Harvest Time?

Before long, the time will come for our farmers to gather their crops. To everything there is a season, and the reaping of many vegetables comes in autumn. Jesus uses horticultural themes several times in his parables to convey God’s nature and plan. Likewise, Paul teaches that every person will reap what they sow. Farming is excellent imagery for understanding several spiritual concepts, but I have become quite confused regarding the idea of harvesting unbelievers. My curiosity began long ago.

In the 1990s, there was a mission launched by the Assemblies of God called “Decade of Harvest.” Although I was too young at the time to read any official goals of this program, my church touted the mission to convert ten million souls to Christianity by the year 2000. I joined the Marines in 1996 and therefore never attempted to find out the outcome of this worldwide evangelistic push, but it did start spark in me a question that I continue to struggle with to this day.

“Since Jesus commanded his eleven disciples to ‘make disciples of all the nations,’ then why has my church experience focused overwhelmingly on conversions rather than discipling?”

I am fascinated by biblical eschatology. For better understanding, I turned to Revelation’s description of a particular harvest in chapter 14. However, the harvest described is at the end of time and is said to be done by a being described in the likeness of Jesus and an angel. Believers take no part harvesting but are themselves the good crops reaped by Jesus. If we look at the parable of the weeds among the wheat in Matthew 13, then we find the same explanation. Angels reap while the believers are the good seed.

There are other references to harvesting throughout the Bible with enlightening points. For instance, Proverbs teaches us that one who sleeps through a harvest is shameful, one who does not plow after autumn is lazy, and rain during the harvest is like honor for a fool. These are good messages but gets us nowhere closer to understanding a spiritual teaching that believers are responsible for conversions.

The strongest support that I can find for directing believers to harvest unbelievers comes from Matthew 9. I remember verses 37-38 being engrained in my own church upbringing. Jesus told his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.” Unfortunately, these verses are sometimes taken out of context in sermons to refer to saving the damned of this world. In fact, that was my understanding until I backed up and read verse 36 to provide more context, which adds, “Seeing the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and downcast, like sheep without a shepherd.” These crowds do not sound like unbelievers but were already seeking Jesus. What they lacked was leadership, thus reinforcing Jesus’ command in chapter 28 to make disciples. I was forced to conclude that there were no direct biblical teachings, parables, or prophecies in which believers are instructed to get others saved. Yet I still doubted.

Phrases like, “you are the salt of the earth,” and “you are the light to the world” are used to justify believers’ responsibility to convince people (in a loving way) of repenting and confessing Christ as their Lord. What do statements like this mean if there is no command to proselytize? I think these verses and many others like them (e.g., Gal. 5:22) simply instruct us to live our lives in a Christian manner.

But then my brain counters itself by remembering that Jesus taught the Gospel of the kingdom and some of the disciples travelled great distances to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I also recount Paul, who was appointed to preach to the Gentiles, and can see how this appears to be a form of harvesting unbelievers. Some of these scenarios demonstrate that preaching and making disciples go hand-in-hand (e.g., Acts 14:21).

Furthermore, I am well aware of my own designs to get out of hard work. I take comfort in believing that I am not responsible for others’ salvation, which is true. However, it is a small but significant difference to go from “not being responsible for others’ salvation” to “not being responsible to tell them about Jesus.” With this I have struggled greatly. Peter instructs us to be ready in season and out of season to defend the reason for our hope. So, what am I to do then? Should I spend every day forcing myself on people, moving from person to person, until I can claim to have convinced someone to say “the prayer” or go to church? Many spiritual leaders have already answered that question by advising Christians to not be “weirdos” but instead cultivate relationships, plant seeds of faith, and walk alongside unbelievers through difficulties in the hopes that they will commit to follow God in time. It sounds like they have processed what this looks like for them, and I appreciate their perspectives.

In conclusion, I take all these thoughts and Bible passages into account and still pray for understanding. I am a life-long believer, but what I believe changes with the development of my theology. Forgive me Lord for any who I have unwittingly misled and send them better prepared laborers for your harvest, whether that be for conversion, discipleship, or renewal of the mind.

July 29, 2023