A Man Reaps What He Sows

January 21, 2016/CathyChung/

Topics to Dig Into

Who is He?

What is God like? Who is this man Jesus? How can we understand the Holy Spirit?

The Visible God

God is present and active in our lives, often working through people and ‘coincidences’. Thank and praise Him!

Making it Practical

Following Jesus in today’s world can be challenging. But living according to Jesus’ teaching is incredibly worthwhile. Call it life-changing.

He Knows You

God’s love is unconditional. He knows our hearts and continually invites us into relationship.

Ah-Ha!

Learning about the culture and language of Bible times can reveal new meaning in familiar scriptures. Let’s call them ah-ha moments.

Don’t be misled – you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those
who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.

Galatians 6:7-8 (NLT)

So this is the source for the phrase ‘a man reaps what he sows’. But when we read the complete passage doesn’t it seem like a parent-teen exchange?

Parent:
“There will be consequences.”

Teen:
“Yeah, right. That’ll never happen.”

Parent:
“Just try me.”

Especially with this verse, the original Greek brings the Word to life. Mock, myktērizō, literally comes from the word snout which provides a wonderful visual. Mocking someone means turning your nose up or making faces at them. Has your teen ever rolled his eyes or sneered at you? Have your thoughts ever done the same to one of God’s instructions? Yeah, right.

God will not be mocked. He has told us the consequences of a life lived selfishly. Just you wait and see.

He has also promised everlasting life for those who ‘please the Spirit’. The New Living Translation has a tone of earning the Spirit’s approval. I prefer the Message translation that says ‘living in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him’. Pleasing the Spirit means hearing and responding to God’s guidance.

How do we mock God and His commands?

Are we willing to face the consequences?

#SeedsOfScripture #Consequences

2 Comments

Betsy Cruz on January 21, 2016 at 11:56 PM

Thanks for sharing your insights , Cathy. I think we'really not so different from our teens!

Reply
CHERRILYNN BISBANO on January 22, 2016 at 9:38 AM

Great post Cathy. I love the word picture of snout. Mocking God, in my eyes, is blatantly disobeying thinking He is a God of love or He will forgive. I had a friend in grade school who said that she could do anything she wanted during the week because God will forgive her Sunday. I was not saved at the time, but that stuck in my head. Thanks for writing this.

Reply

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