<h2><SPAN name="THE_JOY_OF_HARVEST" id="THE_JOY_OF_HARVEST">THE JOY OF HARVEST.</SPAN></h2>
<p class="small">"They joy before thee according to the joy in harvest."—<span class="smcap">Isaiah</span> 9:3.</p>
<p class="p2"><span class="smcap">The</span> other day I kept the feast with a company who
shouted "Harvest Home." I was glad to see the rich
and poor rejoicing together; and when the cheerful
meal was ended, I was glad to turn one of the tables
into a pulpit, and in the large barn to preach the gospel
of the ever-blessed God to an earnest audience. My
heart was merry in harmony with the occasion, and I
shall now keep in the same key, and talk to you a little
upon the joy of harvest. Londoners forget that it is
harvest time; living in this great desert of dingy bricks
we hardly know what a wheat-ear is like, except as we
see it dry and white in the window of a corn dealer's
shop; yet let us all remember that there is such a season
as harvest, when by God's goodness the fruits of the
earth are gathered in.</p>
<p><span class="smcap">What is the joy of harvest</span> which is here taken as
the simile of the joy of the saints before God? I am
afraid that to the mere selfish order of spirits the joy of
harvest is simply that of personal gratification at the increase
of wealth. Sometimes the farmer only rejoices
because <i>he sees the reward of his toils</i>, and is so much the
richer man. I hope that with many there mingles the
second cause of joy; namely, gratitude to God that an
abundant harvest will give bread to the poor, and remove<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[212]</SPAN></span>
complaining from our streets. There is a lawful joy in
harvest, no doubt, to the man who is enriched by it;
for any man who works hard has a right to rejoice
when at last he gains his desire. It would be well if
men would always recollect that their last and greatest
harvest will be to them according to their labor. He that
soweth to the flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, and
only the man that soweth to the spirit will of the spirit
reap life everlasting. Many a young man commences
life by sowing what he calls his wild oats, which he had
better never have sown, for they will bring him a
terrible harvest. He expects that from these wild
oats he will gather a harvest of true pleasure, but it
cannot be; the truest pleasures of life spring from the
good seed of righteousness, and not from the hemlock
of sin. As a man who sows thistles in his furrows must
not expect to reap the golden wheatsheaf, so he who
follows the ways of vice must not expect happiness.
On the contrary, if he sows the wind he will reap the
whirlwind. When a sinner feels the pangs of conscience
he may well say, "This is what I sowed." When he
shall at last receive the punishment of his evil deeds he
will blame no one but himself; he sowed tares and he
must reap tares. On the other hand, the Christian man,
though his salvation is not of works, but of grace, will
have a gracious reward given to him by his Master. Sowing
in tears, he shall reap in joy. Putting out his
talents to interest, he shall enter into his Master's joy,
and hear him say, "Well done, good and faithful
servant." The joy of harvest in part consists of the reward
of labor; may such be our joy in serving the Lord.</p>
<p>The joy of harvest has another element in it, namely,
that of <i>gratitude to God for favors bestowed</i>. We are singu<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[213]</SPAN></span>larly
dependent on God; far more so than most of us
imagine. When the children of Israel were in the wilderness
they went forth every morning and gathered the
manna. Our manna does not come to us every morning,
but it comes once a year. It is as much a heavenly
supply as if it lay like a hoarfrost round about the
camp. If we went out into the field and gathered food
which dropped from the clouds we should think it a
great miracle; and is it not as great a marvel that our
bread should come up from the earth as that it should
come down from the sky? The same God who bade
the heavens drop with angels' food bids the dull earth
in its due season yield corn for mankind. Therefore
whenever we find that harvest comes, let us be grateful
to God, and let us not suffer the season to pass over
without psalms of thanksgiving. I believe I shall be
correct if I say that there is never in the world, as a
rule, more than sixteen months' supply of food; that
is to say, when the harvest is gathered in, there may be
sixteen months' supply; but at the time of harvest
there is not usually enough wheat in the whole world to
last the population more than four or five months; so
that if the harvest did not come we should be on the
verge of famine. We live still from hand to mouth.
Let us pause and bless God, and let the joy of harvest
be the joy of gratitude.</p>
<p>To the Christian it should be great joy, by means
of the harvest, <i>to receive an assurance of God's faithfulness</i>.
