Jump Start # 1766

John 4:35 “Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.”

I have recently realized that observation is a gift. Some have it in abundance and some don’t. For the longest time I could not understand why some couldn’t see what seemed so obvious. I guess they didn’t have the eyes of observation.

Our passage is based upon observation. By the calendar, there was still a quarter of the year left before harvest. Four months is a long while for a person who is waiting. Take a vacation. Read a book. Catch up on some odds and ends. When harvest time comes, it will be a busy time. Bringing in the sheaves, as the old hymn reminds us. No time for vacation during the harvest. Yet, Jesus tells these disciples to “lift up your eyes,” one of the great lines of the New Testament. Observe. Look. Look on the fields, the Lord says. I know the calendar says we have four months to go, but observation tells us that now is the harvest time. Now is the time to get busy.

Observation—Jesus used this to derail our common problem of worry. In Matthew 6, Jesus says, “Look at the birds of the air” (v. 26). Later in this section He says, “Observe how the lilies of the field grow” (v. 28). Look. Observe. Open your eyes. Lift up your eyes. See. If God takes care of these small things in creation, which are not made in His image and which do not live on in eternity, will He not take care of you?

Throughout the book of Revelation, this thought of seeing things is found. Revelation four begins with, “I looked and behold, a door standing open in Heaven.” The next chapter begins, “I saw in the right hand…” Chapter six begins, “Then I saw…” Chapter seven begins, “After this I saw…”. The expression, “I saw” is repeated over 40 times in Revelation. The book of Revelation is a picture book. Look. See. Observe.

So, some have the gift to see things and others do not. Those that see things need to share what they see with those who do not see things. This is how we work together as a team. Mom comes home and all the kids are on the couch watching TV, and clean dishes are stacked up in the sink, the trash cans are full and overflowing, there is clean laundry in the dryer and no one is moving on these things. Mom sighs. Mom gets upset and discouraged. She sees these things. The kids never do. Why can’t they? Maybe they don’t want to. Maybe TV is more important. Maybe they just haven’t learned how to lift up their eyes.

The same happens spiritually. A new family comes in and starts worshipping with the church. They don’t know many people. Immediately, those with open eyes and observation, see the need to help them connect. They see how wonderful it would be for them to be homes and to get to know others. There are others who would never see this. Once it is mentioned, they’d agree that this is a great idea and some would even offer to have them in their home. But on their own, they would never see this.

It happens with Bible studies. A young couple is struggling. They are hit and miss with their attendance and lately it’s been more miss than hit. Those with open eyes and observation, see what is about to happen. Here is another couple that are on the brink of going over the waterfall. They will soon drop out all together. If nothing is done, they will be gone. They need some attention. They need some encouraging. They need some TLC. Observers see this. There are others who would hate to see them go, but they would never see how serious the situation is. They would not know where to begin or what to do. They would never see it until it was too late.

It’s becoming more and more apparent to me that the leaders of God’s people, the shepherds, need to be those who are observers. The expression, “Overseers” implies that very thought. To oversee means much more than standing in the back of the auditorium and see who is not there. It is to observe. It is to lift up your eyes. They need to see where the sheep need to be and what it will take to get them there. They need to be able to recognize the early stages of spiritual disease. To see what is working and what is not working. To see what is most important. To see what is the biggest threat and concern. How sad it is for a congregation to be led by men with good hearts but who do not see things. In such places, the leaders usually go from one mess to the next, trying to clean things up. They are not preventive because they do not have their eyes lifted up to see what is ahead. They are always looking to what has happened. Instead of planning, they are reactionary. They wait until something happens then they try to clean up what has happened. The Psalmist said, “He leads me to green pastures.” The implication is that the green pastures wasn’t immediately under his feet. If so, there is no leading that needs to be done. The words would be, “eat.” But what we have, is a pasture that has been well eaten. Now it’s time to find greener fields. Where to go. When to go. The shepherd knows. He leads. His eyes are open. He is looking ahead. Too many congregations are not looking beyond this current year. Where will they be in ten years? Who will still be among them in ten years? Lifting up eyes. Looking forward. Making plans.

Jesus’ words in our verse today tells us that we must not go by conventional wisdom. Forget the calendar. Don’t tell me the harvest is still months away. Look. It’s ready right now. Some live by the thought that things will just get better. They don’t want to get involved, get messy or have to do anything. Slow is the pace and with little being done, they feel that things will just work itself out. Have you noticed that never works in life. With a drip in your bedroom ceiling, right above your bed, do you say, “It’ll just work itself out. Give it some time.” That thinking is disastrous in parenting, leading God’s people or in leaking bedroom ceiling. See what is going on and do something. Lift up your eyes.

