Sowing and Reaping
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
Galatians 6:7
The Scriptures are full of warnings about self-deception. James 1:26 reminds us that we deceive ourselves when we think we are religious but do not bridle our tongue. There is nothing that grieves God more than when we bad-mouth people instead of building them up with our speech. We are never to use our tongues to put others down. Instead we are to edify one another in what we say and thereby give grace to those who hear us. If your tongue is out of control, you're fooling yourself to believe that you have your spiritual life together.
We also deceive ourselves when we think we will not reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7). As Christians we sometimes think we are exempt from this principle, but we are not. Even though our sins are forgiven, we will have to live with the results and consequences of our thoughts, words and actions whether good or bad.
Since I was privileged to be raised on a farm, I witnessed every year the law of cause and effect. If we didn't sow good seed in the spring, we didn't reap a good crop in the fall. If we didn't feed the sheep, they died. Our young people have difficulty grasping this simple sow-and-reap truth. Living from weekend to weekend or party to party, they fail to prepare themselves for the future.
Your life may be measured by what you reap, but it is determined by what you sow. For example, if you want a friend, be a friend. What you get out of life is what you put into it.
A prayer for today: Lord, guard me from the self-deception of thinking You will always cover for me or pull me out of the jams I get myself into. Help me learn to sow what I hope to reap.
Neil T. Anderson is the founder of Freedom in Christ Ministries. He began the ministry in 1989 and continues to spread the message of freedom to this day.