Reaping Where You Gave No Labor - John 4:38

John the apostle wrote how Jesus said, “Say not you, There are yet four months, and then comes harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit unto life eternal: that both he that sows and he that reaps may rejoice together. And herein is that saying true, One sows, and another reaps.”, and in chapter four and verse thirty-eight of his book, John shared how Jesus told His disciples, “I sent you to reap that whereon you bestowed no labor” where we read:

I sent you to reap that whereon you bestowed no labor:

other men labored, and you are entered into their labors.

The verse reads, “I sent you to reap that whereon you bestowed no labor:” John began with the Jesus' words, “I sent you to reap” or “I, Jesus, dispatched and assigned you, disciples, to harvest and gather crops” “that whereon you bestowed” which means “of which you, disciples, provided, exhausted and toiled with” “no labor” or “not any toil, effort or burden”. John shared how Jesus said He “dispatched” His disciples to “harvest” where they had done no “work or toil” at all.

The verse goes on to say, “other men labored, and you are entered into their labors.”. John continued with the words, “other men labored” which means “other people toiled, made effort and were burdened”, “and you are entered” or “and you, disciples, made entrance, came into existence and arose” “into their labors” which means “into the other people's toils, efforts and burdens”. John shared how Jesus said His “disciples” participated within a “field” into which other people had already “worked and toiled”.

When we think through John's words in this verse, we learn how Jesus told His disciples they were participating in a “reaping” within the Kingdom of God where other people had already worked. The idea was some people prepared others to know about the “gospel” of the Kingdom of God. Prayer, witnessing and living a life that bears witness of Jesus all work toward planting a “seed” of God's love. Jesus' disciples were to be the “reapers” of that “harvest”. God wants everyone to have a relationship with Him through His Son Jesus, and when they submit their lives to Him as their personal “Savior and Lord”, they shall be forgiven of their sins and inherit everlasting life with God.

Next time John shares how, “many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".