The Lord has promised that seed-time and harvest,
summer and winter, shall never cease; and when you
see the loaded wain carrying in the crop you may say to
yourself, "God is true to his promise. Despite the
dreary winter and the damp spring, autumn has come
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[214]</SPAN></span>
with its golden grain." Depend upon it, that as the
Lord keeps this promise he will keep all the rest. All
his promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus; if he
keeps his covenant to the earth, much more will he keep
his covenant with his own people, whom he hath loved
with an everlasting love. Go, Christian, to the mercy-seat
with the promise on your lip and plead it. Be assured
it is not a dead letter. Let not unbelief cause you
to stammer when you mention the promise before the
throne, but say it boldly—"Fulfil this word unto thy
servant on which thou hast caused me to hope."
Shame upon us that we so little believe our God. The
world is full of proofs of his goodness. Every rising
sun, every falling shower, every revolving season certifies
his faithfulness. Wherefore do we doubt him? If we
never doubt him till we have cause for it we shall never
know distrust again. Encouraged by the return of
harvest, let us resolve in the strength of the Spirit of God
that we will not waver, but will believe in the divine
word and rejoice in it.</p>
<p>Once more. To the Christian, in the joy of
harvest there will always be <i>the joy of expectation</i>. As
there is a harvest to the husbandman for which he
waiteth patiently, so there is a harvest for all faithful
waiters who are looking for the coming and the appearing
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The mature
Christian, like the ripe ear of corn, hangs down his
head with holy humility. When he was but green in
the things of God he stood erect and was somewhat
boastful, but now that he has become full of the blessing
of the Lord he is humbled thereby, and bows himself
down; he is waiting for the sickle, and he dreads it
not, for no common reaper shall come to gather Christ's<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[215]</SPAN></span>
people—he himself shall reap the harvest of the world.
The Lord leaves the destroying angel to reap the vintage
and to cast it into the wine-vat to be trodden with
vengeance; but as for the grain which he himself has
sown, he will gather it himself with his own golden sickle.
We are looking for this. We are growing among the
tares, and sometimes we are half afraid lest the tares
should be stronger than ourselves and choke the wheat;
but we shall be separated by-and-by, and when the corn
is well winnowed and stored in the garner, we shall be
there. It is this expectation which even now makes our
hearts throb with joy. We have gone to the grave with
precious sheaves that belonged to our Master, and when
we were there we thought we could almost say, "Lord,
if they sleep they shall do well. Let us die with them."
Our joy of harvest is the hope of being at rest with all
the saints, and for ever with the Lord. A view of these
shadowy harvests upon earth should make us exceedingly
glad, because they are the image and foreshadowing
of the eternal harvest above.</p>
<p class="p2">So much about the joy of harvest; but I hasten
onward. <span class="smcap">What joys are those which to the believer
are as the joy of harvest?</span> It is a common notion
that Christians are an unhappy people. It is true that
we are tried, but it is false that we are miserable. With
all their trials, believers have such a compensation in the
love of Christ that they are still a blessed generation,
and it may be said of them, "Happy art thou, O
Israel."</p>
<p>One of the first seasons in which we knew a joy
equal to the joy of harvest—a season which has continued
with us ever since it commenced—was <i>when we<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[216]</SPAN></span>
found the Saviour</i>, and so obtained salvation. You recollect
for yourselves, brethren and sisters, the time of the
ploughing of your souls. My heart was fallow, and
covered with weeds; but on a certain day the great
Husbandman came and began to plough my soul. Ten
black horses were his team, and it was a sharp ploughshare
that he used, and the ploughers made deep
furrows. The ten commandments were those black
horses, and the justice of God, like a ploughshare, tore
my spirit. I was condemned, undone, destroyed, lost,
helpless, hopeless—I thought hell was before me. Then
there came a cross ploughing, for when I went to hear
the gospel it did not comfort me; it made me wish I had
a part in it, but I feared that such a boon was out of the
question. The choicest promises of God frowned at
me, and his threatenings thundered at me. I prayed,
but found no answer of peace. It was long with me
thus. After the ploughing came the sowing. God who
ploughed the heart made it conscious that it needed the
gospel, and the gospel seed was joyfully received. Do
you recollect that auspicious day when at last you began
to have some little hope? It was very little—like a
green blade that peeps up from the soil; you scarce
knew whether it was grass or corn, whether it was presumption
or true faith. It was a little hope, but it
grew very pleasantly. Alas, a frost of doubt came;
snow of fear fell; cold winds of despondency blew on
you, and you said, "There can be no hope for me."
