Evangelism
Lesson Four
The Lost Harvest
“The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and
we are not saved” (Jeremiah 8:20).
FOCUS: If we do not reap the harvest it will be lost
or someone else will reap it.
what i have learned
Jesus used the example of the harvest
to represent the millions of people that need to be reached with the gospel.
This example is relevant for all times. The image of the harvest speaks to
everyone[BW1]. Even
those who live in the city understand the importance of the harvest. The harvest
is necessary for our survival. Without it, there is suffering.
An elderly, pioneer preacher was sitting beside a young
pastor in a church service, when John 4:35 was mentioned. With his huge hand,
he slapped the young man on the leg and said in a loud voice, “Young man, do
you understand what that scripture means? I’ll tell you. The crop is so ripe
that unless someone gets to it immediately, it will spoil.”
It is not time to sleep during the harvest. We do not
want the harvest to drop to the ground and spoil. Jesus said, “Do you think the
work of harvesting will not begin until the summer ends four months from now?
Look around you! Vast fields are ripening all around us and are ready now for
the harvest” (John 4:35, NLT).
Curtis Young in the “The Lost Harvest” advises that the
church cannot sit down and wait for people to come to God. “Our job is to labor
so that there will be a harvest. The season of harvest is that short period of
time for gathering the ripened grain. The harvest can be lost during harvest
season if the church is not prepared and ready to thrust in the sickle.
If the farmer is slothful and neglects the harvest, it will
be lost. The same disappointment which comes to him will also come to the
church when it is guilty of being slothful.”
Kenneth F. Haney in his timely book, One Vision, explains that only the
prepared will reap the harvest. When the harvest conditions are right, the
church must move. If we hesitate to reap the harvest, someone else will get to
it first. Rev. Haney states, “Whoever is present and prepared is going to reap
the harvest.”
Paul Baumeister in Connect
magazine Winter 2000, wrote, “There are good and bad harvesters…A harvester is
not by definition God’s harvester. A harvester is merely someone who recognizes
that the fields are white unto harvest. So, there are harvesters of all kinds,
as well as apostolic harvesters. Why is everyone flocking to these fertile
areas? They recognize the great amount of crop ready for harvesting.”
Many cults are prepared to reap a harvest. We cannot
sit idly watching! Will you be there to meet the challenge of the ripened
harvest?
A terrible storm ruined a fine crop of grain. Crops on
other farms had been gathered before the storm struck. The owner of the field
sadly stood, in silence, looking at his ruined harvest.
A stranger walking along the road came up to the farmer
and said, “It is a really sad sight, isn’t it?”
The farmer replied, “You would really think it was a
sad sight if it were your field. I could not get anyone to help me harvest the
field.” (Behold the Harvest by Dale Rumble)
A ripened harvest can be lost and go to eternal waste
because the laborers are not in the field gathering the crop.
Our goal is to harvest a crop of souls. “And the fruit
they harvest is people brought to eternal life” (John 4:36, NLT).
The enemy will do all possible to stop us from reaching our target.
Matthew 9:38 reveals the only prayer request ever given
by Jesus. He said, "So pray to the one in charge of the harvesting, and
ask him to recruit more workers for his harvest fields" (TLB).
Why should we pray that the Lord would send more
workers into the field?
þ
Two situations: the harvest is great, and the
workers are few. Luke 10:2 tells us “the harvest is plentiful.” Every farmer
with a bountiful harvest rejoices. This is a blessing. The problem is that a
shortage of laborers can also result in a lost harvest.
þ
Jesus did not ask that we pray for the harvest
(the unsaved world). They are ripe, ready for harvesting. It is not sufficient
to pray for the lost without going to the lost. Therefore, we pray that the
saved will have a vision for the lost world. Prayer awakens us to the need of
reaching the harvest. It has a way of shaping us so that He can use us.
þ
Faith is demonstrated through prayer. John saw a
people of every tribe (Revelation 5:9).
The mission was accomplished. Peter preached that God was going to pour
out His Spirit upon all flesh (Acts 2:17).
þ
Through prayer God touches hearts. When we pray
we open ourselves to the will of God, become sensitive to His heartbeat, and
join His labor force.
þ
Time is running out. The harvest will be lost if
we fail to obey the great commission.
“All of us must
quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent me, for there is
little time left before the night falls and all work comes to an end” (John
9:4, TLB).
Let us pray that the Lord of the Harvest will send
forth more farmers. Why not join the harvesting team now?
what have you learned?
1. What
is the harvest season?
__________________________________________________________________
2. Kenneth
Haney claims that only those that are _____________ and ____________ will reap
the harvest.
3. What
two situations are mentioned in Matthew 9:38?
__________________________________________________________________
4. Why
did Jesus ask us to pray for laborers and not the harvest itself?
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. What
did John see in Revelation 5:9?
__________________________________________________________________
6. What
is a harvester?
__________________________________________________________________
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