One morning in late September
Glenda and I walked down a graveled lane near where we were staying.
We were reminded again of the change that was taking place all
around us. Summer had given way to Fall. Looking about, I was
reminded of a verse in Jeremiah. “The harvest is past, the summer
is ended, and we are not saved. The harvest is past, the summer is
ended, and we are not saved” (Jeremiah 8:20).
Speaking through His servant Jeremiah, God spoke of a people that
had difficulty discerning the seasons. In an earlier verse God said,
“Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and
the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their
coming; but my people know not the judgment of the LORD” (Jeremiah
8:7). The people perceived themselves as wise and living in a
state of prosperity and blessing. This was not the case! God
described them as being ignorant to sin, the severity of judgment,
and the season in which they lived. God was speaking to His people.
It is important that God’s children be able to discern the seasons.
As one season gives way to another, great change occurs. In
Jeremiah 8:20 the change that is most notable is the decease of
things. There is a:
(I) Decrease in Labor – “The harvest is past”
When winter gives way to spring and summer, it means an increase in
labor. Fields and gardens had to be plowed, planted, worked, and
harvested. All that has now ceased with the changing of the season,
“the harvest is past!” The work the farmer is going to do, he
must do in the spring and summer for the time is coming when the
opportunity to labor will be gone. While I do not dwell on it, I am
often reminded that I have but a few days to labor.
There are two thoughts to be
considered concerning the decrease in labor. There is death
and there is deterioration. May I not be ignorant to
the brevity of life, both mine as well as those about me. “Whereas
ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It
is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then
vanisheth away” (James 4:14).
I must accept the fact that the people I serve, or I could die at
any moment. Knowing this truth, I must not be slothful in my service
for the Lord. None of us have the assurance that we will see another
day. The second thing is the deterioration of the tabernacle in
which I live. While I may live a very long life on this earth, with
years comes the absence of strength and ability. I have purposed
within my heart to never quit, but I must face the fact that the day
will come that I must slow down. The day will come when I can no
longer run with the youth and bear up under the heat of the sun. In
that season of my life I must accept the decrease in labor. Are you
aware of what season you are living in and how soon it may change?
(II) Decrease in Light –
“the summer is ended”
Not only does the changing of
the seasons have an effect on labor, but it also has an effect on
light. With the end of summer and the coming of fall, the days get
shorter. With the approach of fall, we begin to adjust our wardrobe
and our schedules. The temperatures begin to drop and we schedule
work when there is light to see. What is physically true is also
spiritually true! Our world is quickly approaching the fall season
of time. It continues to get colder in respect to the Word of God
and the light has given way to more and more darkness. Let me
quickly point out a truth that needs to be remembered. The shorted
days and the cooler temperatures is earth’s response to the sun. The
sun is a constant factor. It is the earth’s changing relationship to
the sun that produces increase or decrease of light and heat. God
has not changed; it is man’s relationship to God that has created
this cold and dark environment. Some would be so foolish as to say
that the world is getting better, but they have failed to discern
the changing season. It is more than the fact that the world rejects
the light, it is the fact that many pulpits no longer give forth
light. I am reminded of what Paul told the young preacher, Timothy.
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine;
but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers,
having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the
truth, and shall be turned unto fables” (II Timothy 4:3-4).
Knowing these things, I must be busy about the Father’s business and
let my light shine before men, “that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
(III) Decrease in Liberty –
“and we are not saved”
The decrease in labor and light
yields a decrease in liberty. The word “saved” means to be
open wide or free, to be safe or delivered, to get victory. In his
lost condition, man is bound to his sins and the wrath that awaits
him. Man cannot free himself; he must have a deliverer! But, the
absence of laborers and the rejection of light decrease the
opportunity for salvation. What was true in Jeremiah day was also
true when the Lord Jesus walked on this earth. Speaking to His
disciples Jesus said, “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the
labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that
he will send forth labourers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:37-38).
He also said, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come
into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because
their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). Things have not changed for
the better, rather for the worse! Some would try to tell us that the
whole will be saved. While it could, it will not! “Enter ye in at
the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that
leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth
unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).
Walking down that gravel road,
I saw changes that have taken place. These changes tell me that one
season is about to past and give way to another. The crops have been
harvested and the garden cleared for next year. The leaves change
colors as the days become shorter and the temperature drops. The
natural eye discerns the change of season. May I be as quick to
discern the changing of the spiritual seasons of life as I am the
natural. The change in season may bring a decrease in labor, light,
and liberty but it does not mean that we take a pessimistic attitude
and quit. Let these things encourage us to be busy.
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