Focus: Understanding The Seed

Text: 2Cor.9:10

"Now he that ministereth SEED to the SOWER both minister BREAD for your FOOD, and MULTIPLY your seed sown, and INCREASE the fruits of your righteousness;)."

Sperm is a seed. A child results from it when sown into the womb of a woman. Words are seeds. They produce results when spoken. Love is a seed. Forgiveness is a seed. The good works we do are seeds we sow into the lives of others. Our prayers are seeds. Praise and worship are seeds. Goodness, compassion, and kindness are powerful seeds. Choices and actions are seeds. Obedience to God is a seed. The money in our hands and wealth in our lives are seeds.

Our harvests are made possible through the seeds we have sown. Our seeds are our capitals for heavenly investments. Our future is guaranteed by the seeds we sow today. Jesus Christ tells us that "the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully" (Lk.12:16). Seeds are powerful when sown. Lao Tzu said, "To see things in the seed, that is genius."

Soils and seeds go together. Seeds are meant to be sown in the soil for harvest to result from it. God gives seeds to sowers, not eaters. God will always minister seeds to the diligent, willing, and consistent sowers. A sower will never lack seeds to sow. God will make sure of it. God also multiplies the seeds we have sown. That is to say, that from our bumper harvest we will have more seeds to sow next time. God makes it possible for us to encounter greater harvest. As Paul plants and Apollos waters what is planted, God will do His own bit of ensuring an increase.

Are you eating your seeds or sowing them? Those who eat their seeds are bewitching themselves. They are hindering the flow of their blessings. They are committing nothing into their future. It is by sowing today that we can reap tomorrow. God declares through Isaiah, "For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater" (Isa.55:10). Seed is for sowers just as bread is for eaters. God gives us seeds to invest, not to consume. 

Seed-consumers will always meet an empty future. The bread is the harvest of the seed we have sown. We advance from sowers to eaters. Jesus Christ says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (Jh.12:24). "Verily, verily" means 'amen, amen.' It means that what He says is forever reliable and infallible. It is established on the bedrock of truth. 

We must commit our seed to the soil if we desire to see increase. A seed is wasted if it is not sown in the ground. The rich man gathered a lot of wealth because he committed a lot of seeds to the ground. Every farmer is known for his seeds, soils and harvests. No one becomes fruitful who is not sowing seeds. In fact, unsown seeds are wasted seeds, and eating up your seeds is tantamount to wasting them.

God wants us to sow in faith, not looking at our circumstances or lacks. The Preacher says, "He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap… In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whethe shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good" (Ecl.11:4,6). 

Disregard physical appearances or material limitations! Go the faith way and put your seeds into the ground and see God in action!

The seeds you sow matter. In the matter of sowing and reaping God cannot be mocked or ridiculed. Paul says, "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap" (Gal.6:7). Only sowers become reapers. What we sow is what we reap in due season. Sowing and reaping are tied together. In his letter to the Christian Philippians, Paul describes it as "giving and receiving." He says, "No church communicated with me as concerning GIVING and RECEIVING, but ye only" (Phil.4:15). 

It is sowing and reaping, giving and receiving. It is a spiritual principle. It is a law established by God. It is a moral law of the universe. It is the law of cause and effect. It is the law of agriculture. It works everywhere in the world. As a divine law it demands that comply. God requires our obedience to this law. Aeschylus said, "From a small seed a mighty trunk may grow."

Be wary of what you sow, where you sow and how you sow. There is a good and a bad sowing. Paul says, "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" (Gal.6:7,8). The flesh is not a good soil in which to sow your seeds. The flesh is corrupt and it corrupts the seeds we sow in it. 

The Spirit is a good soil. We reap the best of fruits when we sow into the Spirit. The Spirit is a fertile ground. He makes wholesome returns to the sowers.

It is better to sow into God and His purposes than anywhere else. Kingdom causes are good grounds to sow our seeds. And you know what? It is not possible for any of us to go to heaven with our wealth. No one can be buried with his riches. We all go empty to the other side of life. But God has made a provision for us to send or transfer our wealth to heaven ahead of us. Every day, as we give our resources to God and humanity, we are transferring our riches to heaven ahead of us. That is God's provision for us. 

Sowing into the work of God on earth is a way of transferring our wealth to heaven. It is no longer possible for us to do same when we are dead.

Stop eating up your seeds! That is an act of indiscipline. That is the sin of the appetite. Stop feeding the flesh and starving the spirit! Stop looking away from what God is doing! Rather get involved with God in what He's doing. Partner with Him! Use your resources, no matter how meager, to advance the kingdom of God on the earth! Sow into the word of God and into the souls of men! Give to support evangelism around the world! Your money can go where you cannot go to. 

You can touch lives in far away places. The kingdom of God is a fertile soil for your seeds.

Let me use this opportunity to tell you that this precious ministry has a BUILDING PROJECT for global outreach. It is currently ongoing and funds are seriously and urgently needed to advance it. I believe you will love to be a part of it. To become a sower, please check out how you can GIVE to the Ministry. Your seed will surely enable us to keep this great project going. And I pray for God's blessings upon your life. Amen!

by Bishop Moses E. Peter