God Will Reap

Brethren, in Revelation chapter 14, we find a very, very interesting, yet greatly sobering account of what is to happen upon the earth in the days ahead. God is going to reap the earth in the last days. That's how it's characterized in Revelation chapter 14. So, please join me in verse 14 of chapter 14. How did I end up in Luke? That's not where I want to be. I want to be in Revelation chapter 14, and we'll start in verse 14, I believe. Yes. John writes, Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the clouds sat one like the son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him, who sat on the cloud, thrust in your sickle, and reap, reap for the time has come, for you to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. So, these are very frightening times. Just at the return of Christ, all of the plagues have been poured out upon the earth, and Christ is returning, and there's been devastation and cataclysmic events that have been occurring for the last three and a half years, and even before that. So, the earth is a real mess here, and God is reaping the earth. He says, So he who sat on the clouds, speaking of Christ, thrust in his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.

Then another angel came out of the temple, which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came from the altar, who had the power over fire, and he cried with a loud voice, or a loud cry to him, who had the sharp sickle, saying, thrust in your sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.

So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. So that last year, the day of God's wrath upon the earth, had been poured out, and there had been tremendous devastation. This is what it's describing here.

And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horse's bridles, for 1,600 furlongs. So if my calculations are correct, that's 200 miles. Now, I don't know how figurative and how literal this is. I don't know that we could say, but we know that billions of people are going to die before Christ returns.

So it is a very sobering picture, to say the least. You know, if we understand these prophecies correctly, and it seems they're pretty clear in terms of the devastation and the amounts of people that are going to die, and what's coming ahead of us. So I think it's important that, you know, we don't hide from the Scriptures.

I think it's important that we consider what the Bible does say, and not stick our heads in the sand, and pretend that it's not there, because it's going to affect all of us. If we're alive, at this time, that I've just described, when God is going to reap the earth. Now, there will be another type of reaping, too. Now, there will be a reaping of those who have rebelled against God, who have disobeyed God, and there'll be billions of people who will die around the earth. However, we also know that there's a group of people, human beings, now being trained, that will be changed into spirit beings at the return of Christ.

They're called the firstfruits. You probably talked about them last week at Pentecost. The firstfruits who are going to rule and reign with Christ at His return, those who are alive at Christ's return, will be changed to spirit as the spirit-born children of God. So, they will also be reaped, in a sense, at that time.

So, there's two different types of reaping that will be going on, those who have been disobedient and unfaithful, and then there'll be the reaping of those who have been faithful and have been God's servants. So, we find very different consequences for human beings at this time. We find those who will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.

Those who are alive in Christ, as it says in 1 Corinthians 15, will rise to meet Christ in the air. Then we know that there's a whole group of other people who have already died. They were not called at this time, or they did not respond, and they died. And there will also be some who will live in to the Millennium, who are human beings who are alive. And they would have been very traumatized by everything they've seen, everything that they've gone through.

So, when we stop and think about the future and what the future holds, it is, indeed, sobering. But there is something that each and every one of us needs to be doing. So that we are ready, so that we are prepared for that day. We don't know the day, we don't know the hour.

But if you are a true believer, you know it's coming. You know the Bible is true, and you know these things will come to pass. So, again, there will be different types of reaping that will be going on. There will be some who would have died in Christ, of course, a long time ago. Those of Hebrews, Moses, you know, the people of faith that it talks about, we know that they will actually rise first. They'll come out of the grave. They'll rise first. And then those of us who are alive will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.

There will likely be some, as the scripture indicates, that were once enlightened by the Holy Spirit. But they turned from God. They turned from His Spirit. And God took that Spirit away from them. They committed the unpardonable sin, as it talks about in Hebrews 10.

And those people will, if they, most likely, they're all going to be dead.

They won't be living in to the millennium, you wouldn't think, right? Those people will likely die if they aren't already dead. And they'll be awaiting the Lake of Fire, as we understand it. There will be a group of people that have died who were not in Christ, who were never called. They will be awaiting a second resurrection after the thousand-year period.

So it's all very interesting. And God has been gracious to give us as much understanding as we have about these times that are coming. But, brethren, you know the bottom line in all this is that at Christ's return, we are going to be reaped according to what we've sown.

You will be reaped according to how you've been sowing the seed while you're here on the earth. So that's what we're going to talk about today. We're going to talk about what you reaped. You reaped what you sow. That's the title of my sermon. Pretty simple. You will reap what you sow. Those whose blood will be shed by God's wrath are among the billions of humans who have lived and died over the last six millenniums. Those who will instead rise to meet Christ in the air at His return are those who have been called, chosen, and faithful throughout.

