Memory Verse - I Corinthians 3:8
[Pages:2]THE BIBLE WAY TO HEAVEN
Realize That God Loves You. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16).
The Bible Says That All Men Are Sinners. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory to God." (Romans 3:23).
God's Word Also Says That Sin Must Be Paid For. "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23).
The Good News Is That Jesus Christ Paid for Our Sins. "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8).
We Must Personally Pray and Call on Jesus Christ as Our Personal Saviour. The Bible Says, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:13).
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Memory Verse - I Corinthians 3:8
"Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour."
Businesses operate through an organizational structure. There are various roles that are absolutely
Your Thoughts
necessary in order for the business to operate and
properly carry out its functions.
Take, for example, a building supply company
that provides the materials in order for your home or
apartment to be built. In the organizational structure,
there would be an owner, a branch
manager, a sales manager, an office
Think about it:
manager, and a warehouse manager.
Under each of these positions there
The believer's
are numerous employees working in various roles.
There has to be someone making executive decisions for the
occupation is that of witnessing to all the world.
business, someone to find customers,
another to take the orders, another to prepare the
materials in the warehouse, and another to deliver the
materials to the job site. Each of these roles is distinct
in operation but necessary to the overall function of the
business.
Jesus uses the analogy of gardening in a
spiritual sense when teaching about the believer's
occupation - that of witnessing. He identifies two
distinct roles that are necessary for spiritual gardening
to occur. Read John 4:35-38.
Your Thoughts
The Gardener The role of gardener is absolutely essential. In
verse 35, Jesus refers to a four month period of time
before the harvest can take place. This period of time is
all about the work of the gardener.
The gardener invests a large amount of time
and care into the garden. He or she is responsible for
selecting the spot, preparing the soil, planting the seed,
and nurturing the seed and soil to produce the best fruit
possible. It requires faith investing all this time and
labor while much of the results are completely out of
the gardener's hands. The gardener has no control over
if the seed will germinate, if the plant will produce any
fruit, or if the weather will be favorable. The
gardener's responsibility is to do everything in his or
Think about it: The gardener's
her power to give the seed the best possible conditions to grow in.
The gardener's role is hard work.
responsibility is to do everything possible for the seed to grow.
Jesus uses the word "labor" in verse 38 in reference to the gardener's work. Labor means to grow weary, tired, exhausted, or to labour with wearisome effort. Jesus
is teaching us that the work of gardening in people's
lives will require hard work and intentional effort. This
time invested will never be wasted time. Jesus sees the
labor invested and will reward the gardener based on
the effort given and not if fruit is produced. It takes
faith to garden because you may not see the immediate
fruit from your work.
The gardener's work is absolutely essential for
there ever to be any potential for a person to come to
Jesus Christ for salvation. Jesus emphasizes in this
parable that the gardener's role comprises the bulk of
time and work in a person's life.
Spiritual Gardening
Lesson 1
The Harvester The role of the harvester is absolutely essential
Your Thoughts
as well. The gardener's work is all in vain if there is no
one to harvest the fruit that is produced. At the same
time, you cannot harvest if no gardening has been
done. Each are absolutely essential to one another.
This role requires wisdom and discernment.
There is a specific window when fruit should be
picked. If it is harvested too early, it will not taste good
while if harvested too late it will be spoiled. The
harvester must discern when the fruit is ready or when
more gardening is needed to produce fruit.
The harvester's role is rewarding. Notice in
verse thirty-six that Jesus says the harvester "receives
wages" and "gathers fruit unto life eternal." The
harvester gets the reward and satisfaction of all the
hard work the gardener puts in. This verse also reveals that
through the harvester doing his job the
Think about it: Today's world of
gardener can rejoice too. There is no increased skepticism
competition in God's work! Each role is absolutely essential to the end goal, the salvation of people. Each role will
requires increased gardening time.
be rewarded for the work they performed. Read I Corinthians 3:8.
There can be a big misunderstanding that we are to be both
gardener and harvester in every contact or conversation we have with
someone. The idea that we MUST see each person saved that we talk
with or we have failed. This misunderstanding and undue pressure can
cause people to shy away from even engaging in the process at all.
Jesus reveals to us that there is one team on one field with one
goal. There are two seasons of work, a planting and a harvesting and
there are two roles that people will be engaged in, the gardener and the
harvester. You are gifted in one of the two roles. Recognize where you
are gifted and spend intentional time in your aspect of gardening.
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