Now we also discussed last week that the Bible isn't a book to just sit down with casually in your spare time when there's nothing else to do. You may have noticed that already in which case I'm just emphasizing the obvious; but the truth is the Word of God is THE most UNDER-appreciated gift the Lord has given us even though it's also the most powerful. It's not generally understood around the Body of Christ that the Word is actually ALIVE (Hebrews 4:12), that it has its own LIFE for believers to connect to and use for the purposes of the Kingdom, and that because it's ALIVE it has within itself ALL of the POWER you and I need to produce VICTORY in every area of life: spirit, soul and body.
That's why we need to go beyond casual reading and study our Bible until we UNDERSTAND what is says: so we can eventually be full of the LIFE and FAITH and POWER that makes ALL grace (God's favor and empowerment) come to us and provide ALL sufficiency in all things (2 Corinthians 9:8). We need to accept that the Word of God is full of principles of life that attract and connect us to that empowerment and then pursue UNDERSTANDING of those principles so that they will start to work for us. Tonight's message is about one of the most important of those principles that through UNDERSTANDING will absolutely change your life.
The Principle of Seed Time and Harvest
Have you ever thought about the fact that EVERYTHING in God's creation works through the principle of seed time and harvest? Everything and every being, human or otherwise, starts out from a small seed planted in an appropriate environment that grows from there to maturity. Because of this, God's creation has the ability to recreate itself species by species so that He doesn't have to personally create every single tree or blade of grass or every animal or every human being over and over again for all time. No, He already took care of that part of the process and His creation that started in the Garden is able to sustain itself through the principle of seedtime and harvest. You can see also in your Bible that the principle of seed time and harvest will endure for as long as the earth remains (Genesis 8:22).
Your Bible also says that the Kingdom of God works essentially the same way: "The Kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil" (Mark 4:26). These exact words were spoken one day by Jesus and our questions in response are likely to include the following: how are these two things alike, what exactly was His point and what does that have to do with us Believers? This isn't an idle comparison that we can just overlook by the way because Jesus didn't waste His time speaking words that we can afford to skim over and not UNDERSTAND.
Indeed, this scripture is from the "Parable of the Seed" and in it Jesus was REVEALING that the basic principle of seed time and harvest on the earth imitates a similar process in the Kingdom of God that has existed since the beginning. To really start to understand this relationship, please take a moment to MEDITATE on the four verses that deal with this parable which you will find in Mark 4:26-29 so you can get the full meaning from the conclusions I want to convey tonight in the following four paragraphs:
* First, seeds must be planted in an appropriate "soil." The truth is seeds won't grow until they have access to soil. Put the seed into soil and it will ALWAYS grow. The seed's nature is to produce something. Seeds are the source of all life; the LIFE is in the seeds. Everything starts with seeds.
* Then for a time the one who planted the seeds must simply rest and wait until the plants can begin to grow. The sower has nothing to do with the "growing process" after the seeds have been sown except to act as a caretaker.
* Third, the soil in which the seeds have been planted is responsible for producing the crop. The Farmer is responsible for protecting the young plants from weeds, weather, animals, disease, etc. and he has no idea really how the soil and the seeds interact with each other to produce the plants.
* Finally, there's a perfect moment when the crop is fully matured and ready for harvest. If the harvest occurs too soon, the plants will be immature and there will be an inadequate number of seeds for the subsequent crop. If the harvest is too late, the mature grain will over ripen and many will lose their reproductive capability. But if the harvest occurs at the right moment, there will be a bountiful harvest. And, at that right moment it's the FARMER who must perform the harvest. It's the FARMER who must thrust in the sickle to make the harvest happen. The soil doesn't do the harvesting; it does the growing. God doesn't do the harvesting either; He provided the process. No, it's the FARMER, the one who sows, who WORKS and performs the harvest.
The Word is an Incorruptible Seed
Now, these verses are accurately describing the seed time and harvest principle that works so efficiently on the earth. But now how do we make the parallel between the principle and the Kingdom of God? What is it about the Kingdom of God that is imitated by the process of seed time and harvest on the earth?
In the first part of Mark, Chapter 4, you'll find the "Parable of the Sower and Soils" and by meditating on verses 4 through 14, you'll see that Jesus reveals there that the word SEED as used in the natural world represents the WORD in the Kingdom of God. The sower sows the Word (Mark 4:14). Therefore, when the WORD is planted into "good ground," which is to say "good soil," it will produce a harvest and it works in a similar way as the Farmer sowing seed on the earth.
Within this parable there's a key point to take note of before we move on: Jesus said He spoke in parables so that only those who're spiritually perceptive could/can understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of God and that if someone could/can understand the "Parable of the Sower and Soils," all of the parables can be understood. In other words, the sowing of the WORD into spiritually perceptive ground is what the Kingdom of God is all about. Read it for yourself and see if you agree with this analysis.
