No Work Means No Harvest

The husband who was told by the marriage counselor to try and be more considerate of his wife. One day he comes home from work. He’s dressed up in a suit, he has cologne on, and he has a bouquet of flowers and a box of candy in his hands. He rings the doorbell and he’ … More

Work

A wise woman will lead her household in the right way while the foolish brings grief to her offspring by her unholy influence (v. 1). The foolish woman through her wild behavior and bad instruction brings sorrow for herself and grief to her children by her unholy way of living. A person’s attitude toward the Lord shows up in his behavior (v. 2). The man who fears the Lord will walk in a straight path while the man who despises the Lord will walk in a crocked way. Proud fools are punished for their stupid talk, but sensible talk can save your life (v. 3).

Meaningful results of any kind require time, money and work. In Bible times oxen were very important to the harvest. Where there was no oxen there was no harvest. Of course where there was no oxen there was no chores, no feeding, no manure to haul and no yokes to repair. Twenty four hours a day you could have a clean barn since there was no reason for it to get dirty (v. 4).

Where there are no oxen there will be no harvest. No harvest means no money and no money means no food. A Christian who is starving spiritually often looks at the hard work in the barn (so to speak) and fails to see the harvest down the road. Digging into Scripture, spending time in prayer and spending time in sharing in the lives of others are the “oxen” that make for a fruitful and productive life. A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness will tell lies (v. 5).

Application

“If any would not work, neither should he eat” (1 Thessalonians 3:10). We know this is true in the physical realm. I need to ask my family how they think this applies in the spiritual realm. How can I experience a spiritual harvest without work?

Proverbs 14:1-5 (English Standard Version)


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