You Can Reap What You Have Not Worked for

[35] “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. [36] Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. [37] Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. [38] I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” – John 4:35-38 (NIV)

When I was a little boy, my father used to practise gardening in the house’s backyard, large enough to harvest some bags of grain. Although I wasn’t one of those who did much of the work, I saw seeds sown in the ground mature to become fully grown trees. And when such trees grow, I, with my other brothers, pluck some of the harvest for us to use as food to eat. What did I do? I reaped what others worked for because I had a relationship with the head of the garden.

Jesus explained this principle to some Israelites who operated by sowing and reaping principles in agriculture, saying that when it comes to the kingdom of God, that principle doesn’t always apply. After all, in Genesis 8:22, where God established the principle of sowing and reaping, He referred to it as operational on only Earth. So, Jesus said, as a believer, you can reap what you have not worked for, provided He sent you (see John 4:38). That means every person sent from God can reap from several areas of legitimate provision by the supernatural works of God. That is why a worldly person cannot understand anyone whom God has blessed with wealth.

Don’t go about envying people God has entrusted with wealth. Instead, find out what God has sent you to do and do it diligently. There will be so many ways He will bless you if you will be faithful to handle what He has entrusted to you.

You’re a blessing.