Jesus Tells Jesus Followers in Luke 10:2: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”; Therefore, Jesus Followers Are His Laborers for His Gospel Harvest
MESSAGE SUMMARY:
Introduction from Luke’s Life Lessons on Prayer: Jesus, in Luke 11:11-13, compares asking God versus an earthly father being asked by his son: “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? ...
Jesus Tells Jesus Followers in Luke 10:2: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”; Therefore, Jesus Followers Are His Laborers for His Gospel Harvest
MESSAGE SUMMARY:
Introduction from Luke’s Life Lessons on Prayer: Jesus, in Luke 11:11-13, compares asking God versus an earthly father being asked by his son: “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”. God desires to give to us before we even ask Him, but ask we must. Since we must ask for the Holy Spirit, it is good to begin our daily prayers with: “Lord, fill me with the Holy Spirit.”.
Today’s Message from Luke -- Life Laborers Are Few: As Jesus sends the Seventy-two out on a mission trip (Luke 10:1-20), He tells them, in Luke 10:2: “And he said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’". Today, as in the First Century, we can make the same observation as Jesus: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few” – where are the laborers for His Kingdom today? People all around us are in need.
These passages from Luke 10:1-20 reveal God’s plan and model for our evangelism – the ministry of the Gospel. Jesus instructs His initial “seventy-two” and us to perform God’s “plentiful” harvest: “pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves . . . The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”.
This model for the ministry of the Gospel is not just for Clergy, this model is for all followers of Jesus. To meet the needs of today’s plentiful harvest, the Christians in the Church must become the Christian in the marketplace. To be effective in this plentiful marketplace, we must be ourselves and a willing vessel for God’s will. To be successful in the marketplace, we must ask for God to fill us with the Holy Spirit as we enter the harvest. However, we must be a willing laborer for the ministry of the Gospel – the harvest is plentiful. Be God’s hands and feet in His harvest for the Gospel!
TODAY’S PRAYER: Father, to you I acknowledge that I don’t want to go the way of powerlessness and humility. Like Peter, I want to know what you are doing with those around me. I love you. Help me to trust you with this day, with tomorrow, and with my whole life. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 92). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12f).
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 11:1-13; Luke 10:1-20; Matthew 28:18-20; Isaiah 6:8.
A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org.
WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “When Jesus Asked You: ‘Whom do you say that I am?’, Did You Answer Jesus: ‘You are my God and the Lord of my Life!’?”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/
DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB
