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[0:00] Galatians 5, beginning in verse 13, reading through verse 25. You, my brothers, were called to be free, but do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature.

[0:13] Rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command. Love your neighbor as yourself. If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out, or you will be destroyed by each other.

[0:28] So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature.

[0:41] They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious.

[0:51] I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

[1:14] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

[1:28] Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

[1:41] And then chapter 6, verses 7-10. Chapter 6 and verse 7. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked.

[1:51] A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature from that nature will reap destruction. The one who sows to please the Spirit from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

[2:03] Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

[2:18] Please open your Bibles with me to Galatians chapter 6 and verse 7. The living God has established certain laws, natural laws we call them, that are operative on planet Earth.

[2:37] The law of gravity is one such law. And it's operating every day, all day. Right now as you sit there, it's in effect.

[2:49] It's what's keeping you in your seats from just rising up and bumping your heads on the ceiling. It's what's keeping my Bible and notes on the pulpit. The law of gravity.

[3:02] And it's working whether or not we're thinking about it. It's working whether we understand it, whether we've even heard of it. It's always operative.

[3:12] And it's affecting us. Now another such law is found in our text, Galatians 6, 7. A man reaps what he sows.

[3:24] A man reaps what he sows. I like to garden. And in my years of gardening, I've learned that if you plant carrots, you won't reap potatoes. And if you're a farmer and you plant corn, you won't be reaping beans this fall.

[3:39] A man reaps what he sows 100% of the time. It's true. And this law of sowing and reaping is something that not only applies to your garden and to your fields, but it's something, a law that operates in the whole of your life.

[3:57] And that's what the Apostle Paul is concerned about. Excuse me. It's a law that affects you every day, all day. Whether you're aware of it or not, a man reaps what he sows.

[4:12] You can't escape this law of sowing and reaping. In fact, you are reaping today what you sowed yesterday. And you are sowing today what you will reap tomorrow.

[4:29] And most sobering of all, the Bible teaches us that you will reap for eternity what you are sowing in this life.

[4:41] So what kind of harvest will you be reaping forever and ever? Well, that depends on your sowing. That will tell us the kind of harvest that you will be reaping.

[4:56] If we can see what it is that you're sowing. For a man reaps what he sows. So let's consider this morning this inescapable law of sowing and reaping.

[5:07] And the very first thing is that to live is to sow. To live is to be planting. And it includes everything that you do.

[5:18] That means every day you're planting thoughts. You're putting them in the ground. You're planting words. You're planting attitudes. You're planting actions.

[5:31] You're planting decisions. You're planting things that you do. And even things that you don't do. Things left undone. So get the picture in your mind of the farmer on his tractor.

[5:44] And he's pulling this planter through the field. And literally thousands of seeds are being sown behind him. That's you.

[5:55] That's me. Every day. Even today. You're planting right now as you sit there. In the way that you receive the word of God. And what you do. With his word.

[6:07] Some. Since last Sunday. We've all been at it another week. We've been sowing. We've been sowing. Putting our seed in the ground. Some of you have been sowing for 10 years now.

[6:19] 11, 12, 20, 50, 70 years. We've all got a lot of seed in the ground. Because to live is to sow. Now someone says.

[6:32] John I don't see it that way. I don't think of life in that way. That my actions are seeds put in the ground. Well then you need to start seeing your life that way.

[6:45] You know Galatians 6 and verse 7 is in your Bible. So that you will think. About your thoughts and deeds and actions. In that way. You are sowing. Whether you realize it or not.

[6:57] You're planting seeds today. For a day. Of reaping. Now that's what gives importance. To our lives.

[7:10] That's what makes. Significant. Everything that we do. Every day. You wake up in the morning. And you yawn. And you stretch. And you say.

[7:20] Well what's on the calendar today. And you check it. And you think through your day. And there's nothing. Nothing special. Nothing important. It's just another day. You tell yourself. No it's not.

[7:34] It's another day of sowing. Seeds. That will later be reaped. And reaped. Even into eternity. What you do today.