God has many laws by which He rules the universe. Today we're going to discuss one of the most important of God's laws. Again, this is a law that will not fail. You can absolutely count on this law. And it happens to those who are called and to those who aren't called. It doesn't matter. It happens to every human being. And, of course, I'm talking about the law of sowing and reaping. Someone who really doesn't fully understand this law and chooses wrongly will be under a certain curse because we reap what we sow. Every decision has a consequence. Every choice that you make has a consequence. So we don't go blindly through life. We choose our path. We choose our course. You decide. You're a free moral agent. You get to decide.

So this is a law that we experience firsthand every day of our lives. Now, I dare say that some of you, all of you, all of us, we're reaping that to some degree now. You know, if we were able to get a good night's sleep, if we went to bed early enough and slept well, it's easier to listen to the sermon. But if we worked overtime all week long, we're tired, we didn't get to bed, whatever reasons, you're reaping what you sown to a large degree. So in Galatians chapter 6, it talks about this law. So let's go there and take a look at it. Galatians chapter 6, and we'll read three verses here, 7 through 10. Galatians chapter 6 verse 7. Galatians 6 verse 7.

Do not be deceived. Okay, this is Paul speaking to those in Galatia. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked for whatever a man sows or a woman, whatever anyone sows, that he or she will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption. If we walk in the flesh, we will produce the fruit of the flesh. It's Galatians chapter 5, talks about the works of the flesh. If you walk in the flesh, you will produce the works of the flesh. On the other hand, but he who sows to the spirit will of the spirit reap everlasting life. At Christ's return, they will reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Now, like many of you, I've been in the church a long time. It is easy to let down when you've been around a long time, to become weary and well-doing, to start slacking off here or there. I would encourage you not to do that because it's those who stay faithful to the very end, who will be given the kingdom of God. So don't lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially those who are of the household of faith. So all of you should practice love toward each other, first and foremost. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ. This little church in Murfreesboro needs to be a shining light to the world, to the community.

Do your best to really get to know each other, to love each other, to always be there for each other. That is a part of your calling, and you are reaping what you're sowing. Anyone that comes in these doors should feel very, very welcome. You know, they should feel like you truly care for them, that you love them, that you're glad they're here. Any child who comes in this door, be patient with the children. Nurture the children. Treat them as part of the family, all of us. That's what God wants from all of us. So remember, you're going to reap what you sow. If you treat a child poorly, there's a consequence for that. God doesn't take that lightly. Be careful. You will pay a price for whatever decision you make. If you're mean-hearted and mean-spirited, there will be consequences for that. So let's all try to really do our very best and set the kind of example that God talks about here. Now, in 2 Corinthians 9, verse 6, Paul talks about this same law again. In 2 Corinthians 9, verse 6, this law of sowing and reaping. And here he says in verse 6 of 2 Corinthians 9, He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. And he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Now, this is in the context of God loving a cheerful giver. God loving someone who's generous and gives from the heart. God loves someone who will sow bountifully and be generous. God wants us to be generous people.

So, brethren, God's law of sowing and reaping is a law that is absolute. How well do you understand God's law of sowing and reaping? You know, we all have to realize that we're going to be affected by this, so we have to have a right approach and attitude toward this law. We're going to be affected by it. We can positively respond, and then we will be blessed because of this law. If you sow good seed, you will reap an abundant harvest. So, this is not a negative law. It's a very, very good law, as long as you're doing the right things. And, you know, we know that there are chapters in the Bible. Leviticus 26, Deuteronomy 28, what do we call these chapters? The blessings and cursings chapters. This is the law of sowing and reaping in effect. If you sow good seed, there will be blessings, a whole chapter about all the blessings God will pour out on you if you will obey Him. And then there's the part of the disobedience. There will be curses for disobeying God. You know, God is not mocked. God is a God of love and a God of justice and a God of equity. So, God is merciful. God is forgiving if we are repentant. Again, we reap what we sow. If we disobey God and we're not repentant, then God will, you know, there will be a greater judgment for that. If we quickly repent of anything that we've done, you know, God is merciful. God is loving. There still may be consequences, right? We understand that. We know that. But it's very important to understand this law because it's always in effect. It's going to affect you the rest of today. How you treat your husband, how you treat your wife, how you treat your children, how you treat your neighbors. It's going to affect everything that you do and say from this point forward, whether you acknowledge it or not.

