Lord Of The Harvest

Lord of the Harvest

Read: Luke 10:1-16

“Ask the Lord of the harvest . . . to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Luke 10:2

“The church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning.”

—Emil Brunner

IN WORD Anytime the Bible gives a name for God, we can know that the name is descriptive of His character. When Jesus calls God “the Lord of the harvest,” He is not describing something peripheral to God’s nature. The harvest is at the very core of God’s heart; it is who He is by nature.

We often struggle with how to pray in accordance with God’s will. The prayer in this verse is a sure thing; if we pray that the Lord of the harvest will send out workers into His field, we know we are praying the intent of His heart. We do not have to weaken our request, as we so often do, with the disclaimer “if it’s Your will” at the end of our prayer. No, it is God’s will—without a doubt. We can be sure of it.

We often want to spend a little time with God but have very little to do with His harvest. That is a concept as absurd as a farmer’s family wanting very little to do with the crops. A farmer’s life revolves around his fields; so will the life of his family. God’s work revolves around His harvest; so will the work of His family.

IN DEED Have you struggled with God’s will for your life? Have you questioned where He would have you invest your energy? Whatever He has you do, you can be sure of this: The harvest will be an integral part of your relationship with Him. It is impossible to know the Lord of the harvest well without getting involved at some point with the harvest itself.

Perhaps your involvement begins where this verse does—with the asking. The first step in God’s work is prayer. And rather than telling His disciples to pray for converts, Jesus’ instruction is first to pray for workers. He would be foolish to bring new sheep into the fold without a prior increase in shepherds. There must be more workers.

This is one of Jesus’ most direct commands. You cannot follow Him well without obeying it.