Introduction
I have prayed for people before; it is not something that phases me. Yet, this time was different; after that sermon to a room full of people training for the ministry came the time of ministry to them. We were asked to offer prayers to those who wanted it, and soon a fellow Disciple approached me. I asked the obvious question: “How Can I Pray for you, brother?” His request was what made that moment stand out when compared to the many before:
“Pray that I may courage and boldness to go back and preach the Gospel, plant a new church, and know the Lords Blessing as I go back to reclaim that which was lost.”
His words were not unique; I have spoken statements similar before and will do again. They are words that you would hope any faithful minister would want to be prayed over them and would pray. However, as I stood there, I knew what those words meant – the possibility of death. I do not say this to be dramatic, but simply to be true. You see, the context makes sense of everything, and I was not at some conference in the UK praying for ministers as they go back to their villages and cities: I was visiting the Christian Institute in Jos, Nigeria; praying with Anglican Seminarians who had come from the Northern States of their Country and were determined to go back. Thus, I prayed those words over one, then another and many more times as men came forward. We prayed for a room full of people who had seen their churches burned down, had been driven from their homes, and had their lives threatened. They had lost everything: their response? To go back to the fields, they felt the Lord called them too. Why? Because that is what disciples do! This is our response to worship. The context might make the response more radical, yet, when we worship God, we join with God in the Spiritual Harvest work.
It was the most humbling of moments as I prayed with brothers that they may have courage and boldness to minister the Gospel under the threat of death, to return to hostile lands because they saw the opportunity of the harvest field. It was humbling because I felt unworthy. After all, they embodied what often felt like a figment of our faith – “taking up their cross.” Furthermore, it was humbling because as we drove away from that place, I found myself reflecting on things back home, our churches, and what our spiritual harvest looked like, even perhaps our willingness to do the work no matter the cost. How would we react in the face of any adversity? Would we get our hands and needs dirty in the much of spiritual soil, or would we be too busy complaining, fighting the wrong battles or arguing with one another over secondary matters… Would our witness and harvesting even bring such adversity? The answer is I do not really know. It is often a wonderful thing about visiting other places; we receive far more than we give. There I received encouragement and challenge to consider my own call and how I was actually participating in the good work that God has called us all too. The fields are ripe for harvest, whether in the UK or northern Nigeria – the question is, are we as his disciples willing to join God in the work whatever the cost.
Passage: John 4:31-38 NIV
“Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now, the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sow and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labour.””
Context: Surrounded By Opportunity
Our passage today is a dialogue that occurs in the middle of a time of Ministry for Jesus. Events both before and after we need to be aware of as we consider what Jesus is teaching the disciples about the mission field. Jesus is in a place that no Jewish Teacher would really want to be in Samaria! Then in this place, Jesus does what no righteous (as per human standards) teacher should do; he speaks to a single woman at a well in the middle of the day and then begins to teach her about the things of God.
Yet, that is where Jesus chose to be; he chose to walk that road, to go to that Well and to speak and teach the women he sought out there. He was a man on a mission from God, and the women and the Samaritans she would lead to Jesus were part of that mission. He saw an opportunity to share his good news and for the kingdom to Advance. He and the disciples where surrounded; they saw opposition, and he was an opportunity, and he wanted them to see things his way, the Kingdom way. The women in John 4 is contrasted to Nicodemus in John 3: She was a sinner and outcast, outside the Jewish Religious establishment, yet she recognised the messiah; He (Nicodemus) was a Jewish Elite, he knew the Law, and he knew the word of God, and all the prophesies of the Messiah, yet, he did recognise Jesus.
It is the setting that makes full sense of Jesus’s words to his disciples as he challenges their misconceptions about the Kingdom, who belongs in it, and to whom God is calling them to reach. Thereby the well he wants them to see the opportunity and the fullness of God’s call. He wants them to recognise that the Kingdom will advance everywhere, and they are called to carry that movement to places regardless of tribe, context, or difficulty. It is the way of discipleship. He wanted them to see the opportunity and the privilege of this work. Jesus knew that for them to see the true way of the Kingdom, they must first see through some of their own misconceptions and sins. Hence there by the Well, before the women returned, he taught them about the way and call off the Kingdom and the opportunities of the world. If they would truly follow him and open up to his way. Then in wonder and beauty, they saw that Lesson incarnated as the sinful women became a saint who testified to the Kingship of Christ
That which Sustains us in the Kingdom (31-34)
What would get you up in the morning? What is the one thing that you would want to do for your whole life? We all have passions, interests, and desires that excite us – things, places, or people that seem to give us extra energy and joy when we are doing them! What are those things for you? It might be work, family time, or travel; it could even be something as simple as getting out for a run, reading, or spending time with friends. We all have something that gives us that extra ounce of energy and motivation. Often our world moves to those moments in rhythms of escape: we labour to build up enough money for those two weeks in the sun to recover from the madness and demands of our work. Yet, as soon as those moments arrive: they evaporate. What if we were made for something more? Made for someone beyond this world, and it is only that truly know and lived out can truly sustain us and keep us going. Our passage begins in the aftermath of Jesus’s interaction with the women at the well; the Samaritan women are moving off into the distance (as she returns home to tell people about Jesus), and the disciples are arriving onto the scene. They survey strange women walking away from Jesus (she appeared when they were absence). They Assume the worst of the situation, but what they will realise is that Jesus was doing that which gives him life – the work of God.
An Awkward Conversation: A powerful Lesson
As John writes this narrative, he wants us to feel the disciples discomfort. They are suspicious of what they see, and the sense might be that they suspect something ulterior here. Arriving to find the teacher with a strange Samaritan woman leaving the scene is not what they expect from one who claims to follow Yahweh. However, the lesson they will learn: Jesus does not care about human-made standards; he does not care about conforming to their expectations of what he should do, of who he should speak to! He came for the lost, and he found a lost one, so he saved her. Hence the awkwardness of the discourse and their exchanges with Jesus. They literally do not know what to say in response to what they have just seen!
“Eh, Teacher, are you hungry? Go on have something to eat!”
It is a strange attempt to break the awkwardness, to build up to find out what is happening by just saying something. They went to get food, he was tired so let’s offer him some food. Yet, as we learn with Jesus, every moment is a teaching moment, every money is a kingdom Moment, and this moment is no different. They will learn that the standards of the Kingdom and the Standards of its King do not comfort to principles of the world they might have; rather, this King and his Kingdom will transform the world.
Thus, in response to this awkward offer of food, Jesus claims to possess something far superior and far more fulfilling than anything they can give him (4:32). The Disciples are confused. Hence they ponder out loud could he have received from elsewhere – perhaps it was the women who have just left – yet, no sooner are they pondering is Jesus challenging them; they are thinking through an earthly (flesh) lens, and Jesus is speaking with the things of God in mind.
Jesus responds: “My food … is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” For Jesus obeying the Father is thee more deeply satisfying task. It is the work and mission of the Kingdom that sustains Jesus. Not the simple doing of these things: telling people about the good news, healing or performing sings; no, it is far more significant because Jesus is not simply speaking doing what he is told; he is speaking of doing what he was made for! The Father has given the Son Kingdom work to do, and it is his mission and joy to see it to completion.
It seems like such a grand notion, one that is hard for us to comprehend, yet, when we think about what the Bible tells us about humanity, it all makes sense. Genesis tells us that humanity is made in the image of God, without diving into the great theological depths that means that there is something in us of God and something of us that needs God. Jesus is fully human, a man who walked this earth, and yet fully God – he is the fulfilment of what it means to be made in the Image of God, and thus he models for us what should be the orientation of our life!
The Beauty of Obidence
Jesus displays not just a reason for wanting to get up, but the supreme reason for existing: living for and enjoying God. We might have something that sustains us, that we look forward to or work towards, yet the energy those moments give us seem to decrease every time. Hence, we need more of it for the same release! We end up addicted to the wrong things because we search for sustenance, identity, and worth in the wrong things. We were not made for this world; we were made for God! Thus, what Jesus speaks here is both true for him and us! Of course, Jesus needs to eat, but that is not what keeps him going; that is not what sustained him in the wilderness. No, what stirs his passion and energises his living is a life centred on God and serving God – it is a life of worship. When you read on in Johns Gospel, we hear Jesus pray:
“I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do” (17:4).
