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The Rock Family Worship Center
Taking The Church Outside The Walls
The Rock Family Worship Center
Seeds
The spiritual principle of sowing and reaping is a foundational truth that applies to every area of life—not as a warning about punishment, but as a revelation of how God's kingdom operates through our words, giving, and decisions.
• Viewing the sowing and reaping principle through the lens of Christ's finished work reveals it's about natural consequences, not divine punishment
• Jesus reaped what we sowed (sin, curse, punishment) so that we could reap what He sowed (righteousness, blessing, redemption)
• Seeds we plant can create cycles in our lives that continue to affect us unless we intentionally plant new seeds
• Our words have creative power—speaking God's promises activates faith even when circumstances seem contrary
• Financial giving operates as seed that multiplies—the tithe opens windows of heaven while offerings bring increase
• Every decision is a seed for your future—choices determine whether you walk in God's blessing or unnecessary hardship
• Understanding sowing and reaping puts the power of change back in your hands
Plant seeds of life through your words, give with expectation knowing it will return multiplied, and make decisions aligned with God's purpose for your life.
But let's start off with one verse this morning that I think is going to set the groundwork for kind of where we're going to Turn with me if you've got your Bible, if you've got your phone or whatever to Galatians 6, verse 7. Galatians 6, verse 7. It says this Do not be deceived, god is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. That he will also reap. Before we do anything and go further in this, I want to go ahead and look at the context of this verse, because we always say that context matters. It matters what's being said here, it matters how we look at this verse, our understanding of it, because that really dictates what are we taking from it and how can I apply this or how does it apply to my life today? We can just look and say, well, it was a good statement that Paul made, but it's more than that. So if you look at this verse in context, it's part of Paul's closing exhortation to the church of Galatia. When he was speaking to them. He wrote them a letter and he was speaking to them, and this was at the closing of it. This section of the letter emphasizes personal responsibility, the importance of doing good and the principle of sowing and reaping. So anytime you look at a verse because what I've done right here is I took one little verse, verse seven, and I pulled it out, and we always say you really can't do a standalone verse and you can't, even though I'm directing you to look at this verse we've really got to have an understanding of what's going on in the verses around it, because that's what gives you the context of it. So you don't have to go through it. But I'm just going to tell you real quick.
Speaker 1:Verse 6, paul is encouraging believers to share with those who teach them. Teach them the Word, highlighting generosity and mutual support. And it goes into verse 7, which is right here. And then verse 8 is the contrast. He goes into verse 8 and he talks about that sowing to the flesh leads to corruption, but sowing to the Spirit leads to eternal life. So he goes in and he tells him a couple things and then he throws a contrast in there do this and this is what's going to happen. Do this and this is what the outcome is going to be.
Speaker 1:Verse nine is he's just encouraging them to to not grow weary, because I'm sure, just like us, there was people that was listening to him during this day and saying well, that's easy to, but you don't know what I'm going through, you don't know what I'm dealing with. So he finished it up by encouraging them to not grow weary in doing good, because a harvest is coming in due season. He was very specific to let them know that, and we're going to talk about that a little bit today. And then in verse 10 is a call to do good to all, especially fellow believers. So it's always good, even though I may call one verse out, it's always good to go back and look at a few verses before, a few verses after to get the whole context of what's going on. If we had to put this verse here in a theme and say what is the theme, the context of this, it would be again, personal responsibility, spiritual investment and perseverance in doing good. So that's just kind of where we're at, what we're looking at. Even though we're looking at one verse there, it does put it in context for us.
Speaker 1:Let me get back to my notes here. I want to share with you something looking at this in a little bit different way this morning as well, because what happens is many people read this verse and I've heard it over the years, not just people quoting it, but I've heard it from the pulpit, where this verse in verse 6 and 7 is oftentimes used as a warning about punishment and consequences from God. You reap what you sow, which is them telling you you do something bad. Something bad's going to come. God's going to get you. God's going to come back and he's going to punish that negative behavior. And he's going to come. God's going to get you. God's going to come back and he's going to punish that negative behavior and he's going to do all this stuff. But when viewed through the lens of a finished work, it really does change. It reveals something a lot deeper than just that, and that's really what I want you to see in this this morning.
Speaker 1:The finished work of Christ means that believers are not under the law, but we're under grace. We talk so much about that in Romans, chapter 6. You can go through there and read it. We talk about what it means to no longer be under law but to now be under grace. This verse is not about earning salvation, it's not about earning righteousness through my works, but instead it highlights how our choices Now this may sting a little bit this morning to some people because it's highlighting our choices, which we said is about our personal responsibility. What am I doing, not what is somebody else doing. What am I doing? So it's personal responsibility here. It highlights how our choices and our beliefs shape our experiences. It shapes our experience in my everyday life and it also shapes the experience that I have with God, whether it's in the church or whether it's just out, every day. How do I perceive God? How do I perceive what he's telling me? How do I take the words of God and what am I getting out of it? So the finished work of Christ plays a part in this.
