THE PRINCIPLE OF SOWING AND REAPING

Sunday 28th October, 2012

SPEAKER:  Elder George Adu Danquah

TOPIC:  THE PRINCIPLE OF SOWING AND REAPING

MAIN TEXT: (Proverbs 11:25, Matthew 7:12)

“The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.”

“Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.”

When  man  becomes  old, he  retires  from  his  work  because  there  is  no  strength  to  continue  again. Old  age  will definitely  meet  everyone  in  this  life.

As  you  wait for  this  event  to  take  place,  what  preparation  have  you  made towards  your  future  when  you  become  old?

Some  people  believe  that  holding  onto  what  they  have  can  help  them  in  their  old  age. For  example  if  one  retires and  is  given  20,000 cedis  to  live on with the family, when  it  gets finished, what  will  he  do? Unless God  intervenes and  he  obtains  help  from  other  people, his  situation  will  be  terrible. This is the reason  why  God  has  given  us His  principle to apply  before old age arrives.

This  is the  principle  of  sowing  and  reaping. The  divine  principle of  sowing  determines the  harvest, therefore  it  behoves  us  to  select  good  seeds  that will enjoy good  harvesting.

Proverbs 11:25 says “A  generous  man  will  prosper, the  one  who  refreshes others will  himself  be refreshed.

Matthew 7:12 says “ So  in  everything  do unto others  what  you  would  have  them  do  to  you; for  this  sums  up the  Law and  the  Prophets”.

For our good seeds to produce good harvest, we must sow seeds of:

• MERCY
• WEALTH
• GENEROSITY
• FRIENDSHIP

If  one  sows  bountifully  in  these virtues, he  reaps  bountifully  but  if  he sows  sparingly, he  reaps  sparingly. The  basic  problem  of  humanity  is  such  that  we  often  sacrifice  the  future  for the  present. This  usually  happens  when  we  eat  too  much  of  our  seeds.

But  if  we  have  faith  in  the  Lord   and  in  His principles, we  shall  eat  less  and  sow  more. Our  life  will become  more  outward  and  less  selfish  and we shall  become  investors,  not  merely  consumers.

Matthew 5:7 says “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy”. If  you  don’t  show  mercy  to  people  in  your  days  of  good  health,  people will turn  from  you ( Micah 6:8, Psalm 41:1-3)

Sowing in wealth reaps a happy life in old age. Wise  and liberal  investment  creates  wealth  because  it  provides  seed  for others  to  sow  thereby  making  them  good  stewards ( Matthew 25:14-24)

This principle of generous investment has many applications. Once generosity  is  learned  in  one  area, it  becomes  a  way  of  life. Once generosity  is  learned in  one  area,  it  becomes  a  way  of  life. Generous  investment  and  giving  money  indicates  our  obedience  to  the  Lord’s  principle. Money  represents our  life  and  energy and  generous  sowing  of  money  is a  primary  way  to sow (Proverbs 22:8,9) Ecclesiastes 11:1,2  advises  us  to  cast  our  bread  upon the  waters, for  the  many  days  we  will  find  it  again. This  is  a  principle  of  giving  out  what we can  to  people  by  doing  them  good.

Loneliness is one of the major setbacks of old age. Many  people  feel  cut  off  and  alienated  from  others  during  these  times. We  all  need  friends  who  will  stick  close to us, listen, care and  offer  help  when  it  is  needed( Proverbs 18:24b)

Paul  told  Timothy  to  invest  himself  in  teaching  faithful  men  who  will  also  teach  others (2 Timothy 2:2). The  old  soldiers who  taught  us  should be  our  friends  in  their  times  of  need.

Today, as  we  climax  the  pensions  day, we have to  know  that  old  age  is  not  a  curse  but  rather a  blessing; and  our  aged  individuals  are  needed  for  their  advise.

We  have  to  help  them  to  live  long  for  us  to  benefit  from  their  wisdom. If  we  fail  to  do  so, God  will  intervene  and  we  lose  our  blessings. When  we  help  them  people will  help  us  when  we  too  become  old. We  will  then  not  suffer  and  enjoy  the  same  support  we  gave  to  them.