And even people who don't believe in God, they should see that this law is in effect because if they do something bad, usually it comes back to hurt them in the end. On the other hand, if they do something good, there are blessings for that. So the law is right there for all of us to experience. All people experience this law, whether they know it or not. So if you pick any circumstance at all where man is involved, you're going to see that this law really does work. Adam and Eve chose to sin in the Garden of Eden, and they reaped the consequences for that. They were kicked out of the garden because they disobeyed God. It wasn't long before Cain killed Abel. You know, Cain chose to sin in a very selfish and hateful manner, killing his own brother, and he reaped the consequences for that. He was cut off. He was cast out. Humankind, leading up to Noah's time, chose to sin. And it says that every thought of their heart became evil continually. This was a very bad time on the earth. If it means remotely what it says here, every thought of their heart was evil continually. That's pretty scary. You know, that's pretty scary. You know, when I think of what that could possibly mean, how bad it got. And then God, because of Noah and his righteousness, because Noah was a man who did obey God and follow him and was righteous, God spared the earth. He spared people and started over with Noah.

So, the Bible's fascinating. I hope you spent a lot of time reading the Bible. I've enjoyed reading the Bible for the last 50 years. And it is a book of life. It'll show you how to live. And it'll tell you that if you don't live a certain way, you will die. You won't live forever.

It's up to you. So, we're going to talk now about three aspects of this law. Three different aspects. The first one, God intended that his chosen people would be greatly blessed if they would sow the good seed of keeping his laws and ways. That is absolute. God intended that his chosen people would be greatly blessed if they would sow the good seed of keeping his laws and his ways. In Genesis chapter 26, we'll start reading here in verse 2, because God is talking to Isaac here. He's talking to Abraham's son. Notice what he says in verse 2 of Genesis chapter 26.

Abraham, your father, and I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven. I will give to your descendants all these lands, and in your seed, all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. In your seed, speaking of Christ to come, all nations of the earth shall be blessed because, why? Because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. So Abraham was an obedient follower of God, and God chose Abraham, and out of his loins sprung Isaac, and out of Isaac's loins sprung Jacob, and then the twelve sons of Israel. And so, you know, we know the story. God worked with these children of Israel in a special way. They were to be a special people above all people on earth, but we know they also blew it. You know, they did not obey God. They did not reap all the wonderful benefits that God was hoping to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. That was the promised land. You know, it pictures God's kingdom, which is the true promised land, to come. But because of their disobedience and their unfaithfulness, they reaped the consequences. They went into captivity. They went into the Assyrians, conquered them. The Babylonians conquered them. They were scattered.

Dire consequences because of their sins. Again, we mentioned the blessings and the cursing chapters. We will go to Leviticus 26 and just read one verse here. Notice Leviticus 26 verse 5. That's not right. Oh, okay. That's oh, I'm in Genesis. That's why that didn't work. Leviticus stayed in Genesis. Leviticus chapter 26 and verse 1, it does start the blessings and the cursings chapter. But then in verse 5, it says, your threshing shall last, talking to the children of Israel, your threshing shall last till the time of vintage. So the reaping of the grain will last until the time of the reaping of the grapes. So tremendous abundance and harvest. And the vintage shall last till the time of sowing. So there will be tremendous blessings all year long is what it's saying. And you shall eat your bread to the full and you will dwell in your land safely. That is what God wanted for the children of Israel. But unfortunately, they didn't humble themselves before God. If you did, you know, some people did, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, you know, some of the some of the children of Israel did humble themselves and they were greatly blustering their times. And we understand that, but the vast majority disobeyed God and they paid the price for it. In Deuteronomy chapter 11, Deuteronomy chapter 11, it talks about the difference between living in Egypt or in Israel. There was going to be a big difference. Egypt, we know, is symbolic of sin, Israel, the land of Israel, the promised land, symbolic in a sense of righteousness and goodness. So if we go to Deuteronomy chapter 11, Deuteronomy chapter 11 verse 8, Deuteronomy 11 and verse 8, therefore you shall keep every commandment which I command you today, speaking to the children of Israel, that you may be strong and go in and possess the land which you cross over to possess and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord swore to give your descendants or to your fathers, to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. For the land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt, even though some said they wanted to go back to Egypt. It was nothing like this wonderful promised land. It is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and you watered it by foot. As a vegetable garden, just a puny little vegetable garden is what it's talking about here. But the land which you cross over to possess, it's a land of hills and valleys which drinks in water from the rain of heaven. You know, if the land of Israel would have had rain in due season all these years, just think how beautiful it would be.

Just think how wonderful that land would be had they been obedient and faithful. It's a land of hills and valleys that drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares. The eyes of the Lord your God are always on it from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year. All year long, God's going to pour out the richest blessings upon the land of Israel. And you can have this. You can enjoy this. Just humble yourself and follow me. That was the message given to the children of Israel. The message also was don't go back to Egypt. Don't even take side trips as our lesson. You know, some of us want to take a side trip. You know, we come to church here on the Sabbath, but then during the week we like to make a little side trip to Egypt.