[7:46] Has eternal significance. Remind yourself. Wake up to that thought. Every day. This is a day. For sowing seeds. There are no unimportant days.

[7:57] There are no unimportant hours. To live is to sow. Secondly. There's a day of reaping.

[8:08] For all that we have sown. The seed that we put into the ground. Doesn't remain a seed. Does it? It germinates. It sprouts. It grows. It matures. And it sends forth.

[8:19] The full harvest. What we are doing now. Is going to meet us again later. What we do today.

[8:30] Will have effects. On out. Into the future. Someone has said. Sow a thought. Reap. An action. Sow a action. Reap.

[8:43] A habit. Sow a habit. Reap. A character. Sow a character. And reap. A life.

[8:53] And sow a life. And reap. An eternal destiny. In so many ways. We are reaping today. What we sowed yesterday.

[9:06] Your good study habits. In school. Young people. That was sowing yesterday. You studied. You didn't run around. And go out and party. Like everyone else did.

[9:17] You were studying. You were sowing. And so. The next day on the test. You're reaping. You know the answers. And so you reap.

[9:27] The very next day perhaps. What you sowed the day before. And then when the scholarships are given out. At the end of the school. For college. And you receive handsome scholarships.

[9:39] You're reaping again. And then when it leads to a good job. To provide for your family. You're reaping again. And when you realize. It's built discipline in your life.

[9:49] It helps you in other areas of life. You're reaping again. All because you learned. Long ago. To sow. Good study habits. A man reaps. What he sows.

[10:00] You're. On the other hand. Perhaps your bad spending habits. Of the past. Are reaping consequences today. In the high interest rates. You're paying. On your debt. You're reaping.

[10:11] Today. What you've sown yesterday. Today. But these are not only days. Of reaping. What we've sown in the past. There are also days. Of sowing. What you will reap. In the future.

[10:22] Your decisions today. Will reap. A certain consequence. Tomorrow. Your choices today. Will meet you. On down the road. The friends you pick.

[10:33] Today. The wife. You pick. The husband. You marry. There's huge. Reaping. To be done. From these decisions. That we're making. In life.

[10:44] A man reaps. What he sows. But our passage. Today. Points to the ultimate. Reaping. Of what we've sown. It pushes.

[10:54] Beyond all the reaping. In this life. To the. The reaping. For eternity. The full harvest. Of what we have sown. Will be reaped. On the day of judgment.

[11:05] And forever. And ever. The reaping. Lasts forever. You find that in verse 8. That we either reap destruction. Everlastingly. Or we reap.

[11:16] Eternal life. More on that later. But both. We notice. Are eternal. Consequences. The reaping. Goes on forever.

[11:28] For we must all appear. Before the judgment seat of Christ. That everyone. May receive. What is due him. For the things. Done. While in the body. Whether good or bad.

[11:39] Second Corinthians. Five. Ten. The things. Done. While in the body. That would be this life. That would be today. You're doing. What you're doing. You're sitting here.

[11:50] Listening to preaching. In the body. That's what. You will be judged. For. And there. You will see. That a man reaps. What he sowed.

[12:01] There will be a reaping. For what we do. In the body. There's no purgatory. There's no. Second chance. There's no life. After this death. Where we can keep sowing.

[12:11] And. And so differently. To live our life. Differently. No. Any sowing. That is to be done. Must be done now. While we're in the body.

[12:23] For at death. The sowing stops. And it's all reaping. After that point. Do you see this. The importance. That this places.

[12:34] Upon. What you're doing. Now. With your life. You're sowing seeds. That will be reaped. Forever. Because. A man reaps.

[12:45] What he sows. Thirdly. We notice. That this principle. Of sowing and reaping. Works. In two. Directions. In two.

[12:55] Directions. There are just. Two kinds of sowing. Living. And there are. Two kinds of reaping. Verse eight. The one who sows. To please. His sinful nature.

