Last week, I woke up in the early morning praying for some friends and more specifically for their finances. While I was praying, I heard in my spirit, “God gives seed to the sower.” It came to me as if it were a call to partner with the Lord in meeting the financial needs of these friends, not as if I were to be a long term provider of their finances, but more like a faith experiment. I told the Lord that if He would give me a certain amount of money (seed) before the end of March, I would sow it all in the direction of these friends. It was clear that I wasn’t looking to my husband to provide the seed or to our regular income, grocery budget, etc., because it is God that provides seed to the sower. I am not usually one to talk about our giving, but this faith experiment and the things God is showing me this morning are worth sharing.
At first, I thought this was all about a simple “seed for sowing blessing” experiment, but this morning I read the whole verse. 2 Corinthians 9:10 says, “He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.” God is the Supplier. According to Philippians 4:19, “…God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” BUT, God doesn’t just supply our need or our seed, He multiplies seed for sowing. Come on! God is not just a Supplier, He is a Multiplier. This isn’t some new revelation. If we’ve been in the kingdom for awhile, we’ve heard this message, but there are times when it seems like God is emphasizing certain truths to us. This just happens to be the emphasis for me right now.
I was fired up all over again about God being a Supplier and a Multiplier, but then I read the end of the verse. God doesn’t just multiply our seed for sowing, but increases the harvest of our righteousness. I was excited enough that “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him," (2 Corinthians 5:21) but now I am meditating on the truth that righteousness has a harvest.
What kind of God is this!? He wants us to sow, so He gives us seed. He wants us to sow more so He multiplies our seed. He wants us to be right so He makes us righteous through the sacrifice of His own Son. Isn’t this enough? In my finite understanding, yes. From God’s eternal, infinite perspective, no. He wants more for us. He wants that righteousness to produces a harvest.
I am getting this picture of “seed pack faith” versus “fields as far as the eye can see faith”. Seed pack faith is where I sow my seeds until the whole pack is empty. I sow resources. I get resources back. I might get two new packs of seeds; one for my needs and another to sow into someone else’s needs. “Fields as far as the eye can see” faith is where I sow seed, God multiplies it and gives me more seed to sow. Then, before I know it He has placed before me a harvest that is far beyond my little seed pack, my efforts or ability. This is the place where I do what I can, but it is God Who supersizes all of it, not just to provide more resources, but an entire harvest, fields of righteousness. Wait! Is this telling me my sowing isn’t just about provision, but a harvest of righteousness? If so, what is a harvest of righteousness?
Isaiah 32:16-17 says, “…righteousness [will] abide in the fruitful field. And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever.” I sow seed and the result or effect is an increase in peace, quietness, and trust forever. In case you are wondering, the word quietness here is referring to a state of rest or an undisturbed state of mind. I know I’m not the only one that would like to stay in an undisturbed state of mind. If I am not focused on the Lord, I can easily end up in a place where Jesus might need to speak to me as He did to Martha, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things…" (Luke 10:41) I sow seed and the Word tells me that the harvest of righteousness; peace, rest, and trust are being increased in my life.
Just so no one misinterprets what I’m saying here, I know that we cannot work for our own righteousness, but that we are “…filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ…"(Phil.1:11) We sow seed, seed is multiplied. Seed is multiplied and the harvest of righteousness is increased. The Word goes further even yet. It tells us that we will sow this harvest. Talk about new levels! I want to move from just sowing seed to sowing a harvest. “A harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."(James 3:18) When the word “righteousness” is studied, it is said that English really doesn’t have a clear translation of the word. In the Old Testament the “idea of righteousness is relationship, both between God and man."(1) We can make it about what we do, but that isn’t true to the Biblical meaning. Righteousness is about who He is, who He has made us to be, and how we live in light of that relationship. I didn’t plan to write about righteousness, but sowing is connected to it more than I knew.
He has made me righteous, so you know what? I’m gonna sow. I don’t want to sow seed just to get something back from God, although it does work that way. I will sow because of my relationship with a Heavenly Father who wants to multiply and bring an increased harvest of righteousness in my world for His kingdom’s sake.
1. Wood, D. R. W., Wood, D. R. W., & Marshall, I. H. (1996, c1982, c1962). New Bible Dictionary. Includes index. (electronic ed. of 3rd ed.) (1020). Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press.