Proverbs Pt. 50 Sowing the Seed of the Word of God. Are we generous or a miser?

 I pray that each of you will have a day filled with joy and blessing in your hearts because you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and King. 

We visited our granddaughter's family yesterday and I was amazed at the dense carpet of vividly colorful leaves covering their front yard. Shapes, sizes and colors varied and ranged from deep gold mixed with burnt orange to deep red or a vivid yellow gold mixed with shades of coral. 

I share this with you to encourage each one of us, no matter where we live, to pause, look around at all the creation and goodness of God so that we might worship and praise Him. 

Scattering and Holding Back. 

Proverbs 11:24  There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.  

Solomon taught his children a very simple and understandable truth in this section. It paints a picture of agricultural practices that they were very familiar with. The contrast is mentioned in verse 24. The idea of scattering and increasing is a farmer sowing seed onto a prepared field. The seed is scattered as it is sown, often by hand. When the seed sprouts, grows and ripens, the time of harvest comes. The idea of increasing is when the fruit or grain or vegetables are harvested. 

The last part of verse 24 is about a greedy farmer who chooses to keep everything for himself. He withholds his crop from the marketplace so that other non farmers can buy food for their families. This is the idea of withholding more than is meet, or right. In other words, it is not right for the farmer to keep a large surplus for himself when other people want to buy his grain, fruits or vegetables in order to put food on their own tables. The fact that engaging in selfish business practices leads to poverty is the idea that the greedy farmer's spirit will be impoverished. His relationship with God and man will suffer. 

A Generous man and a Miser.

Proverbs 11:25  The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.

Verse 25 shows us the idea response of a good man. This man is a liberal soul, not in the political sense but in the sense of being generous. Because he is generous and willing to sell part of his harvest he will be made fat. The word "fat" is not referring to being overweight. Rather, it means that this farmer's generosity will be rewarded and all of his needs will be met. Moreover, his relationship with God and his neighbors will be richer and better. 

This is the same idea communicated by the phrase "he that watereth shall be watered also himself" which means that if you have a good well with abundant water and your neighbors well dried up, the generous farmer offered life giving water to his friend. Again the fact that the farmer would also be watered means that his needs for water will be satisfied and his relationship with God and his neighbors will be enriched. 

Blessing for the Generous Man, Cursing for the Miser.

Proverbs 11:26  He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him: but blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it. 

This verse summarizes what the contrasting attitudes of selflessness versus selfishness are teaching us. The one who withholds something that is vital and needed by other people will be cursed by those that he refuses to share his bounty with. However, the generous man who sells his surplus crops will be blessed. 

Most of us are dependent upon the work of other people to supply food for our families. We usually have a small garden and can grow tomatoes, herbs and even some potatoes very well. However, our small plot of land cannot grow enough to supply our needs through the winter months. Therefore, we go to the market (grocery stores) and can purchase the various meats, fruits and vegetables that we need. We are blessed by those who are employed in agribusiness and we can bless them when we purchase their goods.

God gave this picture to change our hearts. 

Thus far this section is fairly easy for us to understand and apply in our lives. However, God is always aiming for the heart and I believe  there is a powerful spiritual picture here for us to think about and submit to.

We previously studied the parable of the Seed and the Sower in Matthew 13 & Mark 4. Christ's explanation was that the Sower is any person who has the blessed Word of God. The seed that he or she sows on a field is the Word of God itself and the field represents people. 

The four types of soil represent the various heart responses to hearing and receiving the Word of God. Ultimately, one type of soil is the "good ground" representing people who hear the truth, receive it and are born again. They bring forth various levels of fruit. 

Mark 4:26-29  And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; 27) And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. 28) For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. 29) But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. 

Only Mark recorded this particular parable which is like an addendum to the first one. Right after teaching the parable of the Seed and the sower in Mark's gospel, Jesus taught this short parable based upon the truth presented in the Seed and Sower parable. 

When Jesus said "So is the kingdom of God" He is connecting this parable to the first one. The ground is identical with the four types of soil. The seed is identical with the Word of God and the Sower is people like you and me who share God's truth with others.

The Sower's job is to cast the seed onto the ground. He scatters it all around on a field that has been prepared (plowing, disking, or harrowing). At the point of scattering the seed of the Word of God on the ground, the Sower's job is done. He is then able to take rest, rise up, go about his normal duties whatever they may be. 

What happens next? The seed germinates and the sower has no knowledge of the germination process of the seed of God's Word taking root in human hearts. That is all the work of God's Holy Spirit. He observes that a change has taken place and that growth is occurring.  

God provides the nutrients in the soil, the necessary periods of rain and sunshine  for germination to happen. First, the small blade breaks through the earth, then it grows and eventually the stalk of corn gets bigger. Finally, after many weeks of sunlight, rain and warm temperatures, the corn matures and produces the full corn wrapped in each protective ear. The process is very similar for most other crops.

The full harvest comes and the corn is harvested and the sickle being put in represents the return of Jesus Christ for His Bride, the Church  (Matthew 13:24-30; 47-50).  

You see a vivid picture of the gospel being preached, the Word taking root in someone's heart and the emergence of a new, baby believer in Jesus Christ. This is to be followed by spiritual growth represented by the stalk that grows over time. It should culminate with a mature believer in Christ, represented by the full corn in the ear that is ready to be harvested. 

Thoughts to Ponder...

Thus, we see our attitudes about physical things and spiritual things is brought under the microscope of God's Word so that we might see what pleases Him and live accordingly.

Christians should be good workers and supply for the needs for their families. However, that does not mean that we are to turn into hoarders, keeping everything for ourselves and becoming unwilling to share with someone in need. The generous in spirit will be blessed. However, the miserly man will not be blessed and his relationships with God and man will suffer greatly. 

The more important concern is centered around our heart and the Word. Are you a born again believer? If so, we all have the responsibility to be witnesses for Christ and we do that principally by sharing His Word with those around us. Our great privilege and job is to sow the good seed of the Word of God into the field where we live, into the lives of those around us. Then, we are to faithfully discharge our normal duties and trust any germination of the Word in men's hearts, entirely to the Lord of glory. 

I pray that each of us will take the job seriously of being a faithful Sower. The salvation of our communities depends upon you and me sharing the Word of God.  

Bob