Jesus would have all believers to look over the general population of the world. He describes those that do not know him as a harvest ready to reap. In the beginning of our text, Jesus wanted it to be known to his followers that his primary goal was to do the will of the Heavenly Father. In like fashion, he expects all of us to have a concern for one or the other persons we may meet. He instructs us to pay attention to the spiritual needs of others. He also is concerned that the dedicated believer would be obedient so that they would have an eternal wage.
To him, dedicated Christians should put forth the effort to deliver the Word of God to as many people as possible. He called that “sowing the seed”. In some way or fashion, we are to deliver the Lord’s message of love and salvation. To sow the seed means that we care about the eternal destination of others. It is very easy for us to go through life asking God and receiving God’s blessings without giving thought how others may be enriched by what God has to offer.
The apostle Paul adds to this message from Christ by saying in 1 Corinthians 3: 5-9 that some people have the responsibility to water the seed. If one person delivers the Word of God by sowing yet no one else waters it, there is a likelihood God’s desire would be futile if it is not nurtured. To water means to explain, support, guide, and teach listeners the importance of accepting Christ as Savior. The person who waters may never see the end result of their efforts until eternity, but they are vital in the harvesting of souls.
Then there are those people who are so fortunate to be blessed as reaping what others have sown and another watered in the hearts of those coming under conviction by the Holy Spirit. It is a magnificent experience to pray with someone and see them sincerely desire for their repentance to occur and their lives changed. This means that the person who reaps the harvest must be prepared with a knowledge of the Lord’s Word and an honest testimony of their own experience from serving God.
Using the example of the farmer, he will have no harvest, no gain, no benefit if sowing and watering and reaping does not occur. Our responsibilities as believers is to put forth the effort and knowledge to influence those in need of a heavenly destination. To neglect these responsibilities, we may have the benefit of heavenly life hereafter, however, there will be fewer rewards awaiting us. Let the message from Jesus and Paul convict us to the point we value our own salvation by holding up our responsibilities to either sow or water or reap.
Christian Writer 