Praying to the Lord of Harvest

This morning, I wonder what you might say about your prayer life. Is it consistent? Missing? Dull? Powerful? Life-giving or lifeless?

Jesus gives us a characteristic that should mark our prayer life in Matthew chapter 9 when he says pray earnestly. That phrase captures this posture of heartfelt begging or pleading.

I wonder what recent things you have begged or pleaded God for. What are your earnest prayers for?

Jesus doesn't just tell us to pray earnestly; he also tells us one thing we ought to earnestly pray about. Matthew 9":36, reads:

36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Not only are we as followers to labor for the gospel, but Jesus commands His followers to earnestly pray about the glorious mission of taking the gospel into the world. Specifically, Jesus tells them to pray to the Lord of the harvest that He might send forth more laborers for that work.

Is this your consistent prayer and plea? Is Jesus' heart your heart when you think of or see the lost world?

Church, my exhortation this morning is to consistently and earnestly pray for the harvest. Pray earnestly for the gospel and more gospel laborers to go forth.

Pray regularly for new missionaries to be sent forth to new places. Pray for those organizations that help churches send laborers like Reaching & Teaching. Pray regularly that we Emmaus might be a church that labors in the harvest here in Georgetown and raises up missionaries to go to the ends of the earth. Pray regularly about how God might use you to labor in the harvest for the gospel.

The harvest is still plentiful, but the laborers are still few. Consistently and earnestly pray for the harvest.