But what a glorious day was that when at last the wheat
which God had sown ripened, and you could say,
"I have looked unto him and have been lightened; I
have laid my sins on Jesus, where God laid them of old,
and they are taken away, and I am saved." I remember<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[217]</SPAN></span>
well that day, and so no doubt do many of you. O
sirs! no husbandman ever shouted for joy as our heart
shouted when a precious Christ was ours, and we could
grasp him with full assurance of salvation in him.
Many days have passed since then, but the joy of it is
still fresh with us. And, blessed be God, it is not the
joy of the first day only that we look back upon; it is
the joy of every day since then, more or less; for our
joy no man taketh from us; still we are walking in
Christ, even as we received him. Even now all our hope
on him is stayed, all our help from him we bring; and
our joy and peace continue with us because they are
based upon an immovable foundation. We rejoice in the
Lord, yea, and we will rejoice.</p>
<p>The joy of harvest generally shows itself by the
farmer giving a feast to his friends and neighbors;
and, usually, those who find Christ express their joy by
telling their friends and their neighbors how great
things the Lord hath done for them. The grace of God
is communicative. A man cannot be saved, and always
hold his tongue about it; as well look for dumb choirs
in heaven as for a silent church on earth. If a man has
been thirsty, and has come to the living stream, his
first impulse will be to cry, "Ho! every one that
thirsteth!" Do you feel the joy of harvest, the joy
that makes you wish that others should share with
you? If so, do not repress the impulse to proclaim your
happiness. Speak of Christ to brothers and sisters, to
friends and kinsfolk; and, if the language be stammering,
the message in itself is so important that the
words in which you couch it will be a secondary consideration.
Tell it, tell it out far and wide—that there
is a Saviour, that you have found him, and that his
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[218]</SPAN></span>
blood can wash away transgression. Tell it every where;
and so the joy of harvest shall spread o'er land and sea,
and God shall be glorified.</p>
<p>We have another joy which is like the joy of harvest.
We frequently have it, too. It is <i>the joy of
answered prayer</i>. I hope you know what it is to pray in
faith. Some prayer is not worth the words used in presenting
it, because there is no faith mixed with it.
"With all thy sacrifices thou shalt offer salt," and the
salt of faith is needful if we would have our sacrifices
accepted. Those who are familiar with the mercy-seat
know that prayer is a reality, and that the doctrine of
divine answers to prayer is no fiction. Sometimes God
will delay to answer for wise reasons; then his children
must cry, and cry, and cry again. They are in the condition
of the husbandman who must wait for the precious
fruits of the earth; and when at last the answer to
prayer comes, they are then in the husbandman's position
when he receives the harvest. Remember Hannah's
wail and Hannah's word. In the bitterness of her soul
she cried to God, and when her child was given to her
she called it "Samuel," meaning, "Asked of God;"
for, said she, "For this child I prayed." He was a
dear child to her, because he was a child of prayer.
Any mercy that comes to you in answer to prayer will
be your Samuel mercy, your darling mercy. You will
say of it, "For this mercy I prayed," and it will bring
the joy of harvest to your spirit. If the Lord desires to
surprise his children he has only to answer their prayers;
for the most of them would be astonished if an
answer came to their petitions. I know how they speak
about answers to prayer. They say, "How remarkable!
How wonderful!" as if it were anything re<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[219]</SPAN></span>markable
that God should be true, and that the Most
High should keep his promise. Oh for more faith to
rest upon his word! and we should have more of these
harvest joys.</p>
<p>We have another joy of harvest in ourselves <i>when
we conquer a temptation</i>. We know what it is to get under
a cloud sometimes; sin within us rises with a darkening
force, or an external adversity beclouds us, and
we miss the plain path we were accustomed to walk in.
A child of God at such times will cry mightily for help;
for he is fearful of himself and fearful of his surroundings.
Some of God's people have been by the week and
month together exposed to the double temptation, from
without and from within, and have cried to God in
bitter anguish. It has been a very hard struggle; the
sinful action has been painted in very fascinating colors,
and the siren voice of temptation has almost enchanted
them. But when at last they have got through the
valley of the shadow of death without having slipped
with their feet; when, after all, they have not been destroyed
by Apollyon, but have come forth again into
the daylight, they feel a joy unspeakable, compared
with which the joy of harvest is mere childish merriment.