We need folks with keen observation. They help those who do not have it. Because of them, they help us to do our duty and keep things going. Those with the gift of observation can’t get discouraged because others don’t see things. Just share what you see. Share ideas. Share concerns. Do what you can.

Through these past few years I am often asked where do I come up with what I do from these verses. There is only one answer. It’s a gift. One older preacher asked me to help him see what I saw. I was honored and shared with him a few books that I read a long time ago that helped me to open my eyes and to look upon verses.

Lift up your eyes and see…

Roger

Jump Start # 1384

John 4:35 “Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.”

  Our passage today shows the great difference that is often found in how we see things and how the Lord sees things. In the context, the disciples asked Jesus to eat. He replied that that He had food that they did not know about. He went on to reveal that His food was to do the will of Him who sent Him. Jesus was determined to accomplish the work that He was sent to do. That work was to seek and save the lost. Our verse follows, lift up your eyes and look. It’s harvest time.

Borrowing from the principles of farming, which Jesus often did, such as in the parable of the sower, now He deals with the harvest. The harvest is what farming is all about. Some like being outdoors. Some may like the feel of dirt on their hands. But in the end, farming is not about pulling weeds, planting seeds, cleaning your equipment, it’s about the harvest. Without a harvest, farmers go broke. The harvest makes it or breaks it for farmers. The harvest is very important to farmers.

In this setting, harvest was still four months out. The seed has been planted. The crop is growing. Now it’s waiting. James talks about the farmer who waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it. Four months until harvest. I’m a city guy, always have been. I suppose during those four months the farmer is fixing his machinery, mowing fields, pulling weeds, and getting things ready for when the harvest comes. Basically, he’s waiting. Planting season and harvest seasons are the busy times. The in between times are not as hectic. Farmers in Jesus’ day really had some down time. They didn’t have the massive machinery our modern farmers must maintain. Back then they generally stuck with one or two crops and the science of crop rotation wasn’t known. So, the in between time was a waiting time.

Jesus, using the coming harvest as His lesson, told the disciples to open their eyes. Look upon the fields. They are ready for harvest. They are ready now. This was most unusual in farming terms. The harvest wouldn’t be ready that soon. Jesus was finished talking about farming. He was now talking about spiritual matters. He was talking about His work. The harvest was ready now. People were ready to hear the Gospel. Lives were ready to be changed. Now was the time. Jesus didn’t come to earth to have some down time. A quick read of the Gospels and one will find very little “off time” for Jesus. He was on the move. He was teaching. He was with people. He was always about His Father’s business. His time was short, but His purpose very clear. Upon the cross He could declare, “It is finished.” The “it” wasn’t Him, but the work that He came to do. He finished it. He completed it. He didn’t leave anything undone.

Lift up your eyes and see. Now is the time to be busy. Now is the time to get about things. Here lies the great contrast between what Jesus saw and what we see. We see four more months. We see a down time. We see no hurry now. That’s not what Jesus saw.

That contrast, between what Jesus saw and what others saw, is found throughout the gospels. Remember, the bent over woman in the synagogue? Sure everyone noticed her, but Jesus saw her. He healed her that day. The blind man that they passed one day, brought a question from the disciples about who caused his blindness. They were curious about the spiritual origin of his disease. Not one of them thought to ask Jesus to help Him. Jesus cured the man. Little Zacchaeus up in the tree. Jesus saw him and invited Himself to his house. Jesus saw something in a tax collector named Matthew. He chose him to be one of the apostles. Jesus saw things in people that most didn’t. We tend to see issues, layers, complicated problems, where as, Jesus sees a soul. A troubled soul. A lost soul. A hurting soul. Lift up your eyes and see.

There comes another thought from the ‘lifting up your eyes,’ principle. There are those who can see how things could be. They see what it would be like if the principles of the Scriptures were applied. They see what could happen if everyone chipped in and did their part. They see a leadership that is compassionate, involved and helping each member one on one. They see a church that is united and caring. They see the little ones being helped by the big ones. They see what patience and growth would do to a congregation. They see future elders in young men. They see a preacher in a young man. They see a group that loves, forgives and accepts. They see people connected and sharing. Through the principles of the Bible, they see that. The few that see that often get discouraged when others don’t. They haven’t lifted up their eyes. They don’t see that the fields are white for harvest. Not yet. Not now. Some can see what could be and most don’t. Most are content to live day to day. Change comes slowly. Change sometimes is fought. Visionaries have existed behind every invention and every political cause. It is what fuels movements to change. Some can see what could be. Potential is there. But too often, realty is nothing more than sitting on the couch playing video games. Those that see get discouraged with those that do not see. Those that see want change and they want it quickly. Those that do not see, do not see the need for change. They are content to keep things the way they are.

