Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. James 5:7
Patience - we sow here and now but harvest comes we know not where! This is consistent with the image of the sower and reaper and with our own experience.
1) Parable of the sower (Luke 8:4-15). Here, the sower cast seeds with no particular thought to results. It is the free offer of the gospel with no ‘market research’ to see who might receive the gospel and no modification of the message to fit the ‘felt needs’ of the recipients. This attitude comes logically when we believe that God is the initiator in regards to conversion. The sower merely makes the offer. Also, the sower doesn’t necessarily reap in kind. That is, there seems a very real possiblity that the harvest will be dissimilar to the seed planted. In 2 Corinthinians 9:6-11 the Apostle Paul commends the Corinthian church in their giving. Notice that he doesn’t say that they will reap a harvest of cash!
2 Corinthians 9:10 “He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way for all your generosity, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.”
Luke 8:38 “I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”
2) Experientially. Admittedly, there are some things that we do that will have a direct relationship to what we desire to happen. If we want to buy a home we must go and look for a home. If we want a driver’s license we must present ourselves to the authorities, pay a fee and pass some sort of test. But some other things seem to have no relation to what our desires seem to direct us. Many an older saint has wondered at a particularly distressing life event in the past and yet lived to see a positive outcome related to that seemingly random ‘evil’ experience. We can sympathize with the disciples’ view that the prospect of Jesus’ death must have seemed to be fruitless & counterproductive at that time yet on our side of the event we see clearly that its purpose was the great hope and salvation for many.
Consider also that our former lives of sin had an opposite effect from what we desired:
Romans 6:21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? The end of those things is death.
We desire joy yet in our rebellion we reap death!
Conclusion: We are a church that has, by the grace of God, gotten much right! Experiential doctrine and a warm fellowship of mutual support and encouragement - and we are to be commended for that. But we cannot expect our pastor and/or missionaries to be faithful in that which we are not willing to do ourselves. If we are a prayerless people, can we expect our representatives in much harsher conditions to be prayerful? If we are an ungrateful people, can we expect our representatives to be grateful? If we are uninterested in evangelism here in a land of freedom and opportunity, can we expect our missionaries to be evangelistic in places where they face real persecution and hardship? If we are discouraged when our evangelistic efforts seem fruitless do we quit?
Do we see that our planting here may result in an unexpected harvest across the world? Is it possible that God may take our personal effort here to harvest fruit in Africa but not allow us to see the direct results of our effort? Is it possible that we may see no fruit here for the sake of building our faith? If we demand evidence that our efforts are producing results are we not elevating our works above God’s work? Or do we walk by faith, knowing that the works we do, we do only by the grace of God.