He fulfilled what God had called him to do, and he found Joy in that. Thus, when Jesus declares: “It is finished” on the cross, it is not some philosophical declaration about his life-ending, but the ultimate gratifying expression about the climate of a life of obedience – a life of Worship. So what does this mean for us as we think through these words and this scene? Is Jesus speaking only of his own reality and perfect obedience, yes, yet there is something more. He is reminding us about what life is meant to be about – God. To be made in the image of God means that we were made for God. We were made to worship Him, and Jesus’ work on the cross makes that Worship possible and true. Jesus obedience is worship; it is looking to God, depending on God and bringing Glory to God in everything that he does. Hence, we are challenged about the orientation of our lives and the reasons for our living.
Our Lives Must Worship
To go back to the question asked at the beginning of this section, what we will often find is that which gives us sustenance, that which excites us and brings us Joy is actually what we worship. They are often good things that have become god things in our lives, and our challenge today is to consider first do we truly love God and desire to worship him? Then to let the Holy Spirit work in us to help us discern perhaps those things that might be distracting us from our true purpose – God. Those who claim Jesus as Lord must display it, and like him, find their joy and worth in the things of the Kingdom. Our lives must express our worship in all that we do! Now we need to be clear; this does not mean doing certain things: going to church, reading your bible, praying, and all other ‘Christian’ things. All of those things are good and necessary as we walk with Jesus and build His Kingdom – they are good things, Kingdom things and ways by which we can Worship God. But, they are not the only way we Worship God. No, that is far too simple. The challenged from Jesus here is to be reminded that worship is not an act. It is an orientation to God. Thus, to worship God means living for Him and displaying our love for him in all that we do.
Everything is worship for the Disciple of Christ! Every live display what it worships. It is as Timothy Keller once said: “You don’t get to decide to worship. Everyone worships something. The only choice you get is what to worship.”1 The Disciple is a worshipper of God. Thus their lives display that worship in all that they do, whether they stack shelves in the supermarket, perform surgery in the hospital, or preach from a pulpit – it all displays the sustenance of their life. They worship not to earn something more from God, but because they have fulled received. Thus our worship expresses our thanks and trust in Yahweh. What drives your living and brings you Joy? For the true follower of Jesus the life must always be the things of the Kingdom, the worship, and work of God.
The Call and Opportunity of Discipleship (35-38)
Within the same flow of teaching, Jesus begins to make another point. He has challenged the disciples to consider that which will truly sustain him and will become the drive and source of life for them – doing the work of God as an Act of Worship. Now, He begins to challenge them to open their eyes and see the world around them through a Kingdom Lens. Jesus seems to use two separate agricultural images to challenge the disciples and all who might follow him about the opportunity of the Kingdom Harvest and the nature of the work.
Open Your Eyes To See The Harvest (35)
Jesus asks: “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest?” and then implores: “I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields!” They are ripe for harvest. Jesus wants the disciples to grasp this most basic of principles, that if you follow Him, you will do his work! This way of the Kingdom, not that we work to earn something more, no, we work in response to what we have already received. Thus, this harvest that Jesus is talking about is a natural outworking of living where God has placed us. The challenge is for the disciples to see the opportunity. They are in a land (Samaria) they despise, walking a road they would never choose to walk, they have just seen Jesus with rejected of the despised (samaritan women), and all they could see what shame, all they could feel was fear. This is not the way of God, nor the way of the Kingdom of God. Jesus wanted them to see through a different lens, not one defined by presence or years of mistrust, but one defined through the Kingdom of God and the call of Discipleship. It is a lens that will see the opportunity for mission, outreach, and advancing the Kingdom they were beginning to understand.
To trust in Jesus is to see the opportunity of the Great Commission in every place and every people and to trust that God has us somewhere to do his work. Even if that is not somewhere, we will choose to be. In 4:35, he reminds his disciples of a farming proverb to point them to their present situation. He is obedient to the call and work of God by being there, by sharing the good news of the Kingdom to those whom the establishment might reject, and they must be obedient to the same call by opening their eyes and seeing the potential. Yes, there might be four months until it’s time for the literal harvest, but, in the Samaritan women and the Samaritan people (who where perhaps on the horizon), the disciples must see the opportunity for the spiritual harvest now. They might not be the fields the disciples would choose to work, but they are the fields that God has called them too! Thus the faithful disciples’ trusts and get to the work they have been called. The fields are now ready for gathering! – Jesus is in the world, God has invaded the field with seed, and it is bearing fruit already. People are the opportunity for the Kingdom Harvest because we must only open our eyes to see.