[13:07] From that nature. Will reap. Destruction. And the one who sows. To please. The spirit. That's the second. Kind of sowing. From the spirit. Will reap.

[13:18] Eternal life. The second. Kind of reaping. Now. There's two kinds of sowing. You're either sowing. To the sinful nature. Or to the spirit. You're either sowing. To the sinful nature. Which is the flesh.

[13:29] That anti-God. Principle. Within. Every one of us. That. Indwelling. Sin. You sow to it.

[13:41] Or. You sow to the. To please the spirit. The third person. Of the Godhead. And so. All your life. You're. Sowing either to the one. Or to the other.

[13:52] You notice. There's just two. Options. Friends. That means. If you are not. Sowing to please. The spirit. You are by default. Sowing to please. The flesh.

[14:03] The sinful nature. Back in chapter 5. Paul. Mentions. These same two. The spirit. And the flesh. Are the sinful nature. I say.

[14:13] Live by the spirit. And you will not. Gratify the desires. Of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature. Desires. What is contrary. To the spirit. And the spirit. Desires what is contrary.

[14:24] To the sinful nature. They are in conflict. With each other. So that you do not. Do what you want. Christian. That's why you feel like. A battle is. Going on. Inside.

[14:35] Because it is. The spirit of God. Who dwells in you. Believer. Desires. Certain things. And the flesh. That you still carry around. In you. That principle.

[14:46] Of sin. Desires the exact. Opposite. When you are mistreated. The sinful nature. Wants you to get even.

[14:57] With them. To give them the silent treatment. To give them the cold shoulder. Or just to go out. And get revenge. The Holy Spirit. Wants you to overcome. Evil. With good.

[15:08] The Holy Spirit. Wants you to pray. For your. Those who. Misuse you. To love your enemies. When your parents. Give you a command.

[15:19] The sinful nature. Desires. For you to look for ways. To get around their commands. And to do what you want. Or to complain about their commands. The Spirit.

[15:29] Wants you to joyfully. Obey. Your parents. When you are. Asked a question. That could get you into trouble. If you told the truth. The sinful nature. Wants you to lie. That's what it desires.

[15:40] That you would lie. To get out of trouble. The Spirit. Desires that you speak the truth. In love. And in each situation. Of life. There's a way to live.

[15:52] So as to please. The Spirit. Or to please. The sinful nature. And if you sow. To please the one. You thereby. Sow to displease. The other.

[16:03] Now the unbeliever. Only knows. Sowing. To please. The sinful nature. The Spirit of God. Does not dwell in them. But there's more. To the Christian.

[16:14] Than the sinful nature. Yes. He still has. The flesh inside. To dwell. To fight against. But he has. The Spirit of God. The Almighty Spirit. That raised Jesus.

[16:25] From the dead. Dwells. In the believer's heart. And there's our help. There's our hope. There's our strength. And then.

[16:36] Verses 19 to 21. Give us some of the ways. That the sinful nature. A picture. Of what does it look like. To sow. To please the sinful nature. Well there you have it. The acts of a sinful nature.

[16:46] Are obvious. Sexual immorality. Impurity. Debauchery. Idolatry. Witchcraft. Hatred. Discord. Jealousy. Fits of rage.

[16:57] Selfish ambition. Dissensions. Factions. Envy. Drunkenness. Orgies. And the like. I warn you. And the like.

[17:08] You see. This isn't the complete list. This is just examples. Of what it means. To sow. To please. The sinful nature. And then he gives the other. What does it look like. To sow. To please the spirit. Well it.

[17:18] It produces love. Joy. Peace. Gentleness. Patience. And so on. The fruit of the spirit. Two kinds of sowing. Which are you sowing?

[17:31] Which is it. That characterizes. Your sowing. What are you all about. In life. Is it. What I want. Or what. God the spirit. Wants. Then there's two.

[17:44] Kinds. Of reaping. And each way of sowing. Has its own reaping. Verse 8 says. That the one who sows. To please. His sinful nature. From that nature.

