Friday, June 8, 2007 at 12:12am
The harvest is ready
Column: For His Glory
"During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, 'Come over to Macedonia and help us.'" (Acts 16:9)
Our cities in America are harbors of sex, crime, drugs and hedonistic pleasures. The homeless abound, and the poor are isolated. AIDS is rampant, and immorality is normal. Blue-collar workers are exploited, and white-collar workers are at the cliff's edge of stress, afraid of the pink-slip ax. The cities themselves are exploited for their commerce during the week and for their concealment of immorality on the weekend. What are we as Christians to do about the plight of our cities? Shall we abandon them as hopeless causes and leave them to the consequences of their immorality? Some have voiced the opinion that the events of 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina were the retributive judgments of God for the decadent lifestyle that most characterizes our major cities in America. Do you agree with that? Even if you do, shall we abandon the cities and leave them to their fate or should we intercede and plead for the hand of mercy to intervene? I believe Acts 16:9 holds the key to understanding what needs to be done in our cities.
Paul, the Holy Spirit-driven Apostle of God, was on his way to another town when he received a vision one night. A man from Macedonia was standing with deep urgency and crying out to Paul for help. What is interesting about this verse is that Paul had no intention of going to Macedonia, a region with various cities. Yet if you read the text closely, you will notice that it was not only one man in need of help. The verse says, "Help us," in the plural. There are plenty of people who live in our cities who need help, who need hope in a world that is increasingly becoming hopeless. And, like Paul, we need to hear their cry and reach out to the helpless. Success is guaranteed if we would only claim the promises of the Bible.
Jesus said, "Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest." (John 4:35). There are people in the cities ripe for the harvest of God. We need not worry about results. Jesus said if we would just open our eyes, we would see the cities as He does, we would see the cities with the eyes of our hearts and burn to bring them to the Arms of Christ. Multitudes are carrying the guilt of a meaningless life because Christians are neglecting the work in the cities; we turn a deaf ear to their cry. God help us to live and love as He did, for the harvest in the cities is ready for the harvest.
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Gio Marin is an author, currently working on a master of divinity degree at Andrews Seventh-Day Adventist Theological Seminary, with a dual emphasis on systematic theology and church growth & evangelism. Visit For His Glory, the blog, and send an email to {email GioMarinColumn@aol.com}GioMarinColumn@aol.com{/email}. © copyright 2007 by Gio Marin
Our cities in America are harbors of sex, crime, drugs and hedonistic pleasures. The homeless abound, and the poor are isolated. AIDS is rampant, and immorality is normal. Blue-collar workers are exploited, and white-collar workers are at the cliff's edge of stress, afraid of the pink-slip ax. The cities themselves are exploited for their commerce during the week and for their concealment of immorality on the weekend. What are we as Christians to do about the plight of our cities? Shall we abandon them as hopeless causes and leave them to the consequences of their immorality? Some have voiced the opinion that the events of 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina were the retributive judgments of God for the decadent lifestyle that most characterizes our major cities in America. Do you agree with that? Even if you do, shall we abandon the cities and leave them to their fate or should we intercede and plead for the hand of mercy to intervene? I believe Acts 16:9 holds the key to understanding what needs to be done in our cities.
Paul, the Holy Spirit-driven Apostle of God, was on his way to another town when he received a vision one night. A man from Macedonia was standing with deep urgency and crying out to Paul for help. What is interesting about this verse is that Paul had no intention of going to Macedonia, a region with various cities. Yet if you read the text closely, you will notice that it was not only one man in need of help. The verse says, "Help us," in the plural. There are plenty of people who live in our cities who need help, who need hope in a world that is increasingly becoming hopeless. And, like Paul, we need to hear their cry and reach out to the helpless. Success is guaranteed if we would only claim the promises of the Bible.
Jesus said, "Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest." (John 4:35). There are people in the cities ripe for the harvest of God. We need not worry about results. Jesus said if we would just open our eyes, we would see the cities as He does, we would see the cities with the eyes of our hearts and burn to bring them to the Arms of Christ. Multitudes are carrying the guilt of a meaningless life because Christians are neglecting the work in the cities; we turn a deaf ear to their cry. God help us to live and love as He did, for the harvest in the cities is ready for the harvest.
— — —
Gio Marin is an author, currently working on a master of divinity degree at Andrews Seventh-Day Adventist Theological Seminary, with a dual emphasis on systematic theology and church growth & evangelism. Visit For His Glory, the blog, and send an email to {email GioMarinColumn@aol.com}GioMarinColumn@aol.com{/email}. © copyright 2007 by Gio Marin