Jesus is going throughout Israel, teaching and preaching and healing. Moved with compassion as He sees the crowds, He makes an observation, “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.””
Jesus’ analogy does not require a background in agriculture to understand. He is saying that there are many, many people who are ready to come into the Kingdom of God. He is also saying that there are only a few workers actually doing the Kingdom work of helping people enter His Kingdom. The ‘harvest’ of souls is plentiful, but the reapers of souls are few.
One might think that with Jesus saying that over 2000 years ago, by our day it would be a very different circumstance. Sadly, that isn’t so. We may now have the technology to finally count how many different people groups there are (~16000), and we may now have communication tools like radio, television and the web, and travel technology like high speed trains and jets that previous generations could only dream of. Yet to our day only ~9000 of those people groups have a viable expression of Christ’s Kingdom.
That means that ~7000 people groups do not have any expression of Jesus in their heart culture, and some of those 9000 groups have but a handful of viable expressions – even though people groups can number in the tens and hundreds of millions of souls.
It is true that there is a great mission effort underway. But it is also true that there are increasing political and cultural roadblocks toward that effort, and a huge demonic effort by the enemy to lull Christians into complacency and consumerism. Most sadly, many born-again believers never even try to share their faith, and the very great majority will not make even modest efforts to cross cultural barriers for Jesus Christ. “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few,” is an observation that is just as true today as it was when Jesus said it to His handful of disciples over 2000 years ago.
We must not forget that we are left on earth for a particular reason. That reason is to pursue God’s mission. The whole point of the Christian life is Christlikeness, but what is Christlikeness without participation in what Christ was and is doing? Jesus is on mission – working the ‘fields’ of people, reaping a great multitude of people from every nation and tribe and language and tongue. To this very day – by His Holy Spirit – Christ inspires and prompts, leads and directs people that they might be able, gifted and encouraged to join in the harvest effort.
We do not cease being God’s own if we know Jesus but do not engage in His mission. The thief on the cross was still saved, after all. But we do miss the much deeper experience of Him if we do not enjoin His effort. We miss the joy of fruitfulness if we do not join His effort. We miss a greater experience of His peace, a greater experience of His power, a greater experience of His presence if we do not join His effort. Worse of all, we miss the eternal reward of having put our hand to the task for His glory.
Perhaps in the here and now, that seems to matter little to us. It does not seem like we are losing out much by not participating in the mission of God. But if we bring our Lord little in the way of eternal glory, what should we expect that we get to share in with Him when we get to eternity?
“According to thy faith be it unto thee” was Christ’s great law of healing and blessing in His earthly ministry. This was what He meant when He said “with what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again.”
A.B. Simpson
APPLICATION: Intentionality
If the Lord has given to you a season of planting for His glory, then be about planting. If the Lord has given to you a season of watering for His glory, then be about watering. If the Lord has given you a season of harvest for His glory, then be about harvesting. And if the Lord has given you a season of cold winter suffering for His glory, then be about suffering.