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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 13, 1916

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 93, No. 3.

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EDITORIALS

By G. B. T.

The Harvest

I RECENTLY read of a man who tried the experiment of raising a harvest from one little seed. He planted one kernel of corn, and it yielded two ears. The next year he planted the corn from these two ears, and as a result had nearly a bushel of shelled corn. Again he repeated the experiment, and was rewarded with an abundant harvest.
There is a great practical lesson in this. We are in the sowing time. We are planting seed daily; the harvest will not be fully seen till in eternity. What a great incentive to plant seeds of kindness, love, and divine truth to be multiplied as time goes on, and an abundant harvest gathered in the future. Now is the time to plant. It is always sad to see an aged man, who is tottering on the verge of the tomb, planting a shade tree or an orchard. Ere he can sit beneath the foliage and enjoy the shade, or gather the fruit, he will be slumbering in the tomb. He should have begun earlier in life to plant.
Today we can sow a seed of kindness. We can speak tenderly to those we meet. We can smile and be cheerful to those about us. We can visit the sick, and minister to the needy. We can search out those who have grown cold and lost their hope, and encourage them to take a new hold on divine realities. This is planting.
“Let us gather up the sunbeams, Lying all around our path; Let us keep the wheat and roses, Casting out the thorns and chaff; Let us find our sweetest comfort In the blessings of today, With a patient hand removing All the briers from the way.”
Today we can give of our means to advance the gospel. We can make sacrifices and bear crosses for Christ’s sake. If God has blessed us with abundance, we can give liberally to him. That which is given now will bring great returns, and will be multiplied manyfold.
All this is sowing. We shall reap in eternity, not in the coin of earth, but in souls. How unspeakably blessed it will be to see blood-washed souls in the kingdom, saved by faith in Christ, who through our labors have been led to him!
Today we can sow the gospel seed through the printed page. We can visit our neighbor who is working with a muck rake, and tell him of heaven, and the eternal realities there, and bid him look up and behold a crown of glory. We can scatter tracts and periodicals broadcast. We can sell and lend books. We know not which will prosper, whether this or that. But God will care for the results. The seed thus sown will be multiplied. When one soul comes to Jesus, he in turn brings others to the fold, and so the seed is multiplied more and more.
“When comes the king in royal might, To crush the wrong, and crown the right; When all the saints in glory meet, No more to die, no more to weep; When thrones are set and crowns are given, With all the rich reward of heaven, Oh, in that heavenly by and by, What’s done for God will never die!”
How blessed it is that what we do for God will live forever! We sow here; we reap in eternity. Our investment of time, money, or whatever it is, will bring eternal dividends in the kingdom of God. Let us sow faithfully the seeds of the word, that we may finally reap with joy.
G. B. T.