[17:55] Will reap destruction. That. That flesh. That sinful nature. Itself. Carries with it. Its own result. And it only has one result. Destruction. Live for the flesh.

[18:07] And you will reap. Destruction. Not extinction. But grief. And misery. Forever. They will be punished. With everlasting. Destruction.

[18:19] And shut out. From the presence of the Lord. Second Thessalonians 1. 9. The opposite. Of reaping. Eternal life. And so destruction. Is here.

[18:30] Just as long. As the life. Is. Eternal. So the destruction. Is eternal. Eternal. And those who live like this. Will not inherit. The kingdom of God.

[18:42] But. Just as the one who sows. To the sinful nature. Reaps destruction. So. This principle. Of. Sowing and reaping. Works in the other direction too. Those who.

[18:53] The one who sows. To please the spirit. From the spirit. Will reap eternal life. Jesus says. It's the spirit. Who gives life. The flesh. Profits nothing.

[19:05] The spirit. Gives life. You sow. To please the spirit. And the spirit. Will give eternal. Life. Those are the words of. Verse 8. Eternal life.

[19:20] Something that begins. Here and now. And lasts forever. Because Jesus says. This is eternal life. To know thee. The only true God. And Jesus Christ. Whom you've sent. If you have eternal life.

[19:32] If you're enjoying it. Right now. Because you know God. And his son. And then it lasts forever. And ever. What an encouragement. To sow. To please the Holy Spirit.

[19:43] The harvest. Is eternal life. Notice. That the future. Of a man. In eternity. Is only the harvest. Of what he sowed here. The seed.

[19:55] Come to maturity. Flesh. Sowing. To please the flesh. Coming to maturity. In destruction. Sowing. Sowing. To please the spirit. Comes to maturity.

[20:05] In eternal life. There's a correspondence. Then. Between the reaping. And the sowing. A man reaps. What he sows.

[20:16] You know. That's so consistent. In the physical realm. That the seed manufacturers. Put pictures. On their packs of seeds. You've seen it in the stores.

[20:26] You want to buy some garden seeds. That got these little packs. And their pictures. On the packets. Of seeds. But what they show. On the picture.

[20:36] Is not what's inside. No. No. What they show. On the pictures. Is a full. Ear of corn. Maybe three or four of them.

[20:47] Long string beans. Big juicy red tomatoes. That's not what's in that. Little skinny packet. You open the packet. And what do you find? You find seeds. Little seeds. And yet the picture.

[20:59] They put on the packet. Is the harvest. Because they know. That a man reaps. What he sows. And it's so consistent. That they're able to say. If the seed is in here. Then this is the kind of harvest.

[21:10] You'll have. It'll look like this. You say. That's so obvious. Well it is. It is. But it does show us.

[21:21] That a man reaps. What he sows. Few things are more obvious. In this world. And yet this is something. That men are easily deceived about. In the spiritual realm.

[21:34] That's the fourth point. We are in danger. Of being deceived. About this law. Of sowing and reaping. We're in danger. About being deceived.

[21:45] About this law. Of sowing and reaping. Kids. Where are warning signs posted? Where do you run into warning signs? Well. They put them in places.

[21:56] Of real danger. You go up to Lake Michigan. Up to the dunes. And you're. You're swimming. And you see a sign. Beware of the undertow. Mommy. What's. What's undertow? There's a real danger.

[22:08] And so the warning is posted. Where are the real dangers to be found? It's the same with our God. Do you know? He's posted a warning sign. Right next to this principle.

[22:19] A man reaps what he sows. Do not be deceived. He tells us. A man reaps what he sows. There's a warning.

[22:32] And it's no empty warning. God's not wasting words with us. There's a real danger here. And the danger is being deceived. Tricked into thinking that we can sow one thing.

[22:43] And reap entirely a different thing. Now in the garden. No one would ever expect. To reap beans where they planted corn. Yet nothing is more common today.

[22:57] Than people whose lives are characterized. By sowing to please the flesh. The sinful nature. Who nevertheless expect. To reap eternal life.