The Way of the Harvest (36-37)
Jesus has challenged them to see the opportunity of the harvest, and as he continues and employs another farming imagery to teach the disciples about the way of the Harvest and their place in it. He uses the reality of the physical harvest to teach about the way of the Spiritual Harvest. To plant, care for and then harvest crops is not a work that can be done by one person; even today, with all our farm machinery, it takes time and teamwork to reap the produce off the land. In the Era that Jesus lived and ministered, harvesting took even more time, effort and people. It was no a lone wolf game! To reap the benefits of the land required different people to do different things at different times so that the crop could one day be reaped. Some would be required to prepare the ground, burrowing the soil to prepare it to be planted; then others might so the seed and tend to them over time; then when the time is right, others will come and work to bring in the harvest. Different people doing different things at different times – it does not matter who does what; all that matters is that the work gets done, and the harvest is brought in when it is ready. The lesson is simple. Sometimes, those who do the preparatory work will not be those who see the harvest bear fruit. Yet, regardless of our role, we rejoice in the privilege of the work! What matter in the physical harvest is not who does what but that the work gets done and the crop is reaped. It is no different in the work of the Kingdom, the call of the Great Commission – the Spiritual harvest that all disciples of Jesus are called to take part in – in the Kingdom God is does not matter what role we play, but that we do it so that people can know our hope in Christ.
Every one plays their part; whether we are doing accounts for a church and no one ever hears of it, or we clean the toilets and often wonder do people even notice. Perhaps we labour over video production these days or podcast editing, and wondering does anyone listen… We all play a part, and we trust that God will use the part we play for the work fo the Harvest, so whether we are the preacher at the front, the Sound Tech at the back, or the praying warrior at home, in the Kingdom of God no part is more important, more visible. All parts are acts of worship in response to what God has done. We do different things, but those things are not markers of status, importance, or power in this new Kingdom; we as citizens know that we belong not by our own effort, worth or achievements but by the Grace of God through the Cross of Christ. As all are equal in this Kingdom, so too are all acts of worship and kingdom work in this great harvest that we have been called to. So our desire to do it together so that Glory is brought to God and people come to know the beauty of a relationship with him, and the joy of belonging to his kingdom, partaking in his work and living a life that is defined not by any earthly standards but by the Grace received from Christ. Hence together with all who have joined in this work (as harvesters and reapers) with us, and before us, we can ‘be glad together.’ (4:37b)
The Privilege of building for those ahead (38)
Jesus goes on to say: “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labour.” So what do these words mean? Of whom is he speaking? I think there are two possibilities – either John the Baptist or Jesus himself; neither really change the thrust of the point that Jesus seems to be making. Both have done preparatory work for the coming church. Thus, what Jesus speaks here is an important missional principle for the Church to remember in all that it does. It reminds us to frame our mission in the context of what has gone on before and will come after. Just as we do not do the work of God alone today, so to this work is never isolated from the Church eternal. Each generations Gospel work builds on the labours of those who went before them, and each generation builds and labours for those who will come after them.
We do not labour for results. No, we labour for love (of Christ). We join in the work of the Great Commission (the spiritual harvest) in response to the work of Christ on the cross. We trust God with the process, meaning if we find ourselves frustrated because the work we are doing for God seems pointless, we stop and remember that which we are doing might not be for now, but for the age to come. Thus, Jesus words here remind us that Kingdom Labour is never a solitary effort, separated from the work of God. Kingdom labour is an act of worship and a joining with God in work he is doing across the world.
Lastly, we are also humbled on this point because we are reminded that the work of God is never about us, our context, culture, or time. What we do builds on the labour of faithful disciples who have gone before us, and then (hopefully) what we do will leave a solid foundation for the Church and generations of Christians who will labour after us. Who knows, we might be doing the hardworking for a revival in the decades to come. Regardless of results, we get on with the work because we trust that God is always at work. Let us remember this mission is not our own and not for our own – we build on what has been, and we lay the foundation for what will be! So let us make sure we leave something for those who come after us, let us make sure we get on with the work of making the gospel known in word and deeds so that Jesus is known. Additionally, let us be ready to reap the harvest at any time of those who have done the hard work before us.
