"Time to Seek" "Plant"

Hosea 10 (KJV 1900)

Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: According to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; According to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.

Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: He shall break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.

For now they shall say, We have no king, Because we feared not the Lord; What then should a king do to us?

They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: Thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.

The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of Beth-aven: For the people thereof shall mourn over it, And the priests thereof that rejoiced on it, For the glory thereof, because it is departed from it It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to king Jareb: Ephraim shall receive shame, And Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.

As for Samaria, her king is cut off As the foam upon the water.

The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: The thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars; And they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; And to the hills, Fall on us.

O Israel, thou hast sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they stood: The battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them.

It is in my desire that I should chastise them; And the people shall be gathered against them, When they shall bind themselves in their two furrows.

And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread out the corn; But I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, And Jacob shall break his clods.

Sow to yourselves in righteousness, Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground: For it is time to seek the Lord, Till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; Ye have eaten the fruit of lies: Because thou didst trust in thy way, In the multitude of thy mighty men.

Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, And all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, As Shalman spoiled Beth-arbel in the day of battle: The mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.

So shall Beth-el do unto you because of your great wickedness: In a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.

Hosea 10:12 (KJV 1900)

Sow to yourselves in righteousness,

Reap in mercy;

Break up your fallow ground:

For it is time to seek the Lord,

Till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

I. Plant.

King James Version (Chapter 6)

8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

It's time to plant our gardens. As you plant, may I suggest the following rules for your garden planting: Plant three rows of squash: 1. Squash gossip; 2. Squash criticism; 3. Squash indifference Plant three rows of peas: 1. Purity; 2. Patience; 3. Perseverance Plant six rows of lettuce: 1. Let us be unselfish and loyal; 2. Let us be faithful to duty; 3. Let us search the scriptures; 4. Let us not be weary in well-doing; 5. Let us be obedient in all things; 6. Let us love one another No garden is complete without turnips: 1. Turn up for church, prayer service and Bible study; 2. Turn up with a smile, even when things are difficult; 3. Turn up with determination to do your best for God's cause

Proverbs 11:18 (KJV 1900)

The wicked worketh a deceitful work: But to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.

Proverbs 22:8 (KJV 1900)

He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: And the rod of his anger shall fail.

a. Plant the right seeds.

Proverbs 22:6 KJV 1900

6 Train up a child in the way he should go: And when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Deuteronomy 22:9 KJV 1900

9 Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled.

b. Plant in the right season.

1 Corinthians 3:6–7 KJV 1900

6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.

c. Plant in the right soil.

Joe Fausett: wet field 30+ fruit trees

II. Produce.

The Puritan John Brown wrote, “Many Christians are like children; they would sow and reap the same day.” It is easy to become tired of sowing and be anxious for the harvest.

Hosea 8:7 (KJV 1900)

For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: It hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: If so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.

a. Produce the right fruit.

Matthew 7:15–20 (KJV 1900)

15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

b. Produce in different seasons.

2 Timothy 4 (KJV 1900)

I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.

c. Produce for the Lord.

Colossians 3:23–25 (KJV 1900)

23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

25 But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.

III. Plow.

Though he would later be acclaimed as one of the greatest inventors of history, Thomas Edison’s school career lasted three months. The teacher believed he was incapable of learning anything and sent him home. Edison’s mother taught him, and he was on his way to a lifetime of overcoming what seemed to be insurmountable obstacles. Among his most famous inventions were the commercial incandescent light bulb, the phonograph, and the fluoroscope. Most of his inventions required months if not years of dedication to overcoming obstacles before seeing any results.

In a 1921 interview, Edison described his persistence this way: “After we had conducted thousands of experiments on a certain project without solving the problem, one of my associates, after we had conducted the crowning experiment and it had proved a failure, expressed discouragement and disgust over our having failed to find out anything. I cheerily assured him that we had learned something. For we had learned for a certainty that the thing couldn’t be done that way, and that we would have to try some other way.”

Very few things of lasting significance and value are achieved without overcoming serious obstacles. The story of almost every “overnight success” is actually the story of someone continuing to persevere in the face of great difficulty and disappointment.

a. Plow proactively.

Ephesians 5:16–17 (KJV 1900)

16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

b. Plow frequently.

Hebrews 10:23–25 (KJV 1900)

23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

c. Plow fervently.

2 Ti 2:15 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Luke 9:62 KJV 1900

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

IV. Pray.

“I’d rather be able to pray than be a great preacher; Jesus Christ never taught His disciples how to preach, but only how to pray.”—D. L. Moody

a. Fervently

James 5:16 (KJV 1900)

16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

1 John 5:14 (KJV 1900)

14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

1 Chronicles 16:11 (KJV 1900)

11 Seek the Lord and his strength, Seek his face continually.

b. Each Other.

1 Timothy 2 (KJV 1900)

1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;