In the Vietnam war era, John Lennon sang a song, “Imagine.” Imagine everyone getting along. Imagine no differences. Imagine no wars. He saw things that most never would. Lennon’s Imagine was a world without God and in such a world there is no basis for peace and getting along. It’s every man for himself. It’s get what you can get. But I do understand the visionary concept. I am that way. I told someone recently that I do not know if I will ever see a congregation live up to the potential that I can envision. That can be discouraging. It’s like a parent or a school teacher who has a very gifted child, but the child doesn’t want to live up to his potential. He’s content to float. He’s content to do as little as possible. Challenges don’t move him. Special studies, classes and opportunities don’t excite him. Sitting around listening to music and playing with his phone seems to be his greatest ambition. Oh, to have his talent. Oh, to have his opportunities. Lift up your eyes.

Could that thought be said of each of us? Have we settled into things that are easy, safe and not too challenging? When we teach a class, is it a subject that we have taught over and over, so we can do it with very little effort? Do we find ourselves preaching things that we are comfortable preaching? Do we find ourselves singing the same songs, doing the same things, over and over, because we can? Have we given up on lifting up our eyes because that may lead to change, challenges and involve a lot of time and work that we simply do not feel like devoting?

What could our congregations be like? What could we be like? What could I be like? Have we taken those spiritual principles that we have learned over and over and plugged them into our hearts to see what we could become? Have we reached our peak?

I heard a story about an Amish guy who bought a Ferrari. He was not able to drive it because of the Amish ways. He sat in the bright red car as it was pulled by two mules. He was not using the sports car to it’s potential. Makes a person think, doesn’t it? Have we really lifted up our eyes in a while? What would we see? What could be done? What potential might we reach?

Lift up your eyes… give it a try today. What do you see? How do you see your congregation? How do you see your family? How do you see yourself? Don’t say there are four months, lift those eyes up.

Roger

Jump Start # 527

John 4:35 “Do not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.”

  The setting of this passage defines the urgency of Jesus and the dedication He maintained to His purpose and mission. His disciples urged Him to eat (v. 31). That shows that they were looking out for Him. Jesus replied, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” The disciples were thinking and talking physical food and Jesus was thinking and talking spiritual food. Our verse follows shortly after this.

  Jesus pulled illustrations from the natural world on a regular basis. The farmer who plants must be patient. He can’t hurry up the process. So while the farmer waits for the harvest, he must do other things or else just sit around and wait. Idle time. Lost time. The harvest Jesus has in mind is the work that He came to do. He came to seek and save the lost. There was no time for sitting around. Have you ever realized how busy Jesus was in those three years of His ministry? No vacations. No chilling out. When He did get away from the crowds, He was connecting with the disciples or more often praying intense prayers to His Father. Busy Jesus. Not wasted time. For Jesus, it was harvest time.

  That is the thrust of this passage. If the disciples could only see what Jesus saw. He saw that it was harvest time—the busy season for the farmer. Lift your eyes…open your eyes and look. There were things to be done right then. There was work that needed their attention. Jesus had lessons to teach and people to heal. It was harvest time—a busy time.

  Open eyes became a practical lesson in our home when my kids were smaller. My wife and I had gone out for the evening, and when we returned the kids were in front of the TV where we had left them. I was a little disgusted with that and asked them why they didn’t help out around the house. Their response, so typical, was “you didn’t tell us.” I then stood them up and told them to look around and tell me what they saw. There were clean dishes that could be put away, toys on the floor that could be picked up and several things like that. That is when I told them to “have open eyes.” Don’t wait to be told, use your eyes and see what needs to be done. The next time we went out, we returned and they proudly announced that they had “Open eyes” and they showed us what all they had done.

  Open eyes…I’ve noticed many disciples today have trouble with that. Ask someone to do a job and they will do it, but for some reason they don’t have open eyes to see it.

  Jesus practiced “Open eyes.” When the bent over woman came into the synagogue, Jesus saw her. I’m certain others noticed her. Some may have complained about her, however it was Jesus who SAW her.

  I wonder how many bent over people I notice every day, but I fail to see them. Bent over with problems…bent over with pain…bent over with family issues…bent over with worry…bent over with sin. They assemble in our church buildings, often looking for help for their souls, hoping someone will connect and speak with them. They are noticed, but how few are SEEN. They work beside us. Often they spill their souls of stories of dysfunction and heartache, and we hear them but we fail to LISTEN to them. They are our neighbors. They are our children. The world is full of bent over people.

  We often sit in Bible classrooms discussing how to reach people with the gospel of Jesus. The preacher proudly presents some flashy multi-colored flyers that he worked on and tells everyone to take a stack of them and pass them out. Little good comes from the effort. Little change takes place. In another six months, there will be another class and another idea floated. What’s needed is not more color on the flyers, another method, a better plan, more ideas, more time spent in the huddle—NO. What is needed is OPEN EYES. Lift up your eyes and look…

  I hear disciples complaining that no one is interested in the gospel today. That it’s not like the 60’s. LIFT UP YOUR EYES—methods change, people are the same. Hurting people are looking for answers. They are looking for hope. They need Jesus. They are there. They are right beside you, we just have to LIFT UP OUR EYES.

  Instead of pamphlets, people need us. They need us to spend time listening, answering and helping them. It’s harvest time. It’s the busiest time of the year. There’s no time to spend being lazy. The Devil is working overtime. God needs us. The harvest is ready.

  Leaving a pamphlet on someone’s desk or door step doesn’t take much faith on our part. Talking with them does. Asking them how things are going does. Looking and listening does. Building trust and relationships and connecting does. Harvest is busy time.

  I wonder how many bent over people you’ll see today? They are there. Jesus saw them.

  LIFT UP YOUR EYES…

Roger

Jump Start # 101

John 4:35 “Do not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up you eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.”

  Our passage today is a statement that comes from Jesus. The disciples were worried about Jesus. They had urged Him to eat (v. 31). Jesus responded by saying that He had food they didn’t know about (32). This prompted them to discuss among themselves whether or not anyone brought any food for Jesus (33). Realizing that they were not getting it, Jesus tells them that His food is to do the work His Father sent Him to do (34). Then comes our verse.

  Food is nourishment, substance and energy. A person can’t go long without food. Our stomachs tell us when it is time to eat. A baby will cry any hour of the night when it is ready to eat. For Jesus, His nourishment, substance was to fulfill God’s will. That is what He came to do.

  The verse today fits in this reasoning. Jesus is telling the disciples now is the time. A farmer realizes that there is a planting season and a harvest season. The carpenter, Jesus, is telling the disciples that the harvest He has in mind isn’t based upon the calendar. Typically the famer must wait several months after planting before the crops have grown, matured and produced the product to harvest. We understand that in here in the Ohio Valley. One doesn’t plant corn in May and then harvest it in June. That is not enough time for it to grown and mature. In this passage, harvest was still four months away. It wasn’t the season for harvesting. But in one of the greatest expressions in the Bible, Jesus says to “lift up you eyes.” The fields were white. The fields were ready. It was harvest time even though the calendar didn’t say so.

  The harvest Jesus has in mind is the work of God. Now is the time. The fields are ready. The harvest is teaching the word of God. Far too many Christians and far too many congregations have given up on this. The cry today, “no one is interested.” And because of that we quit. Churches dwindle, brethren get discouraged, and hope is lost.

  What’s the solution? “Lift up your eyes” is what Jesus says. Don’t give up. Don’t say it’s not the right time. “Lift those eyes up.” It may be that we are not seeing a harvest because our eyes are not lifted up. Look about your family? No one to teach? No one to encourage? No one to invite? Look about your school, your work place, your neighborhood? Do you see the crops are there to be harvested?

  Now, how you do this is everything. So go at this negative and backwards. They say, “You probably don’t want to come to church with me do you?” and asking it that way, they will say, “probably not.” Some folks need an invite. Others need a CD of a lesson given to them. Some need a copy of a Jump Start emailed to them. Others need someone to answer some questions they have. We are blessed with so many Harvest tools in this congregation. Our jobs are not to polish these tools and line them up on the barn wall, but rather, get them out in the fields. Get some dirt on these tools. Use these tools. Be natural. Be kind. Think about what you’d want someone to say to you. But the harvest is ready. The pickings good. We just have to lift up our eyes. Too often, we’re looking at our selves too much. Or, we’re looking down too often. Open eyes is the key. There are things we all can do. It starts with a prayer. Pray for opportunity or open eyes. Pray for wisdom to know what to do best. Then get at it. Look about you today. I’d expect you’ll find some areas to get the Harvest tools out and start working. Open eyes!

Roger