Speaker 1:It says here if we sow to the flesh, what does that mean? If we sow to self-effort, if we sow into legalism and sin consciousness, then we are going to reap corruption. Why? Because we are trying to do something on our own. We are trying to accomplish something that God has already accomplished, that Jesus has already completed on the cross. We are coming back and, because of our own intelligence or our own education or our own bank account, or whatever it may be, we are trying to accomplish something on our own, and every time that we try to do what Jesus has already did, there's going to be something negative. A lot of times that comes out of it. They use the word the bible uses the word corruption. That's a good word to use, but it says here's. Here's the thing, though. You got to realize. When this corruption come, you got to catch this. Now. When this corruption comes, it says we will reap corruption, but not as a punishment from God. God is not punishing us. He's not out to get us. So it's not a punishment from God, but it's a natural consequence of living outside of His truth, living outside of what he has commanded, living outside of what he has already accomplished for us. If he's done it and it's done, and he said it is finished you, as a child of God, are entitled to this. And you step over here because you don't see that and you start trying to do it on your own. That's your work.
Speaker 1:Some people say well, it's good works. I could argue it's dead works, because it's something that's not going to really accomplish what you're trying for it to accomplish. Why? Because Jesus already did it. Nothing wrong with good works. Let me say that I don't want anybody to misinterpret what I'm saying. Nothing wrong with doing good works. Let me say that I don't want anybody to misinterpret what I'm saying. Nothing wrong with doing good works, but good works flows out of my identity and flows out of who I am. They are not trying to create who I am. So if I'm doing something, if I'm doing something for God, and I'm doing it because I want Him to see me as more righteous and I want Him to just give me more favor. Guess what? That's a dead work. Not saying it's not good, but it's a dead work. Why? Because you're trying to accomplish something that has already been completed. So it's dead. What are you going to get out of it, besides a pat on the back, maybe by somebody else? And if that's what you're looking for, then that's what you will accomplish out of it. But really, when we're looking at it and saying that we're trying to come into alignment with what God wants for us, jesus paid the price. Jesus completed the work.
Speaker 1:So we have to look at it a little bit different. If we sow to the Spirit, trusting in the finished work of Christ, we reap eternal life. Now, the difference here. I just want to show you the contrast here. When we reap eternal life, it's not a future reward. We're not looking at that. Take heaven out of the picture a minute. Take the pearly gates out of the picture. We're reaping eternal life, not just as something future but as a present experience, because we are living in kingdom. There's certain things that come with kingdom life that don't come with church life. Okay, kingdom life and church life is not always the same, but when I begin to to sow seeds, to the spiritual seeds, I move into a place that's totally different than religion or tradition. I begin to step into those things. That's kingdom. I don't have to wait until I get to heaven to get it. I have access to it right now.
Speaker 1:It says that in Galatians 6 and 8. It talks about that. So I want to bog down on a couple of pieces in this verse that was up there, a couple of the places that I feel like get misinterpreted. Sometimes it makes it hard for us to really understand what this verse is really saying. One part of it says God is not mocked. God is not mocked. Think about this. This is not a threat from God. He's not a threat from God. He's not threatening you.
Speaker 1:In this verse it's a reminder that God's principles always work. His principle Catch that. Not yours, not mine. I can tell you the three steps to do this and this and this. And every New Year's we hear the ten steps to lose weight, the ten steps to get financially blessed, all these different steps that people write so many books about. And they'll go through, and they'll write a chapter on step one, a chapter on step two, I mean, and they'll go through all these steps. Nothing wrong with that. There's some good stuff out there and if you follow those steps you're going to reap some benefits out of it. But God was pretty specific. His principles, if followed, will always work.
Speaker 1:That's hard for some people to believe. You might say you believe it, but it's hard for us to really grab onto sometimes because, even though I can speak and even though I'm reading it, I'm not feeling it. But it's hard for us to really grab onto sometimes because, even though I can speak and even though I'm reading it, I'm not feeling it. I'm not feeling it in my bank account, I'm not feeling it in my body. I'm just not feeling these things. I can tell you to go back to another sermon we talked about a while back.
Speaker 1:Feelings and faith are different. Feelings ain't got talked about a while back. Feelings and faith are different. Feelings ain't got nothing to do with it. Feelings come and go. I can say it like this Feelings are liars. Feelings can lie to you. Feelings can make you think you are experiencing something that you're really not. You feel it, but what does God say? So it's not that your body is not going through this thing, but what does God say? His word supersedes anything that I may be feeling.