[23:09] You might as well expect. To get tomatoes. From carrot seeds. As to sow to the flesh. And reap eternal life. No, no.

[23:20] The flesh only reaps destruction. There's so much today. That goes under the flag of Christianity. That promises eternal life.

[23:31] Even though you sow to please the sinful nature. Did you go forward? Did you ask Jesus into your heart? Did you pray the prayer? Do you love Jesus?

[23:42] Have you been baptized? Have you been baptized? Have you been in church all your life? Do you take the sacrament? Why then you'll reap eternal life.

[23:53] Even though your life is characterized by one thing. Not pleasing God. But pleasing the flesh. You yourself.

[24:07] That's a lie. It's a lie from hell. And it's made its way into the church. Of Jesus Christ. The place where the truth is to be heard. But the lie is being spread.

[24:18] Spread. I wonder if anyone here is believing that lie. I ask you. Are you living to please yourself? Or living to please the spirit?

[24:30] What characterize you? What is the distinguishing mark of your life? She's a God pleaser. She lives for herself.

[24:41] When what you want collides with what the spirit of God wants. And by that I simply mean what he's commanded in his word. That's what he wants. So when what you want collides with what he says.

[24:55] Who wins? Who wins then? Those who sow to please the spirit will reap everlasting life. Those who are sowing to please the flesh. Will reap only destruction.

[25:09] A man reaps what he sows. Don't let anyone deceive you on this matter. Better to know you're lost. Than to think you're saved when you're not. You know it's only those who know they're lost that seek a savior.

[25:23] Blessed thing to know we're lost. Even greater blessedness. To seek the savior who says if you seek me you will find me. And then how many people are sowing every day without any thought that they might reap a harvest from what they're sowing.

[25:44] Oh they're partying today without any thought of what's going to happen tomorrow. They're being deceived aren't they? Don't be deceived. The warning sign is out.

[25:55] There's a harvest for every seed. A man reaps what he sows. And these would forget on purpose that they must reap someday.

[26:06] They think they can go on a spending spree of sin and never have payday. That's to be deceived. And some people are betting their whole eternity on being able to trick God.

[26:19] And to get around his law of sowing and reaping. Oh we may trick ourselves. We may deceive ourselves.

[26:30] The warning is there. Don't deceive yourself. But we'll never deceive God. That's the fifth point in our lesson this morning. God is not deceived. You see it there in our text.

[26:41] Verse 7. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. He can't be outwitted. He can't be out tricked or deceived in this.

[26:54] You can't get around God's law of sowing and reaping. It's always operative. And if you think you can, you're deceived. But God's not. He won't be mocked.

[27:06] It's just like the law of gravity. You can ignore it, but you can't escape it. You can pretend it's not there, but it's affecting you. Even as you deny it.

[27:16] So it is with this principle. A man reaps what he sows. The unbreakable law of the universe.

[27:29] Now, don't miss God's heart in all of this. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

[27:40] Do you see the heart of God in that? He does not want you to be deceived about this. And so over and over in his word, he warns you against being tricked.

[27:54] You see, God's not out to spoil your life, but to save you from self-destructive choices. He's out to turn you away from sowing something that you don't want to reap later.

[28:05] Oh, the infinite kindness of our God. He wouldn't have had to do that. He could have sat by and said, boy, is she going to be surprised when she has a reaping someday?

[28:17] No, but he gets in our faces and he says, hey, don't be deceived. Don't be deceived. You're going to reap what you sow. Wake up. Wake up.

[28:30] Kind God to warn us while we're still in the land of the sowing. We're still here where we can do something about. We can still sow differently. So what will your eternal reaping be?

[28:44] It's seen. It's demonstrated by what you're sowing. Now, someone says this sounds an awful lot like legalism, John. It almost sounds like you're telling us that we can be saved by what we do.

[28:58] Are you saying, is this teaching that we can earn eternal life by the good deeds that we sow in life? Not in a million eternities.

