Life Principle 6
You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow. (Judges 2:1-4)
You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow. (Judges 2:1-4)
Life’s Questions
When you think of how farmers operate, Life Principle 6 makes perfect sense: You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow. If the farmer places tomato seeds in the ground, it’s because he wants to grow tomatoes—he will harvest the product of the kind of seed that he has planted. The farmer takes from the ground far more than he puts into it—it reproduces itself many times over. That tiny seed will sprout and become a plant that produces fruit, which will then yield many more seeds. Of course, this is not an instantaneous process. The farmer must wait for the crop to mature in its time. The rewards of the harvest always come later than the initial investment.
What seeds are you planting? What would you like to accomplish with your life? It’s extremely important for you to be conscious of what you are sowing with your words and actions, because they set the direction of your life.
What the Bible Says
Read Deuteronomy 7:1–6. What was God’s command to the Israelites (Deut 7:1-2)?
Why was the Lord so strict about this issue (Deut 7:4)?
*** Idolatry in the Old Testament was often prompted by legitimate needs. For example, Ba’al was the Canaanites’ storm and fertility god who controlled the rain for the harvest. Instead of trusting God to provide for them, the Israelites turned to Ba’al, thinking that they’d have a better yield. They didn’t have faith that God would provide for their needs, even after He had done so much for them. What do you turn to instead of God for your needs?
What was the Lord’s motivation in giving them this command (Deut 7:6)?
Read Judges 1:27–34. Why do you think the Israelites ignored God and failed to drive these foreign nations out?
Read Judges 2:1–4. What did the Israelites reap from their disobedience (Judges 2:3)?
What It Means
Did the Israelites allow the other nations to stay because they could profit from them? Was it because it was too much effort to drive them out? Whatever the case, they failed to honor God and their disobedience brought them a great deal of trouble. They weren’t judged immediately, yet the consequences came all the same.
*** It’s a dangerous thing to think, God won’t mind. He does mind when we disobey. You may not immediately see the consequences of your actions, but they are coming.
Judges 2:10–11 reports, “When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals.” Because of their disobedience, the Israelites suffered hundreds of years of warfare with the nations that they failed to drive out, as you can discover in Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.
Life Examples
Read Galatians 6:7–10. Why do you think Paul says, “God is not mocked” (Gal 6:7) about the things that you reap and sow?
What actions or attitudes do you consider “sowing in the flesh” (Gal 6:8)? What actions or attitudes do you consider “sowing in the Spirit”?
This principle is not about doing “good works,” it’s about being obedient to God. Plenty of people do “good works” with selfish intentions, and Jesus says to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matt. 7:23).
Why do good deeds and obedience take more time and effort than doing evil (Gal 6:9)?
What will you reap if you obey God and don’t lose heart?
Living the Principle
Do you seek God’s leadership when you make a decision? Do you obey Him as soon as you know His will? Each choice that you make for good or evil is a seed which you are planting for your future, and sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that affect you the most. This is because sin turns your heart away from God, while obedience turns your heart toward Him. If you fill your life with His Spirit and Word, you will reap the fruit of the Spirit (see Gal. 5:22–23) and enjoy all that you were created for. If you’re disobedient, greedy, and selfish, then you’re going to reap the terrible consequences of your ungodly lifestyle.
It’s time to get serious about following God. You must decide what kind of life you are going to live and commit yourself to it, because someday soon you’ll see the return of what you’ve planted over the years. Will that be a crop that you’re proud of?
How will you live out Life Principle 6 this week? Discuss what God is calling you to sow with your life. Is there any area of your life where you are already seeing a harvest? Then spend time in prayer, asking God to draw you into intimate communion with Himself and to transform your life so that you can affect the world for the sake of His kingdom.
Life Lessons to Remember
When you think of how farmers operate, Life Principle 6 makes perfect sense: You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow. If the farmer places tomato seeds in the ground, it’s because he wants to grow tomatoes—he will harvest the product of the kind of seed that he has planted. The farmer takes from the ground far more than he puts into it—it reproduces itself many times over. That tiny seed will sprout and become a plant that produces fruit, which will then yield many more seeds. Of course, this is not an instantaneous process. The farmer must wait for the crop to mature in its time. The rewards of the harvest always come later than the initial investment.
What seeds are you planting? What would you like to accomplish with your life? It’s extremely important for you to be conscious of what you are sowing with your words and actions, because they set the direction of your life.
What the Bible Says
Read Deuteronomy 7:1–6. What was God’s command to the Israelites (Deut 7:1-2)?
Why was the Lord so strict about this issue (Deut 7:4)?
*** Idolatry in the Old Testament was often prompted by legitimate needs. For example, Ba’al was the Canaanites’ storm and fertility god who controlled the rain for the harvest. Instead of trusting God to provide for them, the Israelites turned to Ba’al, thinking that they’d have a better yield. They didn’t have faith that God would provide for their needs, even after He had done so much for them. What do you turn to instead of God for your needs?
What was the Lord’s motivation in giving them this command (Deut 7:6)?
Read Judges 1:27–34. Why do you think the Israelites ignored God and failed to drive these foreign nations out?
Read Judges 2:1–4. What did the Israelites reap from their disobedience (Judges 2:3)?
What It Means
Did the Israelites allow the other nations to stay because they could profit from them? Was it because it was too much effort to drive them out? Whatever the case, they failed to honor God and their disobedience brought them a great deal of trouble. They weren’t judged immediately, yet the consequences came all the same.
*** It’s a dangerous thing to think, God won’t mind. He does mind when we disobey. You may not immediately see the consequences of your actions, but they are coming.
Judges 2:10–11 reports, “When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals.” Because of their disobedience, the Israelites suffered hundreds of years of warfare with the nations that they failed to drive out, as you can discover in Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.
Life Examples
Read Galatians 6:7–10. Why do you think Paul says, “God is not mocked” (Gal 6:7) about the things that you reap and sow?
What actions or attitudes do you consider “sowing in the flesh” (Gal 6:8)? What actions or attitudes do you consider “sowing in the Spirit”?
This principle is not about doing “good works,” it’s about being obedient to God. Plenty of people do “good works” with selfish intentions, and Jesus says to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matt. 7:23).
Why do good deeds and obedience take more time and effort than doing evil (Gal 6:9)?
What will you reap if you obey God and don’t lose heart?
Living the Principle
Do you seek God’s leadership when you make a decision? Do you obey Him as soon as you know His will? Each choice that you make for good or evil is a seed which you are planting for your future, and sometimes it’s the smallest decisions that affect you the most. This is because sin turns your heart away from God, while obedience turns your heart toward Him. If you fill your life with His Spirit and Word, you will reap the fruit of the Spirit (see Gal. 5:22–23) and enjoy all that you were created for. If you’re disobedient, greedy, and selfish, then you’re going to reap the terrible consequences of your ungodly lifestyle.
It’s time to get serious about following God. You must decide what kind of life you are going to live and commit yourself to it, because someday soon you’ll see the return of what you’ve planted over the years. Will that be a crop that you’re proud of?
How will you live out Life Principle 6 this week? Discuss what God is calling you to sow with your life. Is there any area of your life where you are already seeing a harvest? Then spend time in prayer, asking God to draw you into intimate communion with Himself and to transform your life so that you can affect the world for the sake of His kingdom.
Life Lessons to Remember
- God’s commands apply to everyone—Christians and non-Christians (see 2 Cor. 5:9–11).
- We reap what we sow (see Luke 6:43–45).
- We reap more than we sow (see John 12:23–25).
- We reap later than we sow (see Isa. 49:4; Mark 9:41).