I believe one of the most important principles in scripture is found in Galatians 6. Paul writes, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh , from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest, if we do not give up” (Gal. 6:7-9).

This is a spiritual principle confirmed over and over agin in scripture. It is a spiritual principle revealed in nature and in the outcomes of our own decisions and the decisions of others if we pay attention. First of all, it is an immutable law. Like gravity, you cannot escape the reality of consequences. If you accidentally step off the edge of your roof, you are going down not matter how often you test the law. To deny the law of consequences is to mock God. That word means to belittle, to not take seriously, or to treat with contempt. When we live as if we can violate God’s law without consequences, we mock him.

We often think of those who mock God as brazen sinners who shake their fist in God’s face as if they determine the outcome of their own lives. But many believers do so as well. When we operate outside of God’s will in parts of our lives, we often are doing so because we are deceived. The enemy whispers his familiar phrase spoken first in the Garden of Eden, “You will not certainly die!” He whispers that we will be the exception, even though we know others who have done what we are doing and ended up in a very deep ditch..

When it comes to sin, Satan’s favorite strategy is to simply convince us that we won’t be found out, we won’t get addicted, our unhealthy habits will not end up destroying our health, or that we can cash in on God’s grace so that nothing really hurtful will come from our actions. I can’t count how many church- going believers I know have been deceived into believing that an affair won’t be found out, that dabbling in pornography won’t end up in an uncontrollable addiction, or that they will be able to put the money back before the boss realizes it is gone. Here is the thing: these secret sins will not be without consequence because either God will bring it into the light to cleanse it, or Satan will bring it into the light to destroy you and your family. Why? Because God will not be mocked. There will be consequences. We will reap what we sow. If we sow to the desires of the flesh, we will reap hurt and destruction.

This deception from the enemy can be incredibly strong. There is no greater expression of sowing and reaping than in Deuteronomy 28-30. In these chapters, God spelled out in detail the blessings he would grant Israel if they remained faithful to him. He also spelled out in detail, the disasters that would come if they chose to reject God and his commands. And yet, Israel chose to ignore God’s commands and to chase after other gods. The only explanation is that they believed Stan’s lie that God was all bluff and no action. Yet, they were destroyed and scattered all over the world….not because God was evil or unfair, but because those were the consequences of their choices. When we choose the path, we choose the consequences.

Now the good news is that, when we do life God’s way (sow to the Spirit), God promises good outcomes and blessings. We receive life…in this world and the world to come. God cannot be mocked in this matter as well. This is not a promise that trouble will never come our way, but that God will ultimately bring blessing, even out of trouble. “And we know that in all things, God woks for the good of those who love him. who have been called according to his purpose” (Rom.8:28). Sometimes, the challenge is in waiting for the blessing to manifest. Remember Paul said they we must not grow weary in doing good (sowing to the Spirit), but should know that in due time, a harvest will come.

When a farmer plants, it takes time for the seed to germinate, the stalk to grow, blooms to form fruit, and the fruit to mature. It can be the same with prayer or acting righteously whenever all those around us are ignoring the commands of God. Waiting is hard. Satan will whisper that God does not hear our prayers or that he has obviously said “No” to our prayer, so that continuing to pray or act in faithfulness is pointless. Like a crop, It takes takes time for blessings to manifest and we will have to fight discouragement at times, especially when we see those who don’t serve God getting what they want in this life while we wait But don’t be deceived, God will not be mocked. What you sow in faithfulness will bear a harvest.

When we think serving God is pointless because the wicked seem to prosper, we must remember that it takes time for curses to manifest as well. That is part of the trap. People disobey and see no immediate consequence and, because of that, they believe nothing will ever happen. I have a pastor friend who had a secret addiction for years, but was eventually found out. It became a huge embarrassment to him, his family, and his church. He told me that the deception was that you only imagine the moment of pleasure or excitement, for relief but you need to “run the film to the end.” What he meant was that you need to imagine not only the pleasure of the moment but the pain that will come when your sin is revealed…because it will be. “Running the film to the end” is a very effective way of discouraging the persistent sin or secret sin in our own lives because it recognizes that consequences will come because God will not be mocked. Of course, when negative consequences arise we are prone to blame God for our losses, our embarrrassment, or our hurt. But God is just and has revealed the truth to us about our choices. he simply honors our choices, whether we choose curses or blessings.

When we make choices, we need to do so with Galatians 6 in mind. Every deed, every word, every prayer is a seed that will some day bear fruit. It is up to us to determine the harvest. Because seeds take time to grow, we often forget this immutable law of God. But if you remember, you will see the faithfulness of God in blessings as the years of your life wear on.

The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth has been given to mankind. 

Psalm 115:16

The verse quoted above is an interesting verse that may explain a lot.  The Passion Translation words it this way: