Where do you think "man plans his ways but God directs His steps" enters in with things like this?
That's exactly what I'm talking about. One plants, another waters, but God gives the increase. There's zero conflict or contest or contradiction between man planning his ways, or righteously planning according to His ways, and God giving the increase, or directing the steps of how quickly it produces whether instantaneous miracle or abiding by the laws of gradual spiritual growth talked about in Mark 4 and related passages.
He gives the increase ALWAYS, but did we sow what He said to sow, when He said to sow it, where He said to sow it, and did we listen to the Spirit of His Written Word for particulars? Or the moment He ministers the increase of the fruits (1Corinthians 3:5-10, 2Corinthians 9:10), is this liable to end in death because it wasn't His chosen what, where, and when that the Written Word and the Spirit of God were indicating?
There is no presupposition in the Scriptures of Him ever doing anything but blessing, but when He gives the increase, is it going to be the thousandfold you wanted, according to Deuteronomy 1:11, or the very thing coming up to maturity that you didn't want harvested? All He's gotta do is give the increase and if we didn't have our ground laid out correctly when the time of the latter rain came, it's not going to be what we wanted coming up.
It's possible to miss the time of harvest and let it rot in the field, when you're dealing with natural, corruptible seed, but thankfully a ready harvest in the Kingdom is incorruptible and it's right where it was left and the sickle can still be put into it with forgiveness, thanksgiving, praise, and obedience when He gives direction. God's devised the steps that each seed will go through to produce.
Man's job is to plant the seed (Mark 11:23, John 16:23, Romans 10:17), water it (Colossians 2:6-7), keep the weeds out of it (Mark 11:25-26), keep it in the light of the sun (2Corinthians 4:13, Colossians 3:16, 1John 2:5), and keep the pests out of it (2Corinthians 10:3-6, Ephesians 6:10-20, 1Peter 5:6-7), as Lord Jesus said in Mark 4, Luke 8, etc. and God directs the steps, i.e. "refuses to be mocked" in Galatians 6 and from the Written Word you reap life eonian (Isaiah 61:10-11) or from the carnal nature you reap corruption (Romans 8:6, Ephesians 2:12).
Doesn't change the fact that the Word will ultimately still give Him HIS harvest with how absolutely everything ends in world history with billions of Christ Jesuses that are deathless, which is where a lot of people misunderstand having a faith relationship with Christ Jesus, their High Priest, and presume that if we botch our own harvests that He'll never ultimately have His, which is nonsense, and where the divine Sovereignty really fits in, in the Scriptures rather than this idea I've seen kicked around that man doesn't harvest what he sows that I don't even respond to these days 'cause Galatians 6 says it's nothing but mockery to assert such a thing and I'm not God's defender, He's mine.
God's sowing and reaping as well, and He's getting what He planted Jesus for!! But this life can just get worse and worse and worse if His Word isn't in our heart and mouth 'til it displaces all of the previous junk.