Those know deep joy who have felt bitter
sorrow. As the man feels that he is the stronger for the
conflict, as he feels that he has gathered experience and
stronger faith from having passed through the trial, he
lifts up his heart, and rejoices, not in himself, but before
his God, with the joy of harvest. Brethren beloved,
you know what that means.</p>
<p>Again, there is such a thing as the joy of harvest
<i>when we have been rendered useful</i>. The master passion of
every Christian is to be useful. There should be a
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[220]</SPAN></span>
burning zeal within us for the glory of God. When the
man who desires to be useful has laid his plans and set
about his work, he begins to look out for the results;
but perhaps it will be weeks, or years, before results
will come. The worker is not to be blamed that there
are no fruits as yet, but he is to be blamed if he is content
to be without fruits. A preacher may preach without
conversions, and who shall blame him? but if he be
happy, who shall excuse him? It is ours to break our
own hearts if we cannot by God's grace break other
men's hearts, if others will not weep for their sins it
should be our constant habit to weep for them. When
the heart becomes earnest, warm, zealous, God usually
gives a measure of success, some fiftyfold, some a hundredfold.
When the success comes it is the joy of
harvest indeed. I cannot help being egotistical enough
to mention the joy I felt when first I heard that a soul
had found peace through my youthful ministry. I had
been preaching in a village some few Sabbaths with an
increasing congregation, but I had not heard of a conversion,
and I thought, "Perhaps I am not called of
God. He does not mean me to preach, for if he did he
would give me spiritual children." One Sabbath my
good deacon said, "Don't be discouraged. A poor
woman was savingly impressed last Sabbath." How
long do you suppose it was before I saw that woman?
It was just as long as it took me to reach her cottage.
I was eager to hear from her own lips whether it was a
work of God's grace or not. I always looked upon her
with interest, though only a poor laborer's wife, till she
was taken away to heaven, after having lived a holy
life. Many since then have I rejoiced over in the Lord,
but that first seal to my ministry was peculiarly dear to
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[221]</SPAN></span>
me. It gave me a sip of the joy of harvest. If somebody
had left me a fortune it would not have caused me
one-hundredth part of the delight I had in discovering
that a soul had been led to the Saviour. I am sure
Christian people who have not this joy have missed one
of the choicest delights that a believer can know this
side heaven. In fact, when I see souls saved, I do
not envy Gabriel his throne nor the angels their harps.
It shall be our heaven to be out of heaven for a season if
we can but bring others to know the Saviour and so add
fresh jewels to the Redeemer's crown.</p>
<p>I will mention another delight which is as the joy
of harvest, and that is <i>fellowship with the Lord Jesus
Christ</i>. This is not so much a matter for speech as for
experience and delight. If we try to speak of what
communion with Christ is, we fail. Solomon, the wisest
of men, when inspired to write of the fellowship of
the church with her Lord, was compelled to write in
allegories and emblems, and though to the spiritual
mind the Book of Canticles is always delightful, yet to
the carnal mind it seems a mere love song. The natural
man discerneth not the things that be of God, for
they are spiritual, and can only be spiritually discerned.
But, oh, the bliss of knowing that Christ is yours, and
of entering into nearness of communion with him. To
thrust your hand into his side, and your finger into the
print of the nails; these be not everyday joys; but
when such near and dear communings come to us on
our highdays and holydays, they make our souls like
the chariots of Ammi-nadib, or, if you will, they cause
us to tread the world beneath our feet and all that earth
calls good or great. Our condition matters nothing to
us if Christ be with us—he is our God, our comfort,
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[222]</SPAN></span>
and our all, and we rejoice before him as with the joy
of harvest.</p>
<p class="p2">I have no time to enlarge further; for I want to
close with one other practical word. Many of us are
anxiously desiring a harvest which would bring to us an
intense delight. Of late, divers persons have communicated
to me in many ways the strong emotion they feel
of pity for the souls of men. Others of us have felt a
mysterious impulse to pray more than we did, and to be
more anxious than ever we were that Christ would save
poor perishing sinners. We shall not be satisfied until
there is a thorough awakening in this land. We did
not raise the feeling in our own minds, and we do not
desire to repress it. We do not believe it can be repressed;
but others will feel the same heavenly affection,
and will sigh and cry to God day and night until
the blessing comes. This is the sowing, this is the
ploughing, this is the harrowing—may it go on to harvesting.
I long to hear my brethren and sisters universally
saying, "We are full of anguish, we are in
agony till souls be saved." The cry of Rachel, "Give
me children, or I die," is the cry of your minister this
day, and the longing of thousands more besides. As
that desire grows in intensity a revival is approaching.
