church

Fifteenth Sunday After Trinity
September 20, 2009
Ascension Lutheran Church, Tacoma WA
Paul Naumann, Pastor

YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW
Galatians 6:7-10

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus
our Lord, Amen. The word of God that we will consider this morning comes
from the sixth chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Galatians, vs. 7-10, as follows:

"Do not be deceived. God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he
will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but
he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not
grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose
heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to
those who are20of the household of faith." Here ends our text.

In Christ, Who is the motivation for every truly good work, Dear
Fellow-Redeemed,

I think all of us have daydreamed, from time to time, about the great things we
could do if we could accurately predict the future. For myself, I don't want
much - I'd simply like to possess a copy of the Wall Street Journal dated one
year from today. If a person knew for certain exactly which stocks were going to
go way up, he could make several fortunes over the course of a year. Too bad it
doesn't work that way - even the best brokers can't tell you for certain whether
the investment you make today will turn out to have been a good decision when
you look back on it one year from now.

It's the same thing with us, isn’t it? We’re all investors to a certain extent.
Every time we put money into the bank, or an IRA or an insurance policy,
whenever we make a major purchase like a car or a house, we’re investing in a
somewhat uncertain market. Wouldn't it be great if you could know for sure
what the market prices will be in several years? You could make just the right
investments to insure the very best return on your dollar. Our text for this
morning deals with the investments that we make in this life. And unlike the
market analysts, God's Word actually does let you look into the future. It tells
you exactly which investments pay off and which don't, which will make you
"rich", so to speak, and which will ruin you. God's investment advice for you
today can be summed up in five words:

0A
YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW
I. Sowing to the flesh always yields corruption
II. Believers who sow to the Spirit will realize the harvest of eternal life!

A sociology professor at Syracuse University named Jonathan Haidt said
something striking recently. He said that America is at risk of becoming a
nation of shoppers. As succeeding generations of Americans move farther and
farther away from their religious and ethical moorings, the only thing left to live
for and to motivate people is material goods - things, toys, stuff. The largest
building in most communities used to the be the church. Wha t is it now?
Wal-Mart, Costco or Best Buy. More and more, society is becoming centered
around the material. We buy expensive and elaborate toys for our children and
spend billions of dollars on luxuries and entertainment. We buy fancy cars with
electric everything. I recall when, on most cars, outside mirrors were optional.
Then outside mirrors became standard. Then electric outside mirrors, then
heated electric outside mirrors. And just the other day I saw that you can now
get heated outside mirrors with radar. I think you see my point: we're a society
of shoppers. For some people, acquiring THINGS becomes the center of their
lives. We're living in a world where people are trained to invest only in
themselves. Our text calls this "sowing to the flesh." And God tells us that
sowing to the flesh is simply a bad investment!

Do you remember the parable Jesus told about the rich farmer? He lived only
to make money. Business was going great for him, so he decided he'd just cash
in his profits, sit back and enjoy his wealth for the rest of his life. He had all the
money he could use, so he figured he could take it easy and let everything else
in life go by the board. The only problem with that was, he died the same night
he made that decision. "And God said to him, 'You fool! This night your soul
will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have
provided?' So is he who lays up treasure for himself," said Jesus, "and is not rich
toward God." -- Luke 12:20-21. That man made a bad investment. Thinking he
was rich, he suddenly discovered he was bankrupt. He found out the hard way
that, in the end, YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW! "He who sows to the flesh
will of the flesh reap corruption." Death, ruin and eternal destruction is the
bitter harvest that matches the seed sown in the flesh.

But what about you? Are you sowing that kind of seed? Our text says, "Do not
be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also
reap." You can't sneer at God! He knows where you're investing your time and
money and effort! If you're like me, you've got to get on your knees every day
and confess to God that you haven't always spent your resources wisely, that
you're guilty of all too much "sowing to the flesh." At best, such sowing to the
flesh is a waste of the resources God gives us. At worst, it places us in danger of
becoming so involved in serving ourselves that we finally give up serving God
altogether, and end up with that bitter harvest of eternal death. Paul says, "For
to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Therefore, brethren, we are debtors - not to the flesh, to live according to the
flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you
put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, these are sons of God." --Rom 8:6, 12-14.

