The Law of Sowing and Reaping is
universal. It works the same way regardless of what
part of the world in which one lives. No one would
ever plant a field of corn and expect to harvest
peas. Nor would one plant tomatoes and expect to
harvest potatoes. One always expects to harvest what
has been planted. It is a universal law!
Not only is this law universal, but its principles
also operate in every area of life. For purposes of
this discourse we are concerned with how it affects
our spiritual lives. After all, the Law of Sowing
and Reaping is first and foremost, a
spiritual law, given by God.
Paul offers two opposite ways of life: the way of
the Spirit and the way of the sinful nature. We must
consider carefully the consequences of choosing one
way or the other. We cannot straddle the fence; we
cannot remain neutral; we must decide whether we are
going to walk by the Spirit or gratify the desires
of our sinful nature.
Paul’s call for decision is based on an agriculture
principle: Do not be deceived: God cannot be
mocked. A man reaps what he sows. When people
think and act as if they will not reap what they
have sown, or as if they will reap something
different than what they have sown, they are
deceiving themselves and mocking God. The proverbial
statement of warning God cannot be mocked is
true; no one can mock God and get away with it.
There is a human tendency to think that there is one
exception to this universal principle. “Though
this may prove to be true for everyone else, it is
not true for me. I will not reap a harvest from what
I have sown. I can sow whatever seed I want and
still expect a good harvest.” Our capacity for
self-deception is frightening. It is amazing how
blind otherwise intelligent people can be to their
own spiritual direction in life. The story of Adam
and Eve’s hiding from God behind their skimpy
clothes and even skimpier excuses is our common
human experience.
Paul then applies the agricultural principle of
reaping what is sown: The one who sows to please
his sinful nature, from that nature will reap
destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit,
from the Spirit will reap eternal life (v. 8).
Here we are faced with a decision, a decision that
determines our destiny. We are not victims of fate,
bad luck or even predestination. Our destiny is
determined by our decisions: shall we sow to the
sinful nature or to the Spirit? The old proverb
is true: “Sow a thought, reap an act; sow an act,
reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a
character, reap a destiny.”
Often we find ourselves wishing things were
different, wondering how events occurred, and the
answer is that we made some choices, and the results
were inevitable. Eventually when the crops begin to
grow and you wish they wouldn’t, it’s too late to
say, “This isn’t what I meant to have happen.” What
you reap is what you sow, not what you wish for.
We have choices every day regarding what we are
going to value, what our convictions are, how we
will treat people, what we will decide is right and
wrong, how we are going to enter into relationships,
how we are going to deal with the things that make
us afraid.
We can either choose to let the Spirit of God
influence us and remind us of His Word, to take
seriously all the great themes of the gospel, to be
servant-hearted instead of selfish, to be courageous
when we want to run away, to be gentle with people,
to be honest with them -- or we can decide to be
self-serving, short-sighted, shallow and fearful.
All such choices have consequences, and eventually
the consequences add up.
Most people I know who have addictive behaviors have
them because they made a lot of choices over a
period of time. But you arrive there over time, not
overnight. Greed, self-pity, arrogance, prejudice,
cruelty, laziness all grow over time. You
become those things by choices you make.
The converse is also true. When we choose
to trust God, we become more like him. Galatians
5:22-23 lists the fruits of the Spirit: love,
joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
When you listen to and are shaped by the mind of
God, over time you become someone more and more like
him, and the result is beauty of character, security
of emotions, confidence in life. When you’re honest
over time, doors open because people learn to trust
you. When you’re courageous, you become confident in
who you are. When you are gentle, eventually you are
able to get near people who otherwise would flee
from you and resist you.
You plant the seeds (sow), and then later you gather
the resulting harvest (reap). The harvest that you
reap depends on the kind of seeds you sow. Whatever
you give out to others, God will eventually give
back to you. This is the basic nature of God’s
Universal Law: “YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW.”
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