Matt.
9:37-38
“Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
“Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
It
is God's harvest field. Not ours. We are doing what we can for him,
not for us. That is why it makes sense for us to do what he tells us to
do. When we go to someone's house for dinner, we might ask how we
can help, but we certainly wouldn't take over. The hostess has a
plan. She knows what is being made for dinner; we may or may not know. She has the recipe; we usually do not. She also knows where everything is kept, what she has and
doesn't have, and has likely thought about how it will all work
together. She does not need us, because she has planned the meal
without us. But we can think that she will be grateful for our help,
and then we feel like we have contributed.
Jesus is the host. The people of the world are his sheep. He is the Shepherd. At the time He said the verse above, He was looking around at the many hungry sheep in his field, thinking of them and the ones to come. And He wants their souls. Of course, He could make it so that every one of them came to Him and received His refreshing grace. He doesn't need help.
But instead He chooses to bless us. We can assist him in the collection and harvesting of these precious treasures of His. It can be done without us. And to be honest, it would probably go a lot more smoothly without our intervention. Allowing us to help is much like a mother allowing her child to help with chores around the house.
My youngest daughter loves to clean windows with me. I dread it. She is four years old. Her arms do not reach high enough, her hands do not press hard enough, and her eyes do not see smudges enough to do a complete job. BUT, when she is done, her beaming smile at her accomplishment makes it worth it.
Helping God round up his sheep is infinitely more rewarding than washing windows, in my opinion. It is like a party we don't have to pay for but get to choose the invitees.
And yet, sadly, Jesus note that the workers are few. Why would this be? Why doesn't everyone want to hand out these invitations God has given us? We could choose all of our friends to come to the best party ever. Excuse me now as I step aside from the scripture to offer my own thoughts.
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I like running. Really. I do. I did not always feel this way. As a matter of fact, I hated it for a long time. But it took some time and routine to get into the swing of it. I had to make myself do. I had to remember that what I was doing was good for me and take it step by step, little by little.
In those days before I liked running, I made excuses. I didn't want to do it. There were other things I would rather be doing. (ANYTHING!) I did not want to go through the hassle and time of changing clothes and cleaning up afterwards. And also, you know what? Running hurt!
So. I was distracted. I was lazy. And I was afraid.
Leading people to Jesus is not so different. The result is even better than a healthy body and compliments from others. The result is a healthy spirit and the words from our Father, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
Why are the workers few? We are making excuses. Other things are getting in our way. (These may even be valid activities that seem God-ordained.) But can we really not fit a conversation about the most important thing to ever happen to us into our busy schedules? Sometimes there might be an effort involved in finding the wandering sheep. And then, what would they say? Wouldn't we be ridiculed in this nation that seems to portray Christians as either unbalanced zealots or closed-minded hypocrites? Rather painful to our ego if we are shot down, isn't it?
I don't mean this to criticize your activity level. For all I know, you are one of God's few workers, getting down in the dirt. But if you are not, then I would like to join me in consciously fighting our distraction, laziness, or fear.
Jesus said the workers are few. It is just a fact. But with some discipline, we can become part of that blessed minority. It's a dirty job, but well worth doing.
Jesus is the host. The people of the world are his sheep. He is the Shepherd. At the time He said the verse above, He was looking around at the many hungry sheep in his field, thinking of them and the ones to come. And He wants their souls. Of course, He could make it so that every one of them came to Him and received His refreshing grace. He doesn't need help.
But instead He chooses to bless us. We can assist him in the collection and harvesting of these precious treasures of His. It can be done without us. And to be honest, it would probably go a lot more smoothly without our intervention. Allowing us to help is much like a mother allowing her child to help with chores around the house.
My youngest daughter loves to clean windows with me. I dread it. She is four years old. Her arms do not reach high enough, her hands do not press hard enough, and her eyes do not see smudges enough to do a complete job. BUT, when she is done, her beaming smile at her accomplishment makes it worth it.
Helping God round up his sheep is infinitely more rewarding than washing windows, in my opinion. It is like a party we don't have to pay for but get to choose the invitees.
And yet, sadly, Jesus note that the workers are few. Why would this be? Why doesn't everyone want to hand out these invitations God has given us? We could choose all of our friends to come to the best party ever. Excuse me now as I step aside from the scripture to offer my own thoughts.
.jpg)
I like running. Really. I do. I did not always feel this way. As a matter of fact, I hated it for a long time. But it took some time and routine to get into the swing of it. I had to make myself do. I had to remember that what I was doing was good for me and take it step by step, little by little.In those days before I liked running, I made excuses. I didn't want to do it. There were other things I would rather be doing. (ANYTHING!) I did not want to go through the hassle and time of changing clothes and cleaning up afterwards. And also, you know what? Running hurt!
So. I was distracted. I was lazy. And I was afraid.
Leading people to Jesus is not so different. The result is even better than a healthy body and compliments from others. The result is a healthy spirit and the words from our Father, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
Why are the workers few? We are making excuses. Other things are getting in our way. (These may even be valid activities that seem God-ordained.) But can we really not fit a conversation about the most important thing to ever happen to us into our busy schedules? Sometimes there might be an effort involved in finding the wandering sheep. And then, what would they say? Wouldn't we be ridiculed in this nation that seems to portray Christians as either unbalanced zealots or closed-minded hypocrites? Rather painful to our ego if we are shot down, isn't it?
I don't mean this to criticize your activity level. For all I know, you are one of God's few workers, getting down in the dirt. But if you are not, then I would like to join me in consciously fighting our distraction, laziness, or fear.
Jesus said the workers are few. It is just a fact. But with some discipline, we can become part of that blessed minority. It's a dirty job, but well worth doing.
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