Hello;

I am preparing to speak on Matthew 9 (Lord of the harvest..pray for workers...).

The context will be a youth camp of kids from our small calvy baptist churches.

Most of the teens will average age 16, and most are homeschooled and maybe 3/4th are professing Christians.


What would be key items you would mention to this young crowd based on the latter part of Matthew 9?

__________________
Pergamum


"If a commission by an earthly king is considered a honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?"
-- David Livingstone

1) If we are not called to mission(ary) work we are commanded to pray. Praying is just as important as the actual preaching of the gospel. This might help these younger people understand that not all of God's people must be a pastor, missionary etc.

2) There is a guarantee of success: a harvest promised. This is an encouragement in all evangelism - our sovereign God has chosen His elect to salvation, we simply need to give them the means to it (gospel). In other words we need not be concerned about the fruits because that is God's business not ours.

3) Most importantly the Father in Christ is exalted: "Lord of the harvest" As someone said “without Him [Christ] the harvest could not be brought in at all". After all this statement comes in the context of Jesus compassion having seeing the weary and scattered sheep without a shepherd (vs. 36). And we continue to exalt Him as well as see His compassion every time the gospel is preached.

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Rev. Daniel Kok
Pastor of Grace Reformed Church (URCNA)
Leduc, Alberta CANADA

"What sort of pledge and how great is this of love towards us! Christ lives for us not for himself!"
John Calvin, Commentary on the Hebrews (7:25)

Okay, good....I had all those points down already as some of the most striking.

I also stressed the fact that why would Jesus have us pray for the harvest and tell us that harvest was plentiful if we are not to expect abundant yields, i.e., there is an optimism here, that the same Lord that bids us to pray for the plentiful harvest will grant plentous souls to enter the kingdom.

-----Added 7/14/2009 at 02:19:45 EST-----

P.S., Any thoughts on the use of ekballo as the word the text uses for sending out? Thrusting out, throwing out.... seems a harsh term to use in reference to the sending out of workers.

-----Added 7/14/2009 at 02:23:24 EST-----

Another question: What is the link between the end of chapter 9 and the start of chapter 10. Chapter 9 ends with Jesus saying pray for workers, and then in 10 he sends out those workers that he had picked. This seems to have been the third time through Galilee for Jesus.

-----Added 7/14/2009 at 02:36:57 EST-----

Finally, in Luke 10 the order is reversed, and this prayer seems mentioned in context of sending out the 70, not as a general prayer for all evangelism.

I thought that was interesting too but none of the commentators I consulted dealt with it. The only thought I have is that since the Lord has chosen His to go forth and give the message they are compelled to go. This may also answer your second question above.

FWIW, if I am preaching on a passage and I have a question about something (esp. in the original language) that cannot be resolved I generally leave it aside so as not to confuse my hearers.

Re: the account in Luke 10 - it seems rather obvious that the Lord gave similar instructions to the seventy about their work. I believe these principles apply in both the permanent (apostolic) and temporary (70) situations. When I preached on this passage I endeavoured to show how these principles are found in other places in God's Word.

I think a key point is v36. 'And SEEING the multitudes, He felt COMPASSION for them because they were distressed and downcast like SHEEP WITHOUT A SHEPHERD..' Unless your listeners see, have compassion and the correct reason for compassion, then any teaching/sermon will have just short term results.

To encourage prayer from this passage may encourage prayer for a few days unless there is that compassion. But the compasion can only come from seeing the plight of the multitudes and why they are in that plight.

Likewise the same applies to those you are trying to encourage to become missionaries; many start out on this road but without that compassion and understanding of their plight, then they will not get too far.


I would focus on the title Lord of the Harvest. This shows us:-
1. The one who is responsible for gathering in the harvest
2. The fact that there will be a harvest (much evangelism is done with little, if any, anticipation of a harvest. Often there is the attitude 'we have done this before and nothing has ever happened' and the level of expectation drops. Whether we are concerned about prayer or going, if our expection drops is there any point in praying or evangelising?

__________________
Stuart
Elder, Lambeg Baptist, Northern Ireland, UK

In Him the fulness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form and in Him you are complete (Col 2.9-10)

The Christian is a person who makes it easy for others to believe in God. (RM M'Cheyne)

okay, I am covered and have mentioned all that.

Now,

What do we do with Luke 10:2 and the John verse which also speaks of harvest fields and workers. Just leave these other 2 passage alone, or touch briefly on them? They seemed tohave possibly all been uttered on different occasions, which would mean that such an analogy of the harvest was a common thing forJesus to do (I am fairly sure he retold some of his parables perhaps).

I am sure the harvest analogy was very commonly used analogy. This can be seen in many of the parables which end in a harvest. I am also sure Jesus preached the sermon twice (Matthew's Sermon on the Mount and Luke's Sermon on the Plain-one sermon two different locations) and used the same illustrations in different places.

I would see Luke and Johns version as two different ocassions. They do not detract or contradict but rather they build up the fuller picture. I would just concentrate on the Matthew version without reference to Luke or John. But if you do want to mention them just say 'in Luke/John's account...'

If 3/4 are Christians and 1/4 are not then you have 25% of your audience who are like the sheep without a shepherd. I would challenge them and would also challenge the other 75% to realise that lost sheep are much closer than they think.