The Big "If"

Small things can make a big difference.  When baking bread, cakes, or cookies, a small omission of salt or baking powder will make a tremendous impact on the outcome.  All the ingredients work together with the heat of the oven to rise properly and form the correct consistency.  One little teaspoon of salt missing from the batter can have disastrous results!

Little words in the English language have great power.  Take the word "all," for instance.  In three letters everything can be lumped together.  Every person in the world, every rock in the universe, every star in the heavens, every molecule and atom are included in "all" things.  Another huge word is "if" when used in a conditional sense.  Galatians 6:9 reads, "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart."  The immediate context of the passage is teaching the principle of sowing and reaping:  if we sow to the flesh we will reap corruption, and if we sow to the Spirit we will reap life everlasting.  The passage above states that when we do good without growing weary we will reap IF we do not lose heart.  This reveals it is possible to do good and not reap benefits because we have given up.  The KJV version says, "...in due season we shall reap if we faint not."  Faint literally means "to relax."  When we stop laboring for God's glory and relax, we will backslide and lose ground.

How tragic to plant a big field of crops, tend the field, guard from pests and destructive animals, and lose heart before time to reap.  Much labor, time, and expense would be wasted if farmers relaxed during the reaping phase.  Farmers work from dark in the morning to dark in the evening to harvest their crops.  As we travel through this life following Jesus Christ, by His grace our lives will be transformed.  This is a process called sanctification in the Bible.  Every day we have the choice to sow to the flesh or sow to the Spirit.  We can invest ourselves in the temporal, perishing things of this life on earth or we can labor for the glory of God.  It is hard work to raise a field of crops, and it is also hard work to keep our lives clean from sinful influence.  Like leaves that continually blow into the pool, sinful thoughts and attitudes drift into our hearts and need constant removal.  Many people start the race, and far less people finish than begin.  Why?  Because they lose heart when faced with struggles, trials, and hard work.  They choose worldly relaxation instead of spiritual rest in Christ.

Instead of focusing on the negative - the big "if" in this passage - it would be fruitful for us to consider the positive.  When we do good and live for God, we will reap bountifully.  There is great reward for following Jesus Christ faithfully.  I know when I was little, I wanted instant results when I planted seeds in the ground.  Every day I would look at the bare earth where the seeds had been planted and wonder if they would ever grow!  After a few days or a week passed I wondered if it was really worth the effort of keeping the soil moist.  Maybe the seeds weren't growing!  Maybe it was all a waste of time!  But when good seed is planted in soft soil in the right conditions, it will grow and be fruitful.  Sometimes we labor to walk in obedience to God and wonder if the struggle is worth it.  God's Word is good seed, and though there may be little visible growth at times we can KNOW we will reap a great crop.  A lot of growth occurs unseen under the surface.  As we abide in the Vine Jesus Christ, we will be fruitful for His glory.

In this life we can grow weary, but we can be sustained by the power of the Holy Spirit so we will be strong to persevere.  Jonah 2:7 reads, "When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD; And my prayer went up to You, into Your holy temple."  It took Jonah reaching his lowest point before he remembered the LORD and cried out to Him.  God delivered Jonah from the belly of the great fish, and God will deliver us from our apathy, foolishness, and vices when we seek Him.  Sometimes we can be lulled into thinking we are sufficient in ourselves.  We might see fruit forming in our field and think the time for hard work is over.  We must continue to wait on the LORD and sow to the Spirit so we will be able to reap for God's increase.  When our hearts are devoted to God and the performance of this will, our hearts are guarded from pride and sin.  We will reap, if we faint not!