Conclusion: Together We Harvest
It would be amiss to finish off our thinking without considering the aftermath when all that Jesus has spoken and taught the disciples is incarnated in a moment. They see before them a harvest ripe for the picking and a saviour willing to get to the work. They see before them the way, work, and ethic of the Kingdom that Jesus had been teaching them about. The women they saw walking away as they approached Jesus and assumed something shameful now return surrounded by her peers. She who came out in the middle of the day because she was embarrassed at how she lived, then meet Jesus has been transformed. Her life is no longer her shame but her testimony about God’s wonderful work in the world, and she wants everyone to know this Messiah. This personal experience is a constant feature of Johns Gospel. All those who come display evidence not only of right belief concerning him but an ability to testify to their own personal experience of Him. In the case of the women, she could say: “he told me everything I ever did!” In her, Jesus saw no a heretic, a sinner, or a despised Samaritan but one in need of His Grace and acceptance; thus, he got to the work of the Spiritual harvest. A work that if the disciples had been there, they would have fought because their prejudice would not allow them to see the opportunity.
Furthermore, the women challenge the disciples (and us) about our role in the Kingdom. Here are twelve men called to follow God, to share the good news of Jesus and to build the Kingdom of God; twelve men who would lay the foundation of the church, a foundation that we are still building on today! Yet, who is the first evangelist in John’s Gospel, not one of them but a samaritan woman! She is their co-labourer in the work of God, as her testimony for Jesus prepares the hearts of her people to hear the good news. Some might labour, some might labour and prepare the spiritual soil, others might plant seeds, and still, some might reap the harvest. What matters is not our role, but that we see the opportunity and get to the work – trusting God for the results, then together with all the saints, we can ‘be glad together.’
They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
It really is an amazing scene, as the outcasts recognise the messiah of a people who do not recognise them, not by the word of a righteous teacher, but by the witness of women who lived a life of disrepute. A woman whose testimony would not be valid in court, yet it is valid here for the Kingdom of God’s work. Jesus is pointing the disciples to the reality of following him and the reality of the mission and Kingdom – it will go to places they would not want it to go, via people they would not choose to use! The Kingdom of God looks nothing like the world or its ways. Jesus knew as the disciples approached him that they judged the whole situation through the lens of this world and not His, and thus he set about challenging then and then transforming them by lesson and example. Their lesson and example are ours. So let’s live out the way of the Harvest
The Way of the Kingdom Harvest
This passage and the entire interaction with the Samaritans has taught us something about the call of all disciples – to the Harvest; and the way of the Harvest. So if Christ is our Lord, and if your citizenship is in the Kingdom of God, let us get on with the work and make sure our ethic and acts model those of Jesus.
An Ethic of Truth
Let us be a people who speak the truth when truth needed to be spoken: Jesus did not shy from the reality of the Samaritan women’s lifestyle; he spoke truth to her. Yet, not a truth for the sake of it but the truth of a better way; his way – she grasped it with all she could, embraced it and was transformed by it as she reframed her sin in the light of his Grace and lived no longer ashamed but emboldened by the Gospel. She carried this gospel truth to all who would hear it! Truth is our way, so let us be a people of truth as we commit to the work of the spiritual harvest. Yet, let us remember that truth must be spoken with love and direction: our truth points to Jesus. Thus, truth is our way, but it is not condemnation. It is the telling of a better way, a place to go and be accepted and transformed to receive all that we need by Grace and not effort. This is the Kingdom’s truth and its kindness: it confronts; but does not condemn; it reveals, but does not reject; it speaks honestly, but not harshly. This is the truth of the Kingdom; it is kind because while it points out sin, it ultimately points to Jesus.
The Witness of One
While this passage has been strong on the truth that we do not do the work of God alone, we are also encouraged to remember just how God might work through one – The Samaritan women. She was the most unlikely of evangelists in a culture that did not value the witness of women in terms of the law – never mind how her lifestyle would have discredited her – she was the first to witness to the wonder of Christ. Her testimony brought many to faith and laid the groundwork for the Early church’s later work in Samaria that we see in Acts 8. While we must never consider ourselves more important in matters of the Kingdom, equally, let us not forget the miracles that God can perform through one and the foundation such work might have for the generations who will come afterwards.