Speaker 1:In Romans 8 and 2, I want you to look at this verse with me. Some of them I was just going to quote or read out to you, but I want you to see this one Romans 8 and 2. I want you to look at this verse with me. Some of them I was just going to quote or read out to you, but I want you to see this one Romans 8 and 2. And again, this is not about God threatening us, but reminding us that God's principles always work.
Speaker 1:In 8 and 2 it says for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. I wished I could find an easier way to say this, but there's really not one. What Jesus Christ done on the cross has made me free from the law. This is where so many people get messed up now, because you've got to catch that word the law of sin and death. Well, brother, how can you say that? Because people are still sinning every day.
Speaker 1:The law of sin and death? Okay, well, I look in the obituaries and I read the obituaries every day. I know people are still dying. That's the words that people come up with, that's the things that they look at and they say well, you can't be right, there's no way. And I'm saying argue with god. This is his word right here. He said because of what my son did on the cross, you are now free from the law of sin and death.
Speaker 1:But see, what do we do we? Instead of taking that and saying I'm going to get an understanding of this, I want to understand what he's saying to me, we just naturally say I see sin everywhere and I see death everywhere, so something just can't be right. And what I do is I take God's Word and then I take my own intelligence and I start trying to compare them. Who's going to lose? You are, anytime that you try to take your own intelligence and try to come up against God's Word, there's going to be corruption. There's going to be corrupt thoughts. A corrupt process is going to take place. So this is what we're talking about. We've got to understand what His Word is saying, because it's natural for us to look around us at the things happening. We see sin, we see death, we see corruption, we see evil, we see all these things in the world. But does that change the meaning of his word? So we got to look at that.
Speaker 1:The finished work establishes a new law. Sow to grace and you reap abundant life. That's pretty simple. Let me repeat that part, because that's something important there. The finished work establishes a new law. You might say well, this verse right here just said that I'm free from the law of sin and death. You know why? Because that law don't exist anymore. The old laws, the old covenant laws, do not exist anymore. Why? Because Jesus climbed on a cross. He did everything that he was supposed to do, that he was here to do. The work was finished. He said it's done. He gave up his life, he ascended into heaven and the work was finished. One law died, one law passed away and another law was automatically created, the law of grace. So we're no longer under the law of away and another law was automatically created, the law of grace. So we're no longer under the law of sin and death, we are now under the law of grace.
Speaker 1:You know when corruption and when wrong thinking comes in, when we get stuck back under the law of sin and death, when my mindset automatically goes back to that law that has already been done away with, but I try to hold on to it anyway. Things just don't seem to go right and I can't figure it out. And when you look at somebody and say you are dead to sin, and they say, but I see it, but you are dead to sin, and they say, but I see it, but you are dead to it, it no longer has a hold on you and we can't figure that out. This stuff hits me hard because I want people to see it. I want people to understand that the finished work actually has a purpose in changing our identity, changing the way we see God, changing the way we see ourselves because of what Jesus done for us.
Speaker 1:We've got to understand these verses, we got to understand the context of them, we got to look at them through a lens of what Jesus did on the cross. Listen, if I'm not going to look at it through the lens of the death did on the cross. Listen, if I'm not going to look at it through the lens of the death, the burial and the resurrection of Christ, why did he do it? I could have just read the Bible and He'd never go through that. There was a purpose. The lens that I look through has to come from what he did. It's got to come through that, which means I've got to have an understanding of everything that he done. How does it relate to what this verse is saying? What if we looked at it from a totally different perspective, one that maybe you've never thought about before?
Speaker 1:We always use the words you reap what you sow. That's common. We say that all the time. But what if we said it like this Jesus reaped what we sow. Jesus reaped what we sow. Under the old covenant, sowing and reaping were tied to personal performance. Go back and read your Old Testament. Look at it. It was tied to personal performance. In the new covenant, jesus took the bad harvest that we deserved sin curse punishment. Jesus took that that you deserved sin curse punishment. Jesus took that that you deserved and I deserved and everybody else deserved. He took that upon Himself. He said I'm not going to make them go through that I'm going to take all of this upon Myself so that we can reap what he sowed. What did he sow? Righteousness, blessing, redemption and eternal life.
Speaker 1:When this comes out, I need to go back and listen to this part because there's a lot I just said in there and I don't have time to stop and break it down. But Jesus reaped what we sowed so that now we can reap what he sowed. Powerful word I might do a sermon. Just on that alone. That's powerful. We can reap what he sowed. Powerful word. I might do a sermon. Just on that alone. That's powerful. Now, our reaping is based on faith and what he has done, not on human effort. It's got nothing to do with the effort that you put into it, but everything to do with what he's already completed.