Now it starts to get exciting! Check out 1 Peter 1:23 and you'll find that when you were born again someone had sown a SEED into you. Somehow the WORD of God, an incorruptible, enduring and eternal SEED had been sown into you and it interacted with your spirit and began to grow producing a rebirth, a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17) and connected you to the Holy Spirit. The sower doesn't know how it happened, doesn't know how the new creature was produced, in fact YOU may not even know exactly how it happened. And at the perfect moment after the SEED was sown something supernatural happened and by FAITH the Holy Spirit started the harvest in your mind and soul. No one gets born again unless the WORD of God has been sown. The WORD is the seed, the Source of all Spiritual life and it automatically produces fruit in your life commensurate with your determination to understand it and to allow it to do what it's been created for. Said another way it automatically produces POWER in your life and the effectiveness of that POWER is directly related to the effort you and I make to UNDERSTAND it and to allow it to change our lives by the exercise of our FAITH.
And the WORD continues to work in the same way after you're born again. Do you want prosperity in your life? Sow prosperity scriptures into yourself until you're prosperous. Do you want healing in your life? Then sow healing scriptures into yourself until you're healed. Find the WORDS you need in your Bible and PLANT them. How do you PLANT them? After they're sowed, the SEEDS start to grow by MEDITATING on them: Meditate on the WORD day and night so that you will make your way prosperous and have good success (Joshua 1:8). At the perfect time, your harvest will be ready. Simply sow the SEED and then MEDITATE on it so that you provide GOOD SOIL, so that you become spiritually perceptive and produce fruit in your life. You won't know how it happens; it will just happen.
But don't forget something VERY important: since you did the sowing, you're also responsible for thrusting in the sickle and bringing in the harvest. God won't don't do it for you; harvesting is your job. If you're believing to be financially prosperous for example, God isn't going to just give you some money. The fact is God doesn't even have any money because money comes from the World system. Money isn't needed in the Kingdom of God but we have to receive money in order to operate in the World. But as you meditate on the Word that has been planted in your mind, it begins to mature and as it matures that Word provides the anointing, the life that converts what you touch to financial prosperity that can be used to bless other people (2 Corinthians 9:8-9) and help establish the Kingdom of God (Deuteronomy 8:18).
Healing works the same way; it's the Word that brings healing. Deliverance from anything works the same way; it's the word that brings deliverance. "He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction" (Psalm 107:20). That's what the Word says about itself. And salvation works the same way; it's the Word that brings salvation (1 Peter 1:23). Start looking around because your harvest may be ready! The perceptive mind will know when and how to bring in the harvest and a perceptive can ONLY come by truly UNDERSTANDING the Word of God.
Some Final Thoughts
This last week I was reminded once again that there are so many Christians that are closed up tight by traditional ways of looking at things. In this Newsletter I try to share fresh ideas as much as possible, to break out of tradition so that we can encounter the life and the vibrancy of the Word of God. I know this teaching tonight is challenging, perhaps beyond what most people have heard in their Sunday School classes. All I ask is that you at least consider it. It's okay if you disagree with it but disagree on the basis of Scripture not because it violates some tradition you've been listening to for decades. Meditate on the concepts you discover here and perhaps they will eventually begin to grow and mature and destroy the traditions that all of us are bound up in. Your harvest is over the next mountain waiting there for a perceptive believer with a sharp sickle!
Thanks for stopping by tonight. We'll be looking for you again NEXT Sunday night on November 16. In the meantime may the Lord bless you with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3), compelling you to PROSPER in every area of life!
Sinners' Prayer
If you've never invited Jesus to be the Lord of your life, you need to and you can do it today just by saying out loud the following simple prayer:
Jesus I declare today with all my heart that I believe in you and that God raised you from the dead. I acknowledge that my sins have been forgiven and I ask you to come into my life today and be my Lord and Savior. Thank you for salvation and eternal life.
If you were sincere as you prayed this prayer, God has already come into your life and you are a new creation, a totally new species recreated in His image. Now ask the Lord to lead you to a good faith-based, bible-teaching church where you can be equipped to fulfill your potential in the Kingdom of God.
And, when you get a chance have someone help you look up the following scriptures because they confirm what you've done by saying this prayer today and believing what you said:
Romans 10:9
2 Corinthians 5:17
Ephesians 2:8
Prayer Requests
If you have a Prayer Request, please connect to the Link below and follow the promptings. The PLN staff members pray over Prayer Requests every Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM eastern time. Agree with us for God to answer your petition.
http://www.creditcounseling.net/prayer-request.aspx
Donations
If you've been edified by Prosperous Life Newsletter, you may want to consider making a SEED FAITH offering to support the Ministry (Galatians 6:6-7). God has instructed us to simply provide folks with an opportunity to sow seed into good ground so in due season you'll be eligible to reap a harvest and the rest is up to you as the Spirit leads. For your information PLN is a nonprofit gift to the Body of Christ so your financial offerings will usually be tax deductible (consult your tax advisor). Just go to the secure Shopping Cart on the Cornerstone web site by connecting through the following link. We appreciate your support and generosity.
http://www.creditcounseling.net/shop/item.aspx?itemid=1
About Prosperous Life Newsletter
PLN is an outreach ministry of Make A Way Ministries and has been published continuously since January 1998. It's an e-publication about life in the Kingdom of God and is sent ONLY to our email list of MINISTRY MEMBERS. If you're reading this and aren't yet on our growing email list, please let us know and we'll be so very happy to add you to the list.
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