A Law to Live By

“But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 

The “Vomit Comet” is the affectionate name given by U.S. astronauts to the airplane that allows them to experience half a minute of weightlessness. The plane climbs to 30,000 feet then dives nearly straight down, momentarily allowing passengers to defy the law of gravity. It’s a lot of trouble, but it’s the only way to break this law. That’s what a law is—a constant, inviolable principle. There is a similar law in Scripture called the law of sowing and reaping, or the law of the harvest. Paul explained it to the Corinthians after stating it more succinctly to the Galatians: “For whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7b). Sow sparingly, Paul wrote the Corinthians, and we will reap sparingly. And vice versa with generous sowing. When we live a generous life—generous not only with time, talent, and treasure but also with love, forgiveness, and friendship—that generosity will be returned to us in a harvest of God’s choosing.  The motivation for generosity is God’s limitless grace to us. As He has been generous toward us, let us be generous toward others.

 “Not how much we give, but how much we do not give, is the test of our Christianity.” Oswald Chambers