A Bountiful Harvest

A Bountiful Harvest

Proverbs 11:30 & Acts 8:5-6

Sermon Plan

Scripture Reading

Proverbs 11:30

30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and the one who is wise saves lives.

Act 8:5-6

4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7 For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.

Why Are Those Readings Important and More Relevant To Our Time

John 10:16 - I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.

Acts 8:5-6

Isaiah 40:8-11 - Spread the Word

The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”

9 You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem,[a] lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” 10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. 11 He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.

Mark 16:15-16 – Sent Out In Christ’s Servant Spirit

And in the power of His:

In Acts 1:8 Jesus said,

“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judæa, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

It is pointless to try and do anything that is not led and filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you….”

“...Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.”—Zech. 4:6.

There are people in church today who think and believe that getting people saved was the business of the Pastor/Minister or an evangelist or the business and responsibility of the super spiritual Christian.

That is a false narrative and feeds intoour indifference to the most precious thing to Christ’s heart and mission. Friends, getting people saved is the business of every Christian.

In Luke 8:4–15, the parable of the Sower tells the story of a man who went out to sow. Christ simply said, “A sower went out to sow….” He is an unnamed personality. He is not the preacher, not the deacon, just a sower. Every person in the church should be a seed-sower.

Sow seeds everywhere:

And Isaiah 32:20 says, “Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters….” We are to sow everywhere, “beside all waters,” not only in the church, but in the street, on the job, at school—everywhere.

It is a serious risk to be fruitless as a child of God:

Luke 13:7-9

7 So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’

8 “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Speak to the Church (old(remember the unity of this call. New God called you here for a purpose. Don’t forget where you came from and who you are.

Most Believers Today are Spiritually Destitute, Having No Zeal for Soul-winning

The average Christian in America is spoiled... “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” (Revelation 3:17). America's churches are increased with goods, and have need of nothing materialistically; but God says they are spiritually wretched, miserable, poor and naked. They are apostate.

Interestingly, God tells this spiritually miserable, poor and naked church in Revelation 3:14-19 to BUY GOLD and WHITE RAIMENT from Him in Revelation 3:18, “I counsel thee to BUY OF ME GOLD tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” That is very interesting. Jesus explains what He means in Revelation 3:19, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: BE ZEALOUS therefore, and REPENT.”

God wants us to be ZEALOUS concerning the doctrine of Christ, soulwinning, humility, supporting the work of God, contending for the Christian faith, helping the poor, taking a stand against evil, living righteously and seeking the things of God. America's wayward Christians need to repent and stop straddling-the-fence. We need revival in America. One soul saved is worth more than all the gold in the world.

It's time for Christians to act like Christians and stop living for money. It's very difficult to find popular online ministries that don't beg for donations. If anyone shouldn't beg for money, it's Christians. It's a shame that the Devil's crowd freely publishes their heresy and lies online; but God's children require people to buy the truth. That's so horrible. I think it's sad for any church to have a donation button on their website. One soul saved is worth more than all the gold in the world. The average Christian website advertises all sorts of books, music and items for sale; but the plan of salvation is buried in some sub-link that you have to go searching for. One soul saved is worth more than all the gold in the world.

1. Ask God to give you an evangelistic burden for others. Ask Him to help you see the world as He sees it, and to lay upon your heart a handful of people for whom you can earnestly pray. Then pray over those names every day. Keep a little prayer list, and pray for an opportunity of reaching these souls for Christ. An old song says, "Lord, lay some soul upon my heart and love that soul through me; / And may I humbly do my part to win that soul to Thee."

2. Live a consistent Christian life before these people. Jesus said, "You are the light of the world. . . . Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16). We must live obedient lives of integrity and authentic faith. We must love when others hate, and forgive when others harbor grudges. We must remain trusting when others panic, and be honest when all around us are cooking the books. Not that we're going to be perfect-only Christ was sinless. But we must have a growing, maturing Christian life that others recognize and respect.

3. Build bridges to others. When the Lord shows you those needing Christ, seek to build a relationship with them. Remember how Jesus went to the home of Zacchaeus where many sinners had gathered?

9 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up [a]and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, [b]make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So he [c]made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But when they saw it, they all [d]complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”

While we must be careful not to place ourselves in an environment where we'll be pulled down, we must be equally careful to cultivate friendships with those needing Christ. Perhaps Christ has placed you in your particular school or workplace just to reach those whom no one else can reach.

4. Learn the Gospel. Memorize the following verses and practice saying them in a mirror or to another Christian until you're comfortable sharing them with someone needing Christ:

Romans 3:23;

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Romans 6:23;

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 5:8; MSG

Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.

Romans: 10:9, 10, 13;

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”[b]

1 John 5:1, 13.

5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.

13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

5. Watch for openings to share a word for Christ.Peter said: "Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you"

(1 Peter 3:15).

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

6. If the right opportunity doesn't come naturally, create one. Sometimes we wait too long, looking for just the right time to invite someone to church or to share with them the message of the Gospel. There often comes a point when we must prayerfully introduce the subject and do our best to impress someone with their need for Christ.

7. Leave the results with God. We're responsible for sharing the Gospel, but only God can convert the soul. Having done your best, let Him do the rest. And if you ever feel you've botched the job, think of Edward Kimball. He was determined to win his Sunday school class to Christ, including a teenager named Dwight Moody who tended to fall asleep on Sundays. His heart pounding, Kimball entered the store where the young man worked. "I put my hand on his shoulder, and as I leaned over I placed my foot upon a shoebox. I asked him to come to Christ." It didn't seem to go well, and Kimball left thinking he had botched the job. Moody, however, left the store that day a new person and eventually became the most prominent evangelist in America during his generation.

1 Samuel 2:30

“Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.’ But now the LORD declares: ‘Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.

Results of Bearing Witness

Number one, it causes rejoicing in Heaven. Did you know that Heaven does not rejoice when we build big buildings like this? When we have big offerings, we get excited;

The soul-winning purpose: it not only causes rejoicing in Heaven, but it promises rewards. Daniel 12:3 reads,

“And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”

God instructed Peter to go fishing, saying, “The first fish you catch—take the money out of its mouth and go pay our taxes.”

When we get serious about fishing for men, God will take care of the finances.

But soul winning produces something else. It produces love. In John 15:16,17, Jesus said,

“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain....These things I command you, that ye love one another.”

The command is to produce fruit. The fruit is to remain. And, of course, the fruit is souls that we win to Christ. And when we’re producing this fruit, we will love one another.

I’ve never seen two people who won souls together who did not love each other.

It not only produces love, it produces joy and warmth in a church. If you want to keep the service warm, keep the people happy and keep joy in the services, then keep people coming down the aisle for salvation. The soul-winning church is a happy church.

Soul winning. It’s the greatest business in the world.

Jesus told His disciples, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19). The implication is that if we are really following, we'll be fishing -soul-winning. Jesus' last words were, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations" (Matthew 28:19). The Christians in the New Testament went everywhere, preaching the Word (Acts 8:4).