[29:12] Where are these verses found? They're found in the book of Galatians, the letter to the Galatian church. And you who know this letter know that its whole theme, its aim is to combat the lie that man can contribute anything to deserve his own salvation.

[29:35] No, salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone. Plus nothing. And Paul argues that we're made right with God by Christ's work.

[29:49] It's entirely based on his merits. What he has earned for us. We couldn't do it ourselves. He earned it for us. It's a gift of God.

[30:01] It's what he has done. His life. His death. His resurrection. Has nothing. Your salvation being earned has nothing to do with your works. It has everything to do with Jesus.

[30:12] He earned your salvation. By his perfect life. By his atoning death. It's Christ's work plus nothing of man's contribution.

[30:23] And any teaching to the contrary, Paul says in chapter 1 and verse 6, is another gospel which he calls no gospel at all. And anyone who teaches this other gospel comes under the divine anathema.

[30:38] Let him be eternally condemned. So do you think that this Paul who introduces his letter that way and then carries out that diatribe against anything of man's earning his salvation throughout these five chapters, that he comes to chapter 6 and he would teach exactly the opposite?

[31:02] Not at all. Not at all. Consider as well that to believe this other gospel, to believe that I can be saved by just doing enough good deeds, that that will earn my way into heaven.

[31:15] That itself is to sow to please the sinful nature. There's nothing more flesh flattering to do in life than to believe that there's something that you can do to fix the problem.

[31:27] That the problem between you and God is so big, but you're so big that you can make up for what you've done. That is a huge sowing to the flesh.

[31:39] And it will reap destruction. You see, the law of sowing and reaping was not relaxed at Calvary. It was in full operation there.

[31:52] But what a surprising twist of grace at Calvary. I sowed to the flesh and I reaped destruction.

[32:06] But I reaped it in my substitute. I reaped it in my sin bearer. I reaped it in my representative. The Son of God stood in for me and reaped the harvest of all my sinful sowing.

[32:19] The destruction of God's wrath that would have fallen on me forever fell on him. And now I am united to him by faith.

[32:30] And being united to Christ means that all that he did, I did. So I died to sin. When? Two thousand years ago when Jesus died. Romans chapter 6.

[32:43] And I live again to live a new life because I've risen with Christ. I was damned in my representative. I was destroyed in my Savior on the cross.

[32:54] His death is my death. His life is my life. All my sowing to please the flesh had its day of reaping at Calvary. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.

[33:11] Chapter 3, verse 13. So there is therefore now no condemnation, no destruction for those who are in Christ Jesus. And being united to Christ also means that all his sowing to please the Spirit is counted as mine.

[33:27] And that's why I am reaping eternal life. I'm standing here this morning reaping eternal life. I know God. I know Christ.

[33:38] And I will live in his presence forever and ever. Because Christ has sowed to please the Spirit perfectly. And by being united to him, all that becomes mine.

[33:52] His righteousness put to my account. Blessed exchange for every hell-deserving sinner who trusts in Christ alone.

[34:02] That's the theme of this letter. Who trusts in Christ alone. He, Christ, takes the destruction that my sowing to the flesh deserves. And he gives me the eternal life that his sowing to please the Spirit deserves.

[34:15] So that upon a life I did not live. And upon a death I did not die. Another's life and another's death. I rest my whole eternity.

[34:28] No, we're not teaching. Anyone can work their way into heaven by their own merits. Not at all. Are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone to save you from your sins?

[34:39] To make you right with God? If so, then you will be one of these whose life is marked by pleasing the Spirit.

[34:50] Sowing to please the Spirit. And now all of our sowing to please the Spirit is our response of gratitude for full and free forgiveness in Christ. It's not the way I earn salvation.

[35:03] It's the way I, a freely loved sinner, show my thanks for free salvation. I sow to please the Spirit.

[35:17] My sowing to please the Spirit is not the cause of my salvation, but rather the effects. It's the evidence of saving faith. Whoever has saving faith will have this characteristic about them.