Now, we forget who we are, and we want to take a little side trip off to Egypt, to the land of sin. Instead, we need to stay firmly established in the land of righteousness and goodness. We'd be far better off. So, brethren, don't take these trips into Egypt. Stay in the land of Israel. Enjoy the blessings of the Promised Land. That's what God's telling all of us.

Hugh diligently sows good seed is going to reap the blessings from God that he intended for his people. And that law is true today. I know because I've been a recipient of that law. And you have too. You know you have. There have been tremendous blessings in your life because you did choose to obey God. You did follow him. But none of us are perfect, right? I'm not perfect. I've also reaped some curses because of disobedience and because of unfaithfulness at times. We should be honest with ourselves. None of us are perfect. The Bible says if you think you're not a sinner, you're a liar. The truth is not in you. So we have to go before God's throne daily and ask God to forgive us for evil thoughts, evil intentions or desires, things that we say that are hurtful. There are many times throughout the day that we likely should be repenting of what we thought or what we've done.

But God will walk with you if you will walk with him. You know, God will always be there. He'll never leave you. He'll never forsake you. And he will continue to bless you if you stay on the right path. And even if you take a trip to Egypt once in a while, he'll bring you back if you are a repentant person. If you can admit that you've sinned, that you've gone to Egypt, that you need to come back to the Promised Land. In Matthew 6, verse 25 and 26, Matthew 6, now we're in the New Testament and we're reading what Christ has to say here in Matthew 6. I mean, Christ came and made all the difference, didn't he? Christ came and died for us. He was that sacrifice for sinners. Matthew 6, verse 25, and the Sermon on the Mount is very powerful. And Christ speaks about these things. He speaks about sin. He speaks about repentance. He speaks about all these things in the Sermon on the Mount. And in Matthew 6, verse 25, he says, Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life. What you eat or what you'll drink, nor about your body which you will put on, is not life more than food and the body more than clothing. Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of much more value than they? You know, that's how God looks at each and every one of us. The great God who created the birds and the wilderness and the nature and the beauty that we see around us, we are the pinnacle of his creation. He loves us more than anything else that he's ever done. And he wants us to be in his kingdom. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you, by worrying, can add one cubit to his stature? He's saying, don't worry, put your faith in me. That's what he's telling us. Put your faith in me. You don't need to worry, because I've got your back. I will take care of you. Surrender yourself. Dedicate yourself to me, and I will bless you, and I'll take care of you every step of the way. He says, so why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they neither toil or spin. And yet I say to you that even Solomon, in all his glory, was not a raid like one of these beautiful flowers. And I noticed in Tennessee, as in Ohio, some beautiful spring flowers. I love this time of year. It's so beautiful. God is so gracious. He's so great. He's so gracious to us to give us such blessings. Brethren, even without God's intervention and direct involvement, we often see, again, this law working in the lives of all people. You can see it in Jeff Bezos, one of the richest men on earth. He's blessed because he made some good decisions. He's smart enough to know that, yeah, this Amazon thing's going to fly. It's too bad all of us didn't figure that out a long time ago. And jump on the bandwagon because he's reaped an awful lot from what he sown.

And it happens with many other people from a physical standpoint. There are many blessings because people make some good decisions that make sense. And, you know, they reap the benefits of that. Every day for close to seven years, Walter Buck Swords cursed and stomped his feet in his favorite restaurant, Luby's Cafeteria. How many of you have been to Luby's sometime in the past? All right, a few of you. Anyway, this man, this was back in 2007. He was demanding that he get his food exactly as he wanted it. Every day he would come in cantankerous, old guy. Every day for close to seven years, his preferred waitress, Melina Salazar, offered a patient smile and did whatever she could to help her most stubborn customer. I think he would ask for her if at all possible he'd try to get her. After years of thankless service, he mistreated her even though she was his favorite. After many years, she was rewarded when Buck Swords died at 89 years of old.

He left Salazar $50,000. That was a big tip. That is a huge tip for good service.

I'll bet some of you who have wait who have a waitress before would love to get a $50,000 tip. And not only that, on top of that, she got a Buick, a pretty nice car. He probably hadn't driven it that much. He was old. So she got a nice car and she got $50,000 bucks from Buck Swords. This was from the Associated Press back several years ago. It came out in USA Today.

So every time you make a choice, you're turning yourself into something a little different. Every time Melina Salazar put up with this old man, and she tried to make his life a little bit better, that was a good decision. And it reaped a benefit. Not that she was out to try to get a tip like that, because he probably was a scant tipper most of the time. It wasn't until he died that she got the big windfall. But obviously, we serve because we know it's the right thing to do, not because of what we might get out of it. Sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences... this is a quote. I'm reading a quote right now from Bruce Barton. You've probably heard of Bruce Barton. He's a US writer. He wrote the book, The Man Nobody Knows. He was also a politician. Lived from 1886 to 1967. He said, sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences come from little things, I am tempted to think that there are no little things.