Speaker 1:Whatever it is that you put in the ground, whatever decision that you make, whatever words that you speak out of your mouth, expect that thing to come back multiplied. What if we just thought like that, if we just kept that in mind and said my words are going to come back multiplied. This thing that I'm about to do is going to come back multiplied. You know that alone may make me just stop and say hold on now. Let me check myself before I say this. Let me check myself before I do this, because this thing's coming back to me. Multiplied. And here's the thing A seed and I know some of you's mind. When I say seed, your mind automatically goes to finances. It includes finances, but it's so much more than that. I'm kind of giving you some groundwork before we go into the three types of seed. And I want you to see this A seed never produces a seed alone.
Speaker 1:A seed never produces only another seed. A seed produces a harvest of seed. You put a seed in the ground and all of a sudden an apple tree comes up and you got apples on the tree. You don't cut that apple and get one seed out of it. It produces several seeds a harvest of seed. Many apples on the tree come from one seed, come from one seed.
Speaker 1:Think about this there are some seeds that create cycles. If you plant tomatoes, bam said this morning, we got people here with green thumbs Okay, good. If you plant tomatoes, maybe just in your yard or maybe just on your back porch, after a little while I don't know the life cycle of it, but after a little while those things are going to wither up and die. True? Next year, if you want tomatoes, you know what you're going to have to do. You're going to have to plant again. That's just the way it works. But there's some seeds that produce cycle. Go plant an orange tree in your backyard. Those things grow on a cycle. You're not going to have to replant that. It's going to come back. Some stuff comes back every couple of years. I think oranges come back every year. So they're going to be on a cycle and they're going to come back and there's nothing else that you're going to have to do. They're going to come back on their own.
Speaker 1:If you Look at your own life, look at your own life and say what seeds am I planting? So think about the seeds that you're planting in your life. This ain't looking at nobody else. This is looking at my own life, looking internally, looking in a mirror and saying what seeds am I planting in my life? Is it something that will show up one time and maybe it will never revisit me again, or is it something have I planted a seed that's going to keep coming back at different cycles in my life? It's going to keep revisiting over and over and over again Routinely, every time a situation comes up. I'm dealing with the repercussions of this seed.
Speaker 1:If you are planting seeds, that's going to create a cycle. You better make sure you're putting the right seeds in the ground. That's going to produce a good harvest and not a bad one. And there's too many people that create that plant seeds. That create a cycle and it keeps coming back every so often, routinely. It keeps coming back and it was something negative. It was something they always had to deal with. That's why people say why do I keep going through this? We hear those words. Why do I keep going through this? We hear those words. Why do I keep going through this? Because you planted a seed somewhere that keeps coming back in a cycle. There's things we can do about that. We're not stuck. There's things we can do about it.
Speaker 1:That verse that I read earlier says do not be deceived. Catch earlier says do not be deceived. Catch that. Do not be deceived. God will not be mocked again. What does that mean? Mocking God would be for you to be able to get something out of it that you never put in it or that was never put in it that you grab something that was never put in it, or that was never put in it, that you grabbed something that was never put in there. God will not be mocked. Whatever you put in will come back. Whatever you put in will come back, multiply. Well, why do I keep? Whatever you put in will come back multiplied. Why does that person always seem like they're being blessed? Whatever they put in keeps coming back multiplied.
Speaker 1:That's why I told you this can sting a little bit. You've got to check yourself. We all have to check ourselves and say what am I putting in the ground? See, some people would call this cause and effect, other people would call it karma. But what does God? Call it? Sowing and reaping, sowing and reaping. So there are decisions that I make today that are not always going to have an immediate effect on my life. I can step out of here and make a decision and I may not see anything good or bad come from that decision immediately. But what about tomorrow? What about next week, next month, next year? We have to live with that in mind. Got to?
Speaker 1:I'm struggling with this a little bit because there's some stuff that I want to say and I think in a minute. I'm just going to say it and quit not trying to say it. But I want to be real with you. I want you to get this. I want you to see it, because I think this is a problem with the church. I'm saying church as in a whole church, not this church. This is a problem with the church because we're planting things and sometimes things get planted and we're not necessarily doing it, but we're allowing too many people up in our gardens. You can't just allow anybody to come up in your garden. What are they going to throw out there? What seeds are they going to plant out there? What are you listening to? Who are you listening to? What are you allowing to have your ear? Who are you allowing to have your ear? Because seeds may get planted that you didn't necessarily ask for, but now you've got to live with it Because it's your life, it's your garden.
