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Sermon #5581

Sowing and Reaping

A Sermon on Galatians 6:7-8

Originally preached Oct. 6, 1963

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Scripture

Galatians 6:7-8 ESV KJV
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. (ESV)

Sermon Description

The world is full of so much suffering. Why are things the way they are? Why is evil present? In this sermon on Galatians 6:7–8 titled “Sowing and Reaping,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones provides answers to these difficult questions that have haunted people for millennia. Ultimately, all the bad seen in the world traces back to the Garden of Eden and people being deceived by Satan. What were they deceived about? First, people are deceived about themselves. They think they are powerful and smart enough to figure everything out without the help of God. Second, they are deceived about God. People not only doubt the existence of God, but also His ability to work in the world with the amount of evil that is present. Third, deception has occurred regarding life in this world. Satan has convinced humanity that there are no absolute moral standards and consequences, and that this life is the only one—thus, there is no need to worry about the consequences actions have, because all need to have as much fun as they can before they die. Because people are deceived in these areas, they sow according to the flesh. To combat this, Dr. Lloyd-Jones says that all must believe and understand that God has created everything for a reason and that lives have consequences now and into eternity. This, he says, is how one understands evil in the world and the message that can undo it.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The Bible is a practical book that deals with life and how to live it.
  2. The passage in Galatians 6:7-8 reminds us of the nature of the Bible.
  3. The Bible uses the metaphor of a farm to represent life. We are given the gift of life like a farm and must choose what to sow and reap.
  4. There are two possibilities in life: reaping life everlasting or corruption.
  5. Corruption refers to something useless, decaying, and offensive. The world is in a state of corruption.
  6. The cause of corruption is that man has been deceived. The devil deceived Eve and sin entered the world.
  7. Man is deceived about himself, thinking he is something when he is nothing. Man's conceit and self-confidence is the problem.
  8. Man mocks God, disregarding, sneering at, or ignoring Him. Man thinks he can judge and assess God.
  9. Man is deceived about life, thinking he can do whatever he wants without consequences. He thinks morals don't matter and man determines morals.
  10. Because man is deceived, he sows to the flesh, gratifying it and producing corruption.
  11. The truth is that life is under God. He created all things and man is a finite creature under God's control.
  12. The laws of God are absolute and inescapable. What a man sows, he will reap. This proves man is under God.
  13. This life determines our eternal destiny. We reap what we sow, either corruption or life everlasting.
  14. There are two choices: live for the flesh or live for the Spirit. We either gratify self or obey God.
  15. Wisdom is realizing we've been deceived, that life is under God, and we must sow to the Spirit by believing in Christ.

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Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.