There are no little things, because every every choice that we make has some kind of consequence. That was his thought. William Alexander, in a book called The Sixty-Four Dollar Tomato, said, if you were doomed to live the same life over and over again for eternity, would you choose the life that you're living now? The question is interesting enough, but I've always thought the point of asking it is it is really the un... it is really the unspoken, potentially devastating follow-up question. That is, if the answer is no... if the answer to that question, if you were doomed to live the same life over and over again for eternity, would you choose the life that you're living now? If that answer is no, then why are you living the life you're living?

Think about that. If you're living a different life than the life you know you should live, why not change? Because it will affect your eternity. So it is important. He says, he concludes by saying, stop making excuses and do something about it. Good intentions don't get you into the kingdom of God. It takes more than that. You have to also follow through. You have to be obedient. You have to have that heart. Again, God doesn't expect perfection. None of us are going to reach perfection in this life, but he does want us to be repentant people. So that's point number one. Point number one again to refresh your memory was God intended that his chosen people would be greatly blessed if they would sow the good seed of keeping his law. So I hope that we're committed and convicted to keeping God's laws. Secondly, another aspect, he who sows bad seed on the other side will reap the consequences and will bring upon himself an automatic curse of varying degrees. We don't know how soon it's going to happen. We just know it's going to happen because the Bible says it is. The Bible says, Be sure your sins will find you out. It says the wages of sin is death. And that's frankly what we all deserve. We all deserve death. It's only by God's grace that we're alive today. Now, God's the one that gives us life. He gives us this air to breathe, even though it's stale and humid and hard to breathe in here. I hope the air conditioning goes on later because it's hot in here today. So you remember Uzzah? Does that name ring a bell? Remember how Uzzah was struck down when he was carrying the Ark of the Covenant in an improper manner? Uzzah made a very bad decision and should have no doubt known better. He should have known better. There were explicit instructions on how to handle the sacred Ark of the Covenant. It was to be carried by the priesthood on rods, not by a cart. It was never to be touched. Uzzah touched the Ark and God struck him dead. The wages of sin is death. He didn't follow the instruction. That's exactly what he deserved, no matter what David thought. David was upset with God at the time, but God was just. God was equitable. Uzzah touched the Ark. God struck him dead. Now, I see this as an example for all of us that the wages of sin is death. It's a clear example that the wages of sin is death. Don't mess around with sin because its wages are death. That's what you earn. That's what you've been sowing, and so you will reap death. That's the consequence of sin. That's how serious it is. Uzzah certainly paid the price that day. And what about Ananias and Sapphira in the New Testament? Did they not pay the same price? Ananias and Sapphira lied to God. They lied to the Holy Spirit. They claimed one thing while the truth was something else, and they were struck dead. New Testament Church. The lesson's clear in the Bible. God is not mocked. God is not mocked. We will reap what we have sown. And thank God He's merciful because I deserve death. That's what I deserve. And you do too. But I'll tell you what, the more we humble ourselves before God and learn to obey Him and follow Him, and the less often we have to go to Him and ask Him for forgiveness, the better off we are in this life and in the next. Because we will be rewarded according to our works. So even if God allows us in the Kingdom, there will be greater rewards for those who learn to bring their bodies into subjection now.

Those who learn to walk in the Spirit and put God first in their lives. There will be tremendous blessings for all of us. So I hope we will all wake up, including myself, and that we'll all do a better job in the days ahead. Because that is our calling. And we have a high and a holy calling. Now, out of the billions of people on earth, we are among the firstfruits, the very few firstfruits. We should never take our calling lightly, brethren. I know it's... I feel some air conditioning, I think. It's been turned on! You can thank me later.

All right, so the whole point of this is if you sow bad seed, you're going to reap the consequences.

If you're not a repentant person, you're doomed to the lake of fire. God is very merciful, again, in most cases. We all deserve to be struck down right now. Thankfully, God's not doing that. He only struck down a few, but they're examples. That doesn't make them worse than us, does it? Have you ever sinned? Most of us spend the first six days of each week... Now, this is a quote again. This is from Fred Allen, a U.S. comedian. You've probably heard this one. He said, most of us spend the first six days of each week sowing wild oats. Then we go to church and pray for a crop failure.

That's not the approach we should take, obviously. That's not the approach we should take, obviously. We should, seven days a week, God wants us to walk with Him.

In Job chapter 4, and I'm just going to go through a few verses quickly here in the book of Job, and also Proverbs, and we don't need to turn here, but I'll just read them to you. In Job chapter 4, verse 8, it says, Those who sow wickedness reap the same. Those who sow wickedness reap the same. Whatever kind of wickedness, like I said, if you're mean and hateful, then you're sowing wickedness.

