Seeing the Potential for Harvest.  Matthew 9:35

• Being present.
  • For people to understand their need for a savior there has to be context.
  • As opportunity comes give the gospel context—be a teacher.
  • Jesus taught where the people would be—in the synagogues.
• Proclaiming 
  • When there is context then we understand our condition.
  • The gospel becomes “good news”.
  • You cannot respond if you do not know.
• Meeting needs.
  • When there was ministry to the physical needs a platform was created.
  • Meeting needs reveals the heart of the messenger.
  • People will receive if they can trust your motives.

Heart behind the harvest—compassion! Matthew 9:36-38

• The heart of compassion happens when you see and understand the state of another.
  • Hardness of heart happens when you see and understand the state of another, and you choose to walk by or avoid.

• Compassion in action happens when you see the state of another you intervene, and you become an advocate on their behalf.
  • Directly in meeting their needs
  • Indirectly when you pray to God on their behalf.

• Compassion drivers you to pray! You pray for harvest, to the Lord of the harvest.
  • Jesus tells them to ask God to send harvesters.
  • Ironically, they were instructed to pray for God to send harvesters, which was the very thing they were being trained for.

Work of the Harvest.

            Cultivate- preparing the soil of the heart to receive. 

            Plant- sowing seeds of the gospel into a relationship by word and deed. 

            Reap- presenting and calling for a response to the gospel. 

Preparing for the Harvest. 

1. Pray for those in your relational world—your oikos! Matthew 9:38; Luke 18:1-18
2. Sow seeds of the good news by words and deeds.

Galatians 6:7-10 ⁷ Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. ⁸ Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. ⁹ Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ¹⁰ Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. 

3. Sow generously out of compassion.

2 Corinthians 9:6-11 ⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ⁹ As it is written:

“They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;
    their righteousness endures forever.”^[a]

¹⁰ Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹ You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

4. Trust God for the results.

1 Corinthians 3:5-9 ⁵ What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. ⁶ I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. ⁷ So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸ The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. ⁹ For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.