It Takes Time
When you read Johns Gospel, there is always a sense of urgency with Jesus, he is on a mission to complete the work that God has called him to, and nothing is going to stand in his way. Yet, here as he steps to the work of the great commission, as he makes disciples, Jesus recognises the need for him to spend time with these new followers. He does not rush, as he and the twelve spend two more days in Samaria with these people. Why? to Nurture them and teach them the things of the faith. Our world, and sadly our churches, can often worship at the idol of busyness; in an instant world, we can expect instant results and grow frustrated we things take time. Contra to this, we are not citizens of this world; we are citizens of the Kingdom of God, where things run at a different pace and in a different way. Simply the work of God takes time, so let’s be patient and give people, the mission and our churches the time they need to bear god fruit rather than rushing from one thing to the next, ever-busy yet, never fruitful.
The Cost is worth it
The disciples would have well been aware that their being there with Jesus might carry a cost for them in terms of reputation or life. Yet, they remained, and with time they came to understand the cost because they grasped in Jesus, they had all they needed. To go back to the story from the start, a room full of men who had lost everything but hope; a room full of ministers who were committed to the Gospel and saw the opportunity for the harvest. They had paid a cost, they would count the cost to go again, yet they would still go! Why? because they knew Jesus and their all was in him: thus, no cost was too great.
Let us be clear there is a cost to following Jesus; there is a cost to worshipping him, especially in a world that grows ever more hostile to his teaching and his way. Yet, the more we know him, the more we realise the value of what we know. The more we love him, the more we want to make Him known. So have we considered the true cost of following Jesus and of making him know where we are? Have we considered the effort and the resources that are needed for the work of the Spiritual Harvest, and are we willing to carry them?
God has placed us right where we are, whether that is the most vibrant city in the world or the quiet countryside where no life seems to exist. God has placed us there to use us for this work of harvest. So let us stop making excuses as individuals and churches, and regardless of context, let us get on with the work.
Consider ourselves before the Lord
The Disciples where men called by God to make Him known. Yet, part of their formation into Christ’s ambassadors was reforming. They came with certain misconceptions and dogmas that they held to be of God, yet they were not. We are no different. We are all being formed by something, and thus, when we come to Christ, part of the journey of discipleship is being reformed into his image, way and ethic, to live in and live out the Kingdom of God. Perhaps something we need to ask today is what things do we hold to be ‘biblical’, ‘true,’ or ‘the way Jesus would want things’ when they are just our own sin and rhythms and prejudice. Simply, they are things that are keeping us from the work of God either by choice or conforming to another standard. So today, as we live out this call let us consider ourselves before the Lord. Let us make sure that the framework that is forming us and how we interact with people and the world is the Kingdom of God and the ethic of Jesus and nothing else. Let us deal with those things that are not becoming of the cross and our hindering our labouring in the harvest.
An Opportunity to Change the World
The scenes final statement is an important summary of the fruit produced by this Spiritual Harvest. The preparatory work of Jesus and the co-labouring of the women. It is the fruit of the harvest as the people cry out:
’They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Saviour of the world.”’
The Samaritans give us evidence of what we all must have – a true experience of Jesus and a faith that is not dependant on another. They have come to see and expense Jesus for themselves, and they have grasped hold of the truth of who he is and the joy of knowing him. Thus, by being there, they recognise him as the saviour of the world. Their declaration of Christs’ messiahship even before the cross should give us hope as we finish! It reminds us of the power of the Gospel and how it will change the world. So today, as we consider the spiritual harvest and our role in it. As we navigate this strange season of covid, let us first and foremost be confidence people full of hope who see the opportunity of this new landscape to tend the grow, plant gospel seeds, and get on with this work. Let us see the opportunity around us and then, in the power of the Holy Spirit, seize the purity by joining God in his work and making him known! There is opportunity everywhere, so let us pray the Lord gives us eyes to see it; and the confidence, patient, and will to seize it as we live for him, and worship him in all that we do and commit to the work of the harvest whatever our role and where ever we are confident that that which God started he will finish.
Atr Irwin 