It’s How the Kingdom Works!

February 16, 2024

Building People of Substance for Works of Power

And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word.

Mark 4:13-14 ESV

The year was 1980. I’d been a Christian for only a few months when one of my new acquaintances lent me a set of tapes entitled “The Sower Sows the Word.” As I listened to these tapes, lights went on in me. Verse 13 was especially eye-opening: “And he said to them, ‘Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?'” Wow! To understand all the other Kingdom parables, we must understand sowing and reaping. This seemed important enough that I devoted extra time and study to the subject.

Over the years, there has been a lot of teaching about “sowing and reaping” as it applies to money. Some of this teaching has seemed suspect in both motivation and accuracy. Don’t get nervous. We’re not going to advocate “a hundredfold return” or ask you to send us a seed offering. However, there is a proportional relationship between giving and receiving, between seedtime and harvest. This principle underlies the workings of the whole Kingdom, including finances. You must know it.

In our previous studies, we found that the principles of tithing begin in the Garden of Eden and continue throughout the Bible. The same is true of the principle of sowing and reaping. Let’s take a quick look at the development of this theme:

• And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so.Genesis 1:11
• And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. Genesis 1:29
• The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.Genesis 2:15
• While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” Genesis 8:22
• Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the LORD, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you. Hosea 10:12
• And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”Mark 4:26-29
• Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:7-8

There are others, but you get the idea. Seeds in edible plants were specifically mentioned from the beginning. Man was charged with both eating them and tending the garden in which they grew. After the flood, seedtime and harvest were declared to be permanent in the earth. Hosea, among others, extended the nature of seed beyond plants to the sowing of certain behaviors, which he called “righteousness. Then Jesus expanded the teaching on the subject. In Mark chapter 4, He identifies the Word of God as seed, and then says that the whole Kingdom works this way. Paul chimes in more than once, but in Galatians 6 he clearly states that to deny this principle is to be deceived. You will reap what you sow!

There are 5 things specifically called “seed” in the New Testament. Jesus calls the Word seed (Mark 4:14; Luke 8:11; Matthew 13:18-19). Interestingly, He also says that people can also be seed (Matthew 13:28). In Luke 6, Jesus identifies both judgment and forgiveness as seeds to be sown. Paul applies the principle to offerings in 2 Corinthians 9:6, then includes it in Galatians 6 when talking about learning to walk in the Spirit. There he expands the idea to include good works done for others (Galatians 6:6-10).

This last passage deals with the responsibility of caring for those who teach the family of God: “Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches” (Galatians 6:6). It’s reasonable to assume that the Jews of that day would have understood this instruction to be related to the idea of tithing under the First Covenant. Paul then reminds them that sowing and reaping is the way of the Kingdom. To deny it is to be deceived. To ignore it is to mock God.

He then offers some encouragement to keep sowing good seeds. “And let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:9-10). While this may include good deeds of all kinds, it certainly includes financial seeds. While the love of money is the root of all kinds of problems (1 Timothy 6:9-10), money itself can be a good thing.

The world teaches us that the goal of our lives is to accumulate more stuff. We choose a job or a business based on how lucrative we believe it will be. God has a different idea. “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28). As Christians, we work to be able to give, not just to live. Our daily labor is more than just “making a living.” Our reason for working is to have something to give. That’s quite a change of attitude.

In his classic passage on sowing and reaping as it pertains to financial supply, Paul is writing to a church that has promised to give. He is encouraging them to get busy and have their offerings ready when he arrives. His exhortation provides a lot of info:

“The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. (7) Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (8) And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. (9) As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” (10) He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. (11) You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.”

2 Corinthians 9:6-11

What a wealth of financial wisdom! Check out just a few points:

• The harvest increases in proportion to the sowing. (v. 6)
• Giving should be joyful, prompted by a generous heart. (v. 7)
• God’s wants to provide for you so that you will have an abundance for every good work. (v. 8)
• Your generosity has eternal impact. (v. 9)
• God supplies seed to those who sow. The motive in sowing is to get more seed and impact more lives. (v. 10)
• Your enrichment, when it leads to increased generosity, brings thanksgiving to God. (v. 11)

Somebody said: “Whatever it is you want, plant it, sow it, give it, and it shall be given unto you.” – Adrian Rogers

Here’s the point: The concept of sowing and reaping is fundamental to the Kingdom of God. Jesus said so. He also said that if you don’t understand this, you will never understand the Kingdom. This is true in every area of life. You can sow the Word of God, acts of kindness, forgiveness, and even money. The harvest is proportional to the amount of seed you sow. There is another variable that affects your harvest: the tithe. Paul alludes to it in Galatians 6:6, linking the care of the ministry (tithing) to sowing and reaping. Malachi was a little more explicit, saying that if you tithe, God will supernaturally protect your harvest from the forces that seek to steal and destroy:

Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. (11) I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the LORD of hosts.”

Malachi 3:10-11

God doesn’t want you to be greedy, but He does want you to be blessed. The principles of sowing and reaping and tithing are part of His nature and the operation of His Kingdom. Giving is like planting seeds. You plant with the expectation of a harvest. That’s not greed, that’s just faith. You have faith because Jesus said that the seed would come up. He also said that there is an enemy who will try to steal your seed. It’s a good idea to protect your harvest by tithing. That’s not greed; that’s also faith.

Pastor Virgil

3141 W. Ironwood Hill Dr.

Tucson, AZ 85741

www.fcftucson.org

Class: “The Tithe. An 8-hour course focused on God’s plan and purpose in the tithe. The videos and course outline are available free of charge on the FCF Tucson YouTube channel.