A clergyman was traveling on a train through Texas. In the se at next to him sat
a wealthy landowner. At one point in the journey, the man turned to the
preacher and said proudly, "We're now passing through my property. You can
look to the north, south, east or west; I own this land as far as the eye can see in
any direction." The preacher, pointing upward, asked quietly, "And how much
do you own in this direction?"

When we "sow to the Spirit", it means that we're investing our resources in the
right direction. We're spending our time, our money and our effort on something
far more valuable and lasting than any earthly property could ever be. Jesus
said, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust
destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures
in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break
in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." --Matt
6:19-21.

So what am I telling you? That by denying yourself pleasure and doing a certain
amount of good things here on earth, you can guarantee yourself a place in
heaven? Of course not. Ask the smallest child here why he's going to heaven
and he'll tell you - "Because Jesus died for me." So why do we do good works?
Not to be saved - that's already done! Rather we do them because we're saved.
They're the fruits of faith, a natural reaction to what the Lord Jesus has done for
us. The Bible says, "We love Him because He first loved us."

Retirement planning has become a big business in our country. Even the CLC
has a retirement plan for its pastors. Each parish puts $120 a month into a fund,
to help provide for the pastor when he retires. And it makes sense - it's a little
additional security for the pastor's retirement. When that day comes, the Lord
willing and all goes well, the financial means will be in place for a comfortable
life in the later years. Did you know that Jesus has provided a "retirement plan"
for you? He's already made a huge investment in your eternal future. On your
behalf, He's paid into your account the full price of admission into heaven - all
the righteousness and obedience that God demands. On your behalf, He's paid
off your entire debt of sin, the only thing that could ever have kept you out of
heaven. It happened when He shed His blood for you on the cross of Calvary,
when He died the death that you deserved, and rose again to give20you life. It's
all been done! Jesus never invested in himself. He invested everything he had in
you. Jesus never sowed to the flesh - He always sowed to the Spirit. And He did
it with a single purpose in mind - so that you and I could enjoy a harvest of
eternal glory!

YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW, only in this case, really, we reap what Jesus
sowed! Those whose sow to the Spirit are the ones who most deeply understand
the great love of Christ for us. In the basement of our CLC church in Clarkston
there is a picture that is a favorite of mine. It is a picture of Christ with his
hands raised in blessing, and around him a number of people are gathered. The
hands of the people are clasped in praye r, or are extended to touch the Savior.
In the picture Jesus is beautiful. But the people around him are not beautiful. I
think in particu lar of one man, clutching the robe of the Savior and touching
his face to that robe with his eyes closed with the look of a man dying of thirst
who has just been handed a tall glass of cold water. He's about my age, and he
is not a handsome man. His face is creased with years of sin and sorrow, of
labor and suffering and disappointment. The one thing that is clear is the
enormous relief he feels at finally being able to be by the side of his Savior, to
be relieved of the burden of his sin, and to rest in the shadow of His love!

I identify with that weary, sinful man, and I'm guessing you do too. What a
blessing, what a blessed relief it is to come to our Savior's side and find in him
pardon for all our sins! What a relief for parched and thirsty sinners such as we
to drink again the refreshing water of the Word of our Lord, "Come unto me all
you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon
you and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly of heart, and you shall find rest
for your souls."

YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW. And that's very good news for us believers,
not because of the works we've done, but because of the faith that God has
sown in our hearts. Our text says, "He who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit
reap everlasting life." There are no two ways about it - you know what our
harvest will be on Judgment Day: happiness and rejoicing that we can't even
imagine. The Psalmist looks ahead to that happy day of harvest when he says,
"Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes for th
weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him." --Ps 126:5-6.

Martin Luther once said he was sure that when he got to heaven he would look
back and wonder why he didn't spend all his time shouting the gospel from his
rooftop, and doing every good thing for his neighbors that he could lay his hand
to. I think he was right. Our text says, "Let us not grow weary while doing
good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we
have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the
household of faith." For Jesus' sake, we can look forward to the wonderful
harvest that is coming. Keep that vision right in front of your eyes all the time,
and no matter what your earthly circumstances are at the moment. Then you'll
be able to "sow to the Spirit." You'll be investing in the things that last - in your
eternal future, as well as others', especially that20of your fellow-believers. YOU
REAP WHAT YOU SOW. We know what the harvest will be - God grant that
the seed we sow in the Spirit may match that harvest! In Jesus' name, AMEN.