I've heard, you know, I've met people who were proud about how stubborn they were.

I thought, well, that's not really the best thing to be proud about. You know, if you're stubborn, you won't admit that you're ever wrong. You won't admit that maybe you were at fault. But some people are so set in their ways, it's difficult to get them to move an inch.

We're the ones with God's help that need to start moving.

Move those inches, one inch at a time. We'll be better people when we do that. Those who sow wickedness, they're going to reap the same. There will be consequences. God cannot be mocked. Proverbs 6, verse 14, Proversity is in the heart. He devises evil continually. He sows discord. You know, God hates those who sow discord. That's what the Scripture says. And yet, in my job, I hear about incidences where people sow discord. You know, and it's so unhealthy for them.

You know, if you have a problem with someone, go talk to them about it.

Do what the Bible says. Go to your brother. But don't sow discord among the brethren. If you have a problem with Mr. Petty, go to Mr. Petty. You know, don't talk to each other about it. Not that any of you have any problems with Mr. Petty, because you've got a great minister here. But seriously, if you did have a problem, he's approachable. You could go talk to him. But don't tell others about a decision that you thought was wrong or this or that. You know, that's just sowing discord. Think about what you're doing. Think about what you're saying.

Proversity is in his heart. He devises evil. He sows discord. Proverbs 6, verse 19. God hates the action of one who sows discord among brethren. God hates the action of one who sows discord. Okay, we clearly say that the United Church of God has certain fundamental beliefs. We have things that we believe. If you want to be a part of us, then you should embrace what we believe. Not that you couldn't have a little bit difference. We understand that. We allow people to have a little bit different as long as they aren't sowing discord about it, right? That's always been our approach. Just don't sow the discord. If you believe a little bit differently than we do on some things, that's between you and God. But don't sow discord because God hates discord. And it's unhealthy for a church congregation. And we're supposed to love each other in this room more than anyone else. So we wouldn't want to hurt anyone here, right? We want to be good for each other. Proverbs 11 verse 18 says, The wicked man does deceptive work, but he who sows righteousness will have a sure reward. Instead of sowing discord, why not talk things up? Why not talk about positive things? You know, that's what the Bible says we should do. Think on what's so ever good. What's so ever things are good? What's what's over things are lovely? What's over things are of good report. I assure you that Mr. Cubic and those at the home office, we're trying to do the best we know how. And we get down and pray just like you do. And we ask God to guide us and direct us. We're not perfect. But I guarantee you, guarantee you that we're striving to do that which is right and good. Because we want to please God. We know what the Bible says. I want to be blessed by God. I don't want to be cursed. If I treat anyone in a manner that's disrespectful and improper, I'll pay a price for that. That's not what I want. I'm too old for that. I need to straighten my life up now. Well, thankfully, God called me at age 18. So I've had a long time in God's church. And God's blessed me throughout all the years I've had here. It's been a wonderful life, as Jimmy Stewart would say. Proverbs 16, verse 28, A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates the best of friends. A perverse man sows strife. So anyone that sows strife, they're a perverse person. You should remove yourself from them. That's what the Scripture says. Don't put up with that. You don't need to put up with that. You know, if someone is being negative about God and his truth and his way of life, his ministers, this Scripture says a perverse man is the one who sows strife. Or at least that's a perverse action. Maybe the person isn't yet perverse, as long as he repents.

But if he continues to do it, then he's a perverse man.

Proverbs 22, 8 says, He who sows iniquity will reap sorrow, and the rot of his anger will fail.

God is not going to bless such a person. So that's the second principle, is to realize the second aspect, that if you sow bad seed, you're going to pay the consequences for that. Now, I think I'll tell a story. I don't know if you've listened to me on the webcast. You might have heard this one, but I don't even think it went out on the webcast. But when I was at college, there was an instructor that gave a forum, and he talked about how college students often have very poor consequential reasoning. Because really, that's what we're talking about in this sermon, the consequences of our actions. We reap what we sow. There are consequences. So when I was a kid, and I grew up in Ohio, I'm a child, I'm about 10 or 11 years old. I have a cousin named Rick, and he had a brother named Doug. And Rick was a year older than I am, and Doug was a year younger. And they weren't the best example. They were a bad influence on us.