Speaker 1:I preached a sermon years ago. It said tend your own garden, not up to me, tend your garden, mine's bad enough. I've got to tend my own garden. We all have to do that in our own life. So there's decisions I'm going to make today. That's not always going to affect me in the immediate moment, but I'm creating tomorrows. We have to live with that in mind. That's very important. I'm all about living in the here and now. We hear that all the time. You've got to live in the here and the now. I'm all about that. I understand that. But you also have to be a person that lives knowing that every word that you speak and everything that you do today will have a result that you are going to have to live in tomorrow. Everything you say, that you do today will have a result that you are going to have to live in tomorrow. Everything you say, everything you do good or bad could possibly come back Multiply.
Speaker 1:Have you ever met somebody who arrived at a certain place in life and they can't ever figure out how they got there? They're always complaining about how their life's going. They're always, always complaining about how the devil's always on them. They can't never catch a break. And then when you say, well, how did you get here? They say I don't know. Help me, I can't figure it out.
Speaker 1:You know it's like people that have no idea how they got to that place. And then they look around and they get frustrated, they get discouraged. They get in this place of trying to fight their way out. And the way they start trying to fight their way out is with their own fight, their own power. It's all about me now, because I've stuck myself in a place and now I'm trying to fight my way out Instead of just relying on God's Word, instead of just relying on what God has already done through His Son, jesus Christ, on the cross.
Speaker 1:See, I'm telling you just through years of counseling, you have no idea how many people have terrible attitudes and terrible personalities and can't figure out why they feel alone. They literally cannot figure it out, and they come to counseling for it and you want to help them. But if you say to them what you really want to say, they're not going to come back, just the reality of it. So you have to tiptoe around it and you have to be really nice about it, and that's a skill that you have to learn to do, or you're going to make people mad. So here's a question what seeds are you sowing in your life? Can you sow blessing seeds when you're broke? Can you sow faith seeds in the midst of confusion and doubt? Because it's necessary.
Speaker 1:There's a story in the Bible all of y'all is going to know this about a widow during a famine. She had a son and she pretty much had one thing of oil left and a little bit of weed or meal or whatever she had. And she said I'm going to bake a cake Me and my son's going to eat this cake and we're going to die. I mean a heck of an outlook for the future. And God sent a prophet. A prophet shows up at the door, she opens the door and she begins to tell him the story. This is all I've got left. I've just got one thing of oil here. I've got enough oil to bake one cake. So I'm going to bake one cake Me and my son's going to eat this cake and we're going to die. And the audacity of this preacher Bake me one first. Come on now, be real. How would you feel, you and your child's fixing each other's last meal together? And this preacher walks up and says nah, me first Think about that, but then let's think deeper. Get out of your emotions a minute. Let the anger go. How dare Get out of your emotions a minute. Let the anger go. How dare he? Let that go a minute. Let's go a little bit deeper into it.
Speaker 1:The prophet did not need her cake. The prophet needed her faith. The prophet wanted to get her to a place where she would sow a seed that would last through the famine. He said I want to get you to do seed that would last through the famine. He said I want to get you to do something that you've never done before and I'm going to move you into a place where you're not going to have to worry about the future, because the seed that you sow is going to multiply to the point that it carries you all the way through. And we know that it did. Because, after all this, he said go, grab as many jars as you can grab. I don't know how many you got, but go to your neighbors and get their jars too. And they brought them all in and it filled everyone up. The little bit that she sowed created enough to make it all the way through. And if you've read that story, I believe this this is just my opinion, but I believe if they could have brought more jars, that oil would still be flowing. As many jars as they could have brought, I believe, would have got filled up.
Speaker 1:He didn't want a cake, he was there on a mission. He said I'm here to change your perspective. You're looking at dying and I'm here to say you're going to live. You're looking at your son dying and I'm looking here saying you're going to live. You're looking at lack. So what I'm doing is I'm asking you, in your biggest time of lack, to step out with the most faith that you've ever stepped out with. Can you step out in your biggest time of lack with the most abundant of faith that you ever have? That's tough. It's easy to have faith after things go good. We all man, all of us our faith is built up when something amazing happens in our life. We're walking around telling everybody about the faith of God. But when you don't see that yet, when you don't see the answer yet, when you don't know how you're going to do it, are you still walking around saying my God got it? Sometimes we need somebody like this prophet to come along and not take our last cake, but start a process within me, a sowing process that says I'm not just going to give you a little bit now, but I'm going to give you enough, and even more than enough, like he did right here. Understanding, sowing and reaping puts the power of change back in your hand. That's what I love about it. That's what I love about the finished work.
Speaker 1:Listen, one of the things that I mean. It drives me nuts to hear people just unable to explain their circumstances. And we've all been there. We've all been in places where we just say I don't know why I'm here, I don't know what's going on, I don't know how to get out of it, I don't know what to do. We've all been there. But the one thing that just bugs me is when people get in those situations and they don't know how to explain it.