We must have spiritual children born to Christ, or our
hearts will break for the longing that we have for their
salvation. Oh for more of these longings, yearnings,
cravings, travailings! If we plead till the harvest of
revival comes we shall partake in the joy of it.</p>
<p>Who will have the most joy? Those who have been
the most concerned about it. You who do not pray in
private, nor come out to prayer-meetings, will not<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[223]</SPAN></span>
have the joy when the blessing comes, and the church is
increased. You had no share in the sowing, therefore
you will have little share in the reaping. You who
never speak to others about their souls, who take no
share in Sunday-school or mission work, but simply eat
the fat and drink the sweet—you shall have none of the
joy of harvest, for you do not put your hands to the
work of the Lord. And who would wish that idlers
should be happy? Rather in our zeal and jealousy we
feel inclined to say, "Curse ye Meroz, curse ye bitterly
the inhabitants thereof; because they came not up to
the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against
the mighty." If you come to the help of the Lord by
his own divine Spirit, you shall share the joy of harvest.
Perhaps none will have more of that joy than those who
shall have the privilege of seeing their own dear ones
brought to God. Some of you have children who are a
trial to you whenever you think of them; let them be
such a trial to you that they drive you to incessant
prayer for them, and, if the blessing comes, why should
it not drop on them? If a revival comes, why should
not your daughter yet be converted, and that wild boy
of yours be brought in, or even your gray-headed
father, who has been sceptical and unbelieving—why
should not the grace of God come to him? And, oh,
what a joy of harvest you will have then? What bliss
will thrill through your spirit when you see those who
are united to you in ties of blood united to Christ your
Lord! Pray much for them with earnest faith, and you
shall yet have the joy of harvest in your own house, a
shout of harvest home in your own family.</p>
<p>Possibly, my hearer, you have not much to do with
such joy, for you are yourself unsaved. Yet it is a<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[224]</SPAN></span>
grand thing for an unconverted person to be under a
ministry that God blesses, and with a people that pray
for conversions. It is a happy thing for you, young man,
to have a Christian mother. It is a great boon for you,
O unconverted woman, that you have a godly sister.
These make us hopeful for you. While your relations
are prayerful, we are hopeful for <i>you</i>. May the Lord
Jesus be yours yet. But, oh! if you remain unbelieving,
however rich a blessing comes to others, it
will leave <i>you</i> none the better for it. "If ye be willing
and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land;" but
there are some who may cry in piteous accents, "The
harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not
saved." It has been remarked that those who pass
through a season of revival and remain unconverted are
more hardened and unimpressed than before. I believe
it to be so, and I therefore pray the divine Spirit to come
with such energy that none of you may escape his
power. May you be led to pray,</p>
<div class="poetry-container"><div class="poetry">
<div class="stanza">
<div class="line small">"Pass me not, O mighty Spirit!</div>
<div class="line small i2">Thou canst make the blind to see;</div>
<div class="line small ip5">Witnesser of Jesus' merit,</div>
<div class="line small i2">Speak the word of power to me,</div>
<div class="line small i13">Even me."</div>
</div>
<div class="stanza">
<div class="line small">"Have I long in sin been sleeping,</div>
<div class="line small i2">Long been slighting, grieving thee?</div>
<div class="line small ip5">Has the world my heart been keeping?</div>
<div class="line small i2">Oh forgive and rescue me,</div>
<div class="line small i13">Even me."</div>
</div></div>
</div>
<p>Oh for earnest, importunate prayer from all believers
throughout the world! If our churches could be stirred
up to incessant, vehement crying to God, so as to give
him no rest till he make Zion a praise in the earth, we
might expect to see God's kingdom come and the power<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[225]</SPAN></span>
of Satan fall. As many of you as love Christ, I charge
you by his dear name to be much in prayer; as many
of you as love the Church of God, and desire her prosperity,
I beseech you keep not back in this time of supplication.
The Lord grant that you may be led to
plead till the harvest joy is granted. Do you remember
one Sabbath my saying, "The Lord deal so with you as
you deal with his work during this next month." I
feel as if it will be so with many of you—that the Lord
will deal so with you as you shall deal with his Church.
If you scatter little you shall have little, if you pray little
you shall have little favor; but if you have zeal and
faith, and plead much and work much for the Lord,
good measure, pressed down and running over, shall
the Lord return into your own bosoms. If you water
others with drops you shall receive drops in return;
but if the Spirit helps you to pour out rivers of living
water from your own soul, then floods of heavenly grace
shall flow into your spirit. God bring in the unconverted,
and lead them to a simple trust in Jesus; then
shall they also know the joy of harvest. We ask it for
his name's sake. Amen.</p>
<div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />
1 of 2
2 of 2
Previous
Next
Update Required
To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.