According to a March 2018 Forbes article, “American workers forfeited nearly 50 percent of their paid vacation in 2017. And, nearly 10 percent take no vacation days at all. According to a study by Glassdoor, the fear of falling behind is the number one reason people aren’t using their vacation time.” You can find the entire article here.
We know how to work long hours. We know how to work hard. But we need to ask ourselves a question: what is my primary goal in life? Is it to make money or is it to save for a great retirement plan? Or is it to be well liked by our peers, or to have positions of great power? Is it to love and to be loved?
Let me ask a different question. What is my primary goal as a believer? Ahhh! Now that changes the thought process, doesn’t it? We can be very busy doing “good stuff,” but are we doing the “stuff” that matters most? How hard working are we in God’s fields? Every believer must labor in God’s fields! Take a look at the Lord’s interactions and instructions with His disciples in Luke 10.
The Hiring (Luke 10:1)
The gospel of Luke is the only gospel to record this mission. The Lord must have had a large following at this time to send 70 people out to call upon people to follow Him. Finally, notice also that they go out in pairs – “two and two.” Then in verse 17, it is recorded they went out and then came back speaking of the great power of God. They went out (faith & obedience). They came back talking about God’s power (grace enabled by faith- Romans 5:2).
Why are they going out as ambassadors in such large numbers? Perhaps it is because their lives were changed when they met Jesus…they are completely convinced Jesus is the only way, that He is the Christ, the son of the living God! What would your reaction be if you knew a demon possessed man that was delivered or you were among 5,000 people who were fed from one little boy’s lunch? The work of God has a powerful impact on men and women of God.
When we surrender to the word of God and depend upon the Spirit of God to do the will of God – we will see the great power of God!
The Harvest (Luke 10:2)
The harvest is abundant! It is ready for the picking!
“Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:” — II Thessalonians 3:1
“Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” — John 4:35
But … people don’t want to be saved today. People resist the gospel today. Yes – they do. However, there were people who didn’t want to be saved and resisted the gospel in the book of Acts too (to the point that they persecuted them and killed the witnesses) – and yet 1,000’s trusted Christ as Savior!
When there is a “no,” keep going…God says there is a “yes” waiting for you to ask them!
When I was growing up, I can remember my mother saying, “Gary, go out to the garden and pick three or four ripe tomatoes.” I then went out to the garden and saw some green tomatoes not yet ready and then I found some large red juicy tomatoes and harvested them. That meant I needed to walk around the green veggies but keep on looking until I found the ripe veggies.
Are we looking for the harvest of souls that is ready for the picking?
The Help
Here’s an age-old problem: not enough laborers to work in God’s fields to harvest souls!
A couple of weeks ago, I was talking with one of the business owners with which our church does business. I called to thank him for the great job they did for the church and he thanked me for letting him. Then he said, “Good help is hard to find!”
The work force competition for employees who work hard and have a teachable spirit has become brutal. The Lord declares, “The need is great.” The problem is not a lack of need or urgency of the need. The real issue? There are not enough laborers for the demand!!
Did you know?:
1. There are 8,500 languages needing a translation of the Bible today?
2. There are over 6 billion people on this earth, and it is estimated that about 4.5 billion are lost?
3. Did you know that 95% of the unsaved population lives in the 10/40 window?
4. Did you know that there is only 1 laborer for each 1.6 million people?
The harvest is great…but the laborers are few! Are you working in God’s fields?
The Prayer
Our must be evermore increasing with – “Lord, send forth laborers into these fields!” Did you know He is already calling you into His fields? We have been given a great responsibility to reach for Christ our neighbors, our co-workers, and complete strangers right where we live.
We have already seen the powerful hand of God at work in Luke. We have seen that God is unlimited in every way and it is He alone that will meet the needs of His creation! …and He will meet them as He has promised. May we be ever mindful of who the Lord is and what He has done and is doing – as we go forth as His laborers into His fields!
10 Labor Tips for God’s fields
1. Hand out tracts. Be certain the tract you use looks sharp and has a clear gospel presentation. In this high definition and constant stream of graphics age in which we live, the general public in the USA is used to a sharper image. However, more importantly, we value excellence because what we do is for the glory of God. “Junk for Jesus” will not do.
2. Use outreach cards. An example of this format is available here. The size is small and easy to carry. The presentation is sharp. Outreach cards can be used as a gospel tract AND an invitation to church. Striving Together can personalize your church information on the cards — and it is all done for the affordable price of $60 for 500 cards.
3. Dinner with the neighbors. Establish genuine interest in those who live close to you. Let them know and see first hand you care about them as a person & neighbor so they know you are interested in their friendship and not just interested in them as another “member for your church.” I read a statistic last year that made the claim that the average person hears the gospel about 40 times before trusting Christ (unfortunately, I cannot find the statistic data for notation here). That’s a lot of gospel witness that requires a lot of gospel connections!
4. Start a Bible Study in your home with co-workers and/or neighbors. There are Bible studies available for a Christian to lead an unsaved person through.
5. Hand out John & Romans on doors of your “Jerusalem” (neighborhood). These can be obtained for a small fee — talk about a strong investment with high interest yields!
6. Personal invitation to church. Statistics show that a personal invite has the highest success rate…by far!
7. Get involved in church outreach times. When we embrace the mindset that we have already done our turn on these things, or that we would rather take it easy, we are truly robbing ourselves of opportunities that have eternal value!
Vacation Bible School or a summer outreach for kiddos. You may not have children that age anymore, but you can have an impact on someone else’s children that age. You can have an impact on children that will last for all eternity…now that’s opportunity that makes a difference!
Evangelistic Meetings and Revival meetings. Consider the small investment of time (generally one week of your time during the evenings of a specific week)…consider the powerful, transforming truths preached and taught that week…consider making a difference in your own life as well as in the lives of others.
Kids4Truth Bible Club, & Youth Group activities. These young souls are still forming their convictions. These age groups are leaving the church in records numbers by the age of 16 to 18 years old! These young people need adults to invest in their lives and point them to Christ.
8. Get involved in community events. Embrace the mindset that the church is here for the community (and NOT that the community is here for the church)
9. Daily prayer for the souls of men.
10. Memorize more Bible verses that help you become a more skilled user of the Bible when witnessing or when you are just talking about spiritual things with those who are searching for truth.