Speaker 1:So their number one cop-out is God's in control. He was in control 2,000 years ago and he did exactly what he planned on doing. And now he says I'll put it in your hands. He said I'll give you the ability to sow, I'll give you the ability to make decisions, I'll give you the ability to step out in faith. I've given you my word and I've given you the ability to read that word and to grab onto that word and to just grab it to a point to where it becomes active in your life now, and to just grab it to a point to where it becomes active in your life now If God was in control. I got in trouble for saying this before, but I'm going to say it again If God is in control, then he has messed up. He has really messed up. Look around us. I'm not just talking about locally, I'm talking about other countries starving kids in America, but in other places too.
Speaker 1:If we take that phrasing, the way we say it, and say God is in control, total control, then what in the world has he been doing? People don't like to hear that. You know why? Because when I take the control away from God, it puts the responsibility back on me. He's done what he said he was going to do. So I understand. Yes, he's in control, but he's already completed. His side of it. He says I just want you to come into agreement with what we's already completed. His side of it he says I just want you to come into agreement with what we've already completed, and then you're going to see change all around you.
Speaker 1:Everything in the kingdom of God operates on the principles of sowing and reaping. Everything does, whether it's our words, our offerings, our decisions. Each one acts as a seed that brings a future harvest. Seeds can be good or seeds can be bad. They're still going to bring a harvest. Many people desire breakthrough, but fail to realize that their, their current reality is often the result of the seeds that they sowed. Again, pick your toes up if you don't want to get them stepped on.
Speaker 1:But this is responsibility, this is this is looking inwardly and saying, okay, I've got to check myself. We, we all got to do that. They're pointing fingers at nobody else. This is me saying Brian, you've got to check. Why are you in this situation? Because you made a dumb decision. Why are you in this situation here? Because you allowed yourself to be put here.
Speaker 1:But guess what? I know I've got the power and the authority to walk myself right back out of it Once I get the understanding that I'm got the power and the authority to walk myself right back out of it Once I get the understanding that I'm in the wrong place, just like the prodigal son did. I don't belong in this pig pen. I'm better than this. I belong in daddy's house. And he got up. I picture him wiping the mud off and saying I'm going home.
Speaker 1:It's time for some of you to get up and go home. Get out of that problem. Get out of that problem, get out of that circumstance, get out of that depression, get out of that anxiety, get out of those other things and say God, I'm coming home, you've already done it, you've already completed it. Now I'm ready to accept. No more do I have to wallow in the mud.
Speaker 1:It was fun for a season. Come on, you've been there too. You've had those seasons where it was a lot of fun. I've been there. But it's only fun for a season. And then comes due season, due season. Are you ready for due season? Due season Are you ready for due season Today? I'm going to go through these really quick. We may talk about these later on too, but I'm going to go through them quick. But I want to show you three very powerful types of seed your words, your offering that's the financial side of it. Your offering and your decision. Your words, your offering that's the financial side of it. Your offering and your decision. Your words, your offering and your decision. By the end of this message, by the time we leave today, I pray that you will see the importance of planting the right seeds so that you can reap God's best in your life.
Speaker 1:What does he want from me? What does he have planned? He says in His Word. He says I have a plan and a purpose for you. What is that plan? What is that purpose? What does he want out of me? What did he put on the inside of me? What am I anointed to do? Everybody's not anointed to stand in a pulpit. Everybody's not anointed to stand in a pulpit. Everybody's not anointed to be sent overseas on a mission field. What did he anoint me to do, and can I do it? Am I ready to step into it? So that first one.
Speaker 1:Your words are seed Proverbs. I want you to look at a couple of these with me. Some of them you're going to know, but I still want you to see them. Proverbs I want you to look at a couple of these with me. Some of them you're going to know, but I still want you to see them. Proverbs 18 and 21.
Speaker 1:Death and life. We always say it back. We always say life and death because it sounds better, but it actually says in the word death and life are in the power of the tongue. Death and life are in the power of the tongue. What does this mean? That means I can take something that's dead. Something that is dead has no life. I can take a relationship, I can take a friendship, I can take a situation that has no life. And my words and my words alone can speak life back into a dead situation. But on the other end of that, you can take a situation that's alive, that's vibrant, that's living, and your words can kill it. And your words can kill other people's too.
Speaker 1:I used to give this example. You know you got a child to give this example. You know you got a child, young child, you know, one, two years old. Wake them up every day and say you are sorry, you're never going to be nothing, every single day. And what are they going to grow into? Self-esteem shock. Why? Because you spoke that into them. You spoke death into them, but spoke death into them. But we can turn it around and begin to speak life. Every word you speak is a seed that produces fruit in your life. The Word was created by God's spoken Word.