I think. I mean, we weren't the greatest examples either, but Rick and Doug were probably to blame for a lot of things that went on in our family, because they were over at our house a lot. Anyway, Rick fashioned himself as a sort of Daniel Boone. A rugged individual, liked to be out in the woods, liked to hunt and fish and all that kind of stuff. Well, he saw this squirrel in the front yard. We have a big cottonwood tree. It's pretty massive. And the squirrel was on the backside of it. And, you know, the squirrel looked pretty gentle. You know, the squirrel, nice and fluffy, you know, squirrels, they look, you know, pretty harmless. So he thought, well, I'm going to grab that squirrel. And being Daniel Boone, he figured he could sneak up on it. So the squirrel is behind the tree, and he's able to sneak up and grab the squirrel. Grabbed it right behind the neck. You know, that should work, right? That doesn't work. That squirrel sunk its teeth into his thumb.

Now, Rick's thumb, if I remember correctly, and by the way, Rick was screaming so loud that I still hear him screaming to this day. In my mind, he's still screaming. That thumb was like five times larger than any thumb I'd ever seen. It swelled up like instantly, and he can't get it off his thumb. He's trying to shake that thing loose, and it won't let go. So he has to choke it. He had to choke it to death. Finally, he got it off of him after he choked it to death. And I'm watching this whole bizarre scene develop in front of me, and I'm thinking, well, when he first started moving, I thought, I surely he can't catch it. And then I'm thinking, surely he better not catch it. You better not catch it. Well, he caught it all right, and they had to cut the squirrel's head off and send it off to Ohio State University, because this squirrel could be rabid, so they had to have it checked for rabies. In the meantime, he had to start getting shots in his stomach, painful shots. So the moral of the story, think about the consequences of what you're about to do. That's a physical example. That's a physical example, but spiritually, think about what you are about to do.

You can't... what's the scripture about taking something hot into your bosom and thinking you're not going to get burnt? It's the same thing. Now, if you decide to sin, because there are pleasures of sin, right? They last for a while. Some cases, some sins do, but there's always a consequence. There's always a price. So rather than get in the habit of indulging yourself in carnal pleasures, think about Rick and the squirrel. You're about ready to grab a spiritual squirrel.

When you decide to sin, someone who's considering an adulterous affair, that's a spiritual squirrel. That's a deadly spiritual squirrel. If you go down that path, it's going to hurt you in the long run. It's ungodly. It's wrong. Don't do it. Pornography is the same thing. You know, if you indulge yourself in pornography, you've just grabbed a spiritual squirrel. You know, it's hurtful to go down that path.

So be wiser. Make better decisions in the future. Don't do it. Stay away from those evil spiritual squirrels. They look gentle. They look fluffy and warm and nice, but they'll bite you, and they'll bite your heart.

All right, so that's the second point. Don't sow bad seed. If you grab a spiritual squirrel, you're definitely sowing some bad seed. Number three. God's most important seed is you.

God has sown you. God's most important seed is you, and he will reap what he has sown as long as you yield to him. You have a part in this one, just like the disobedient person has a part. God's most important seed is you. He has planted you. He has called you. He has chosen you. He wants you for his kingdom. I guarantee you, God wants you in his kingdom. No doubt about it. God is love, and God wants you in his kingdom. Proverbs chapter 24. Let's go here and read a proverb, a little parable here. Proverbs chapter 24. This is an interesting little parable. A fruitful, productive vineyard is a thing of beauty. I've been to Italy. I've seen some wonderful vineyards in Italy. I've seen some in the United States as well. Where I lived in McKinney, Texas, there was a nice little vineyard right there within 10 minutes from my house. But Italy really has some beautiful vineyard in Italy. Italy really has some beautiful vineyards. A fruitful, productive vineyard is a thing of beauty. But here's the thing about vineyards. They don't just happen by themselves. Beautiful vineyards don't just happen. Vineyards don't just spring up by accident. Someone is behind tending those vines. The writer of Proverbs essentially says, we'll read it in a moment, he essentially says, I was going past a vineyard, and it was a mess. There were thorns all over the place. The grounds were covered with weeds. The walls were falling down. It had been so neglected.

So let's read Proverbs chapter 24. We'll read in Proverbs 24 verse 30.

I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man who was devoid of understanding, and there it was, all overgrown with thorns. Should have been a beautiful vineyard by this time, but this man was lazy. Its surface was covered with nettles. Its stone wall was broken down. When I saw it, I considered it well. I looked on it, and I received instruction. A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest. So shall your poverty come like a prowler, and your need like an armed man. So what it's saying is if you neglect your calling, God's called you to dress a vineyard, a beautiful vineyard. Your life is to be a masterpiece. God has chosen you. God is the great sculptor. He's the great artist.

He wants you to be one of his masterpieces. He's called the weak and the foolish of the world, so that he may be exalted in due time. He will be exalted when you have a beautiful vineyard. When your life is a beautiful vineyard, you will bring glory to God, and not until then. So we all have a very important role to play in all this. God loves to see beautiful vineyards. God's called you. You are his most important seed. He wants to reap what he has sown. He has sown something beautiful, but he can't reap it unless you cooperate. Unless you respond to him, unless this is the most important thing in your life, if this is not the most important thing in your life, then I guarantee you're going to neglect it.

