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The Harvest Is Plenty, The Workers Few

Perceiving the multitude about him, that they had fainted having been tossed about as if sheep without a shepherd, Jesus is moved with compassion for them. He then says to his disciples, indeed the harvest is plenty, the workers few, be beseeching the Lord of the harvest so that he should be sending workers into his harvest.[1]

Jesus perceiving the multitude about him had been tossed (rhiptó also means thrown off, cast about) beseeches (passionately asks, begs) the disciples to ask the Lord (kurios is lord, master, sir, here the owner of the harvest) to send (ekballo also means to throw, eject, cast, bring forth, produce) workers into the harvest.[2] Jesus's passionate plea is for the Father to eject, cast, throw workers into the harvest, stating the harvest is plentiful and the workers few.

Jesus as He went (lead, carried, walked about), in the cities and towns, was teaching (instruct, cause to learn, impart knowledge) in the synagogues and proclaiming the gospel (evangelism, proclaim good news, preach good tidings) of the kingdom (the realm in which a sovereign king rules) and was curing every disease and sickness. When the multitudes saw what Jesus did, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power to man.[3]

As Jesus went about he asked his disciples to "follow me" and as He went he taught the disciples, as He taught and proclaimed. His disciples did not do as the others and some of John's disciples asked Jesus why His disciples did not fast, Jesus replies they are rejoicing with him, being made new, new things will eject through the old, as new wine through a old bag, and that they will too eventually be ejected into the harvest, then they will fast. These things Jesus was instructing to them. We as believers must spend time building our relationship with Jesus, we lay a foundation with him as the cornerstone, a solid foundation on the rock, grace. Then we too will be ejected as workers in the harvest to disciple others and proclaim the good news.

We should be passionate about the harvest. Is not this the purpose of the church? To disciple to evangelize? Jesus is our example, he spent several years with the disciples teaching them as they went, so that on that day when he left they would teach his teachings and proclaim the good news as he did, in the power received from on high. They would follow His example of teaching and proclaiming as they went, disciplining others to discipline and proclaim the good news, so that it would spread through out the known world. The purpose of the church is to build up the body to teach and proclaim the good news. There is a process of crawl, walk, and run or child, young man, father. This lays the proper foundation so as the body is ejecting workers into the harvest, they know who they are, child of the one king, and as such go passionately and with purpose.

We are to be mature in understanding, that we are to be doing all things for edification, learning, and encouraging of the body, "for God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints."[4] The pulpit is for building up the body, if the church is one and a non believer enters he will be convicted by the presence of God, "And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you."[5] Evangelism happens automatically in the church by the mere presence of God, the holy spirit resides in each of us giving us the power to be a witness as we go, but when two or more are gathered together in assembly, in unity and love as one, the Father is there, and people will know.

If the focus of the body is Unity and Love then the body will become a great evangelical body by the power of God and his presence. And as the body is ejected into the work of the harvest, putting forth the example of Jesus, living it out, they make disciples as they go, more workers for the harvest, who teach and proclaim the gospel. The word of God spreads to the ends of the earth. By Unity of the body the world will know Jesus is from God. By love in the body they will know we are His disciples. The church is to build up, edify, to disciple, the body so as they go they make disciples in all nations, they teach and proclaim the gospel "as they go", making more disciples, expanding the body.

The enemy works violently to disrupt the ejection of workers into the harvest, we must work passionately to produce workers for the harvest. When each part of the body is working properly, it makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. By such they will know we are his disciples, enlightened in understanding, renewed in the spirit of our minds, putting on a new self created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness... doing all things that are good for building up.[5] "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."[6]

And you must commit (obligate, to bind legally or morally) yourselves wholeheartedly (passionately) to these commands (instructions, teachings) that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again (core values, character building, habit/process forming...second nature) to your children (disciple). Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road (as you go, walking about, working), when you are going to bed and when you are getting up (morning and night, quite time) (Deut. 6:6-7).

If the workers are few then we have a worker problem, if a worker problem then a building up/ejecting problem, if a ejecting problem then a church problem, if a church problem then a unity problem, if a unity problem then a love problem, if a love problem then a heart problem. If a heart problem then a worker problem. The harvest is plenty, the workers are few.
 

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