Speaker 1:Some people say well, I'm not one of those people who just believe. You know how they used to say it, say it and claim it and all this kind of stuff. I mean a lot of people used to really fuss about that. They would say, oh, they're just kind of people who just sit there and say it and they think it's just magically going to appear. No, we say what he already said. Can I tell you how many times I rode by Woody Foss's and seen them hundred and something thousand dollar trucks in the area and said that is mine, it ain't mine and God did not magically put it in my yard.
Speaker 1:But when I begin to speak, what he's already said, that's coming together in agreement. I'm not agreeing with something out here. I'm agreeing with what God has already accomplished. As I agree with that Word, something begins to shift. Why? Because he's already promised that to me. Woody ain't promised me nothing. God's already made some that to me. Woody ain't promised me nothing. God's already made some promises to me. I didn't need to call Woody and tell him I was advertising for him. He might pay me.
Speaker 1:Jesus said in Mark 11 and 23, you don't have to go there. Whoever says to this mountain, be removed and be cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Now again, words are important. I want to go back to this point in just a minute. God created everything with words. He said let it be. Everything he created was with words. You are created in the image and the likeness of God Himself.
Speaker 1:So the words that you speak are not just for communication, but they are for creation. Your words create stuff. They're not just to talk and carry on a conversation. Your words have creative power, the same way that God's does. What are you creating? A lot of the church is creating chaos. Be real, right from the pulpit. I've done it.
Speaker 1:So the question is what are you speaking today? What are you saying? Are you speaking faith or are you speaking fear? Are you speaking faith or are you speaking fear? Are you speaking blessings or cursing over your life? I know some people they'll try to get super religious and say, oh, I don't believe in curses, but anything outside of God is a curse. There's things passed down generationally. It will not attach to my life, even though it was in my generation. Why? Because I'm not. I'm not going to allow it to. I will not allow it to. There's things that I have authority to speak over and I have authority to say no, you might have come three or four generations, but guess what? Boom, you stop right here. I set the parameters of my life and the first step is with my words. Are you speaking blessings over your family? Are you speaking blessings over your future, over your life, over your health?
Speaker 1:Now, I know we don't like that word curse but I'm telling you listen. If I'm waking up every day and I know my back hurts, I know I can feel it, but every day I'm just sitting there and I keep saying it and saying it and saying it and talking about how bad I hurt and this and that, what am I doing? Anything not of God is a curse. If I'm not saying you are healed in the name of Jesus, I received this healing, but instead I'm talking something else. I'm speaking a curse over myself. I'm speaking opposite of what God has spoke over me. Yes, I feel it, but that's where faith comes in. Just because I feel it don't mean I have to experience it forever. I have authority to receive what God has already given me.
Speaker 1:But what do I do? I speak God's promises. You know why some people can't speak God's promises? Because they don't know them. All they know is what they've been taught in church, and a lot of times God's promises are not taught from the pulpit, but your negative junk's taught. That's why it's important to know what did he say? So we speak his promises. We declare his word, even when circumstances seem contrary to what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:I may say it, hey, I may say, in the name of Jesus, my back is healed, and the whole time I'm walking like that trying to say it. Say it anyway. I mean, this is kind of the way I look at it. You already can't hardly stand. So what's the worst case scenario? You remain the same. So what is it going to hurt to say Jesus, your word, god, your word says that by his stripes we were healed. I received that healing today. I ask you right now, I decree in the name of Jesus that my body come into creative order, the way you designed it, the way you established it. I rebuke anything that is not of you. I claim and receive this healing right now. And then I limp away. That's okay. That's okay. That's faith, speaking those things that I don't see yet, but I speak them anyway. Substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen. I don't need faith for a healing that I already have. I need faith for a healing that I'm expecting. I need faith for a healing that I'm expecting and I'm calling down, and I'm trying to receive the next one, the second one.
Speaker 1:The offering is a seed. Luke 6 and 38. Most of you are very familiar with this verse Give and it will be given to you. We can stop right there, give and it will be given to you. We can stop right there, give and it will be given to you. Good measure pressed down, shaken together and running over will be put into your bosom. But with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. Some people might say you know, sometimes we use this for the tithe. This is not a tithe verse here, this is a seed verse.
Speaker 1:A tithe does not give you increase. A tithe opens up the windows of heaven and rebukes the devourer. A seed increases. A seed brings harvest, by definition. A tithe does not do that. A tithe is what I'm giving back to God, that he's already gave to me. If you borrow my tool, I need you to bring it back Because it's mine. God says I need you to bring this tithe back to me because I want you to. He's not going to force you to and you're not cursed if you don't. But he says I want you to love Me so much for what I've given you that you want to give to Me out of gladness, out of joy, you want to give back.
