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SOWING

D. E. Burr

I just felt led to say a word, beloved brethren, as to sowing. I believe the enemy is active at the present time in sowing what would in some way correspond to the darnel. The darnel does not come there by accident or by chance, it says—“but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel amongst the wheat, and went away”. So it is not a question of charging one another with anything, but just to see that there is an enemy. God has an enemy; God’s, people have an enemy, and the enemy’s objective is to bring in chaos and confusion, and to bring in what may have an appearance of the true, but it is not the true thing at all. So that the word for us is not to be amongst those who sleep in this sense—“while men slept”. That is, while we may not be on our guard, the enemy may come in and introduce something that would lower the standard of what the Lord is doing, sowing good seed. So we are to remain alert and be aware of the activity of the enemy. I suppose there was never a time like the present when brotherly unity and reconciliation need to be promoted. The enemy would disrupt this and he has done his sowing, and it may be that there has been some sleep so that his activity has not been discerned. But then what he has sown comes up; the good wheat comes up, but then the darnel also. The bondmen say, “hast thou not sown good seed ...?”

Well, of course, the Lord had sown good seed. And there has been the good seed sown amongst us, but then there is an enemy—“A man that is an enemy has done this”.

Well, I do not go on to the question of the full growth and the judgments, but just to draw our attention to the fact that there is an enemy, and he is introducing what is disruptive, and there is the possibility of a lack of discernment. However, we are to see that as far as concerns our own locality chiefly, but then in the position generally, the enemy’s activities may be frustrated by persons being awake and alert, and aware of what his bent and activities are.

Well, that relates to the kingdom, the kingdom of the heavens, a general area of God’s operations amongst men, amongst ourselves at the present time.

I just referred to Galatians because that brings it down to the individual, that there is sowing going on. We are all sowing something. We may sow to our own flesh, but then on the other hand we may sow to the Spirit. “For he that sows to his own flesh, shall reap corruption from the flesh”. How sad and solemn that is; self-indulgence in that way leads to the reaping of corruption. It may, of course, have a kind of spiritual guise, or may have an outward appearance of what is good and right, but secretly it is the promotion of the flesh. From that line of things corruption is reaped.

“But he that sows to the Spirit, from the Spirit shall reap eternal life”. I just draw attention, in contrast, to what is possible for us. It is possible for us to sow to the Spirit. That is what would be in the divine mind; it is what would be normal for the believer, to sow to the Spirit, and “he that sows to the Spirit, from the Spirit shall reap eternal life”. So it goes on “let us not lose heart in doing good”. I suppose we have all had the experience one way or another of losing heart; perhaps the enemy seems to be gaining the upper hand, or perhaps the flesh gains the upper hand, and perhaps there appears to be what Paul speaks of as “no apparent issue”. It may be like that, but “he that sows to the Spirit, from the Spirit shall reap eternal life”. So let us not lose heart in doing good. That would be amongst other things sowing to the Spirit. We are not to lose heart. We may lose heart, but Paul would say, Do not lose heart—let us not lose heart in doing good.

Well, I just felt led to add that word that we should be encouraged to sow to the Spirit and not to lose heart. May we be strengthened in that for the Lord’s sake.

Word in meeting for ministry, Redbridge
26 September 1989

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