You will neglect it. There's no way you can't. It's got to become the most important thing in your life. The scripture says, seek first the kingdom of God. Seek first God's righteousness, and then all these things will be added to you. Don't expect to have all these things added to you until you do your part. That's God's message for all of us.

Now, there's a lot of angst behind this proverb. If you think about it, you know, there's a person here who's neglected this vineyard. And to understand the angst behind this proverb, you have to understand that in the ancient Middle East, a piece of land capable of growing crops was one of the most valuable things in the world. To be the owner of a vineyard was to be blessed with the opportunity of a lifetime. You've all been blessed with an opportunity of a lifetime. It's your life. This is what you offer up to God. It's your life. This will be your offering when Christ returns. You'll offer up your life. Your life's not over yet. There's still time. There's still time to work on this. I need to work on it. I need to do better. I'm excited about my calling. I believe God will see me in His Kingdom. I believe God loves me. I believe I will be in His Kingdom. Unless I turn from Him. If I turn from Him, then He'll take His Spirit away from me. It's that serious. It's not something to take lightly. I take it very personal. Yes, I take my calling very personal. It's a very personal thing to me. I hope you do as well, because if you don't, you'll pay the consequences for it. You'll pay the consequences for it. But God loves every one of us. I want to see all of you in His Kingdom. God wants to see all of you in His Kingdom. Let's make sure that we're all here in His Kingdom together, and we'll remember this sermon someday in the Kingdom. Let's all get together and have a little party.

That's what I hope and pray that we'll all be here together at Christ's return. We'll rise to meet Him in the air, all of us.

So, brethren, God's law of sowing and reaping is a very powerful law.

You know, in Hosea 10-12 for the last scripture, Hosea 10, verse 12, the instruction here is to sow for yourselves righteousness and reap in mercy. You have to have a goal to be righteous. That has to be our goal to be like God, to be like Christ. Sow for yourselves righteousness and reap in mercy. You don't have to be perfect, but you need to be moving in the right direction. The scripture clearly says that, to He who overcomes will I grant to sit with Me on my throne. We have to be overcomers. We have to be going in the right direction when Christ returns. I said that was the last scripture it may not be. I'm getting close, though. It says, break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the Lord. Now is time to seek the Lord till He comes and reigns righteousness on you. We seek for righteousness now. We're not going to be perfect. We're not going to be righteous, not in the fullest extent, but God will reign righteousness on us when He returns because He's going to change us into spirit. We will be born into His family and we will no longer sin.

Now that's the day I'm looking forward to. It is the day that I'm no longer shackled by my sins and my carnality and my weakness and my frailty. That's the day I'm looking forward to. No, God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. In John 10, the last scripture, it talks here about no one can pluck you out of God's hand. No one can pluck you out of Christ's hands. Only you can do that. Brethren, only you can do that. In John 10, Satan can't do it. Satan is not powerful enough. If you resist Satan, he will flee from you. Satan has no hold on you unless you allow him to. In chapter 10 of the book of John, John 10, verse 28, here it says in verse 28, and I give them eternal life and they shall never perish. Neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. That's what God wants for you. He wants to give you eternal life, and he's not going to let anybody snatch you out of his hand. That's how much God cares for you, how much he loves you. All you have to do is humble yourself before God. Let him be your God.

So, Christ said, my Father who has given them to me is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. You've got two beings who are truly just one being because they're so united. They set the perfect example for all of us, and neither one of them is going to allow you to be snatched out of their hands. Unless we get really lazy, unless we stop trying, unless we give up, only then could God possibly take his Spirit away from us. Only if we stop doing our part, if we just don't care any longer, or we turn against him in bitterness. A root of bitterness can do that, too. So, brethren, I beseech you. Let's all be in God's kingdom together. The Father is sending his Son to reap the earth. Maybe it won't be too long from now. I know this. The older I get, the closer I'm getting to the return of Christ, the older we all get. We don't know what's going to happen when we leave this hall. There's no guarantees. I mean, we should all understand that by now. There are no guarantees, except what I've read about today. That's a guarantee, if we do our part. God's law of sowing and reaping is a very powerful law. What kind of seed will you sow from now on? What type of harvest will you reap from now on? The choice is really yours. Make God's law of sowing and reaping work for you. Sow righteousness and enjoy the blessings of a godly lifestyle today. I mean, there are blessings today because of doing the right thing. We've all experienced it. So, let's keep it up. Sow righteousness and brethren, let's all reap eternal abundant life.

Sow righteousness and brethren, let's all reap eternal abundant life.