[35:31] They sow to please the Spirit. They have eternal life. It's the dominant mark of their life. It's worked in them by the Spirit who indwells them.

[35:44] And they alone will be the ones who reap eternal life. Sixthly, keep your eye on the day of reaping.

[35:55] You who have been in the battle for any length of time know that putting the flesh to death and sowing to please the Spirit is no easy walk in the park.

[36:08] The flesh screams to be satisfied. It craves ease. It demands to be pleased. I will be satisfied. I will be pleased.

[36:19] So a part of you must die every time you deny the flesh. Every time you say no to the flesh and yes to the Spirit, a part of you dies.

[36:30] It's that flesh, that anti-God part of you. It must be killed. It must be put to death. And it's exhausting. It's hard work.

[36:43] It's harder work than you can do. That's why the Spirit of God lives in you. But even with the Spirit of God in you, you will be exhausted from this labor of not pleasing the flesh, but pleasing the Spirit.

[36:57] And so the Apostle Paul has a word of application for those who are trusting in Christ alone. And notice how he identifies himself with us. Verse 9.

[37:08] This is the same argument. It's just developing it now into some application with encouragement to the Christian. Let us. You see, Paul's in the same boat with us.

[37:20] Verse 9. Let us not become weary in doing good. And doing good here is just the summary of what it means to sow to please the Spirit. Let us not become weary in sowing to the Spirit, in doing the beautiful, the good thing.

[37:37] For at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. You see, a great danger to the spiritual farmer is that he will give up.

[37:48] That he will quit persevering in this life of sowing to please the Spirit and sowing not to the flesh. That he will give up.

[37:59] That he will quit this life of doing good. But Paul knows that something always happens before a man quits. Do you know what it is? He loses heart.

[38:10] He grows weary. If a man's heart isn't in something, it's usually not long before he's not in it himself. It's true of marriage.

[38:23] There's a man and his heart's not been in this marriage for a long time. It's probably not long before he will no longer be in the marriage. It's true in sports.

[38:33] You see that classmate dragging in every morning? He's dejected and he's losing heart. He's not just physically tired. He's wondering whether it's worth it.

[38:47] And then one day you don't see him. Oh, where's Joe? Oh, you haven't heard? He quit. He quit the team. But long before he quit, he first lost heart. He first grew weary in the business.

[39:01] And that's true of a job. It's even true of sowing to please the Spirit. People who grow weary of pleasing the Spirit, watch out.

[39:16] Because what that's leading to is quitting pleasing the Spirit. Therefore, all weariness in doing good must be treated seriously.

[39:29] Anyone here growing tired of doing good? You're in that difficult marriage. You're in that difficult situation. You're in that thing that's just hounds you and meets you every day.

[39:41] And yet you're called to overcome evil with good and to sow to the Spirit and not to the flesh. And you're struggling and you're fighting and you're praying. But is anyone growing weary and losing heart and growing dejected and beginning to wonder if it's worth it all?

[40:02] Anyone losing heart in the battle against sin in the battle to do good? Are you discouraged? Are you growing lax? Are you slacking off even a little bit?

[40:14] Don't brush it off. Don't deny it. Don't treat it as a little thing. It's a threat to your very perseverance. Own it.

[40:26] Deal with it. Take the medicine that the Apostle Paul brings to you from God Himself. What is that medicine? Let us not become weary in doing good.

[40:40] For, here's the medicine. At the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. You see the medicine?

[40:53] There's a delay between sowing and reaping in crops, isn't there? Some is longer than others. What is it during this delay period between the sowing and reaping that keeps the farmer persevering in hope?

[41:07] That enables him to endure all sorts of hardships without growing weary and losing heart. Well, it's the promise of a harvest. There's a day of reaping to come and he's got an eye on that.

[41:20] And so he doesn't lose heart, even though it's hard work getting there. And brothers and sisters, you too must keep your eye on the day of reaping.

[41:33] It's a day of reaping to follow sowing. You might have to wait long, but it's coming. Not in your timetable, but in its proper time, verse 9 says.