Speaker 1:But this takes it a step further and this is a seed offering. I'm telling you, if you ain't bought into this yet, when people's life begin to change is when they understand the tithe. But then they catch on to the seed, because the seed is what produces growth. It really does. People don't like to hear that because they say, oh, he's trying to get more. He done got my tithe, now he's trying to get my seed too. Yeah, because the seed is coming back to you and it's going to multiply. We can catch that. How much does it have to be? Whatever you want, whatever you want it to be, for, with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you. You want a little bit? Sow a little bit. You want a little bit? Sow a little bit. You want a lot? Sow a lot. That'll mess people's mind up, but I'm telling you when it happens and you see it, I always say this all the time people will be digging in their cushions, under their seats in their car to find quarters to give, because they know that this verse right here says they know what it says and they believe it and they've seen it work in their life.
Speaker 1:We're not trying to just get money from you. We want to get money back to you. What tithe does? What does it do? It keeps these lights on. It keeps the air condition running. It keeps the things that we need to operate in here. When a TV goes out or a camera goes out, it gives us that financing to be able to go out and get those things. But what does the seed do? It gives those things back to you. It ain't nothing to do with me. It gives that stuff back to you in good measure or in small measure, totally up to you.
Speaker 1:So every time you sow financially into God's kingdom, you activate a harvest. Think about this I keep using the word sow because you can. You activate a harvest. Think about this I keep using the word sow because you can only sow a seed. You can't sow a tithe, you only sow a seed.
Speaker 1:The world teaches a mindset of hoarding. I got to hang on to this Because I know I got a couple bills coming up next month. I know something down the road that I got to take a trip in a couple of months. I got to hold on to it. That's what the world teaches us to do Hoard it up, save it up. But the kingdom operates on generosity. The prophet didn't want the lady's cake. He wanted her generosity so that she could start a process.
Speaker 1:2 Corinthians 9 and 6 says Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will reap bountifully Give with expectation. This is not a. I didn't mean for it to be this today, but it just happened to be because that's part of sowing seed Give with expectation. That's why we don't pass the plate. We don't have an offering bucket that we pass around, because I want you Listen. If you've got to get out of your seat, that means something to me. It means something. We just passed a plate. Man, come on.
Speaker 1:Y'all seen people in church. Let's be honest. They stick their hand in there and pull it out. This, it puts a little bit more on you. Your financial seat opens doors for increase, favor and supernatural provision in your life. Trust that God is your source, not your job, not your bank account, not the economy. Oh, everybody want to blame Donald Trump, everybody want to blame the government. No, we're Christians, it's the kingdom economy. Now I know we could all do better if eggs were cheaper and groceries were cheaper and insurance would come down and electricity was like it used to be. We could all do better with that. I mean, that's common sense. But guess what? It don't matter how high it goes, god is going to supply everything I need to continue to be a blessing. He's always going to do it. If we are willing to sow that seed Last one, right here, your decisions are seed.
Speaker 1:One more verse, deuteronomy 30, verse 19. You've got to see it. I don't want you to think I'm lying to you. I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death. I'm giving you a choice today Life and death. Blessing and cursing. And then he made it real simple Choose life. Choose life that both you and your descendants may live. Very familiar verse, but so important.
Speaker 1:Every decision you make today is planting a seed for your future, every decision you make. It may not be immediate, but it's planting a seed for your future. Your choices determine whether you walk in God's blessing or seed for your future. Your choice is determined whether you walk in God's blessing or struggle with unnecessary hardships. God didn't put you there. Come on. That's going to make some people mad, but I'm going to say it anyway. God did not put you there so we don't have to struggle with these unnecessary hardships.
Speaker 1:How do we reap a supernatural harvest and I'm talking about whether it's my decisions, whether it's my offering or whether it's my words how do I reap a supernatural decision? Speak life Period. Speak life. Begin declaring God's word over your circumstances every day. So generously, trust God with your finances. Trust God as your resource, not your job. Trust God and the last thing make wise decisions. Make wise decisions. Align your choices with God's purpose for your life.
Speaker 1:Well, I don't with God's purpose for your life. Well, I don't know God's purpose for my life. That's where we've got to get in the Word. When I understand who he is, I understand who I am. When I understand who I am, I understand my purpose. So when somebody comes up and says can you help me understand my purpose in life, that's a loaded question. I can, but are you willing to go there? Because you've got to know yourself and to know myself. I've got to know Him. He's the one that created me. I've got to know the one that created me. So are you willing to do all that and step into your purpose? Seeds are important. They will bring increase to your life, and it's more than money.