[41:44] That's God's time. You will reap. You will reap, brother. You will reap, sister. Whatever you are sowing to the Spirit, day by day, you will reap.

[41:58] In God's good day of harvest. And what a harvest it is to be with Christ. To be made like Him. To no longer have the flesh to battle with.

[42:12] To only have the desire in your heart to serve God. To live in a new heaven and a new earth without a curse. No eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared for those who love Him.

[42:30] Those eternal pleasures that are at His right hand. To be with our Lord forever. You see, what Paul is telling us is that at the bottom of our weariness, at the bottom of our growing weary in doing good and in sowing to the Spirit, is a lack of faith in the day of reaping.

[42:54] Farmers don't lose heart in the difficulties of sowing when they know a harvest is coming. And if we're losing heart and we're growing weary, it shows at bottom we've got a lack of faith in this word of promise.

[43:12] It's a lack of faith that makes us wonder, is it worth it all? It's a lack of faith because we have so little to show for our sowing. And so we wonder if it's all a waste of time and effort and money.

[43:25] Should I just throw in the towel and quit? That should be a light on the dashboard. Your eyes are too much on earthly things. Not enough on things eternal.

[43:40] You will reap a harvest if you do not give up. If you sow even though in tears, you will reap. And you will reap in joy.

[43:52] So, Paul is telling us, keep your heart hot after God. Keep your heart hot after pleasing Him in doing good.

[44:04] Sow on in faith and fight any weariness in doing good with faith in the future certain harvest. A man reaps what he sows.

[44:15] And lastly, now is the season for sowing. Now is the season for sowing. Verse 10. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

[44:34] Wake up to this thought every morning. This is another day for sowing. This is sowing season, John. Are you alive?

[44:46] You'll not always have this opportunity for planting seeds. The season will end. The night comes, Jesus says, when no man can work. Are you given another day of life?

[45:00] Another day for sowing and make the most of every opportunity, he tells us. This is a day for sowing to please the Spirit. It's a day for laying up treasures in heaven. It's a day for doing good to all kinds of people, especially those who are in the family of believers in Jesus alone.

[45:18] So lay hold of these opportunities today for helping others, for speaking a word of encouragement, a word of witness, a word of kindness.

[45:33] There's the farmer. And he's gladly throwing his seed by the handfuls into the ground. He's not, oh, worried about each little seed he's losing.

[45:43] He's not reluctant. No, he's just lavishly throwing seed on every acre. He's got. Why? Because he knows the harvest. For every seed planted, there's a multiplied harvest.

[45:57] The little corn seed, the large ear. And so he wants to put in his seeds as much as he can. Brothers and sisters, the potential is enormous.

[46:10] What you sow in time, you reap forever. Forever. So Paul says, whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly. And whoever sows generously will reap generously.

[46:23] It's another day for sowing. Let's sow to please the Spirit. And eternity will reveal how much faith we put in the promise of God that a man reaps what he sows.

[46:40] My friend, if you're outside of Christ, come to him. You sow faith in the living Savior today. And you will reap eternal life today and on out into all eternity.

[46:53] Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for your perfect life of sowing to please the Spirit. We thank you that you would be willing to take the destruction that our sowing to the flesh deserved and give to us the eternal life that you're sowing to the Spirit deserved.

[47:10] Lord, we who know you now do feel in our hearts that we have served the flesh long enough. It's high time to serve the Lord, deepen our gratitude, stir in our hearts the wonder of wonders that not only has Christ died for us and given us the Holy Spirit within, but even holds out rewards for us.

[47:34] Eternal rewards. None of merit. All of grace. And so we pray that you would encourage the downcast brother or sister among us who are growing weary in the doing of good and who have perhaps even questioned whether or not they should continue.

[47:54] Meet them with every encouragement in Christ and bring the one who's still lost in their sin to see that someday they must reap for every Christ-rejecting moment.

[48:10]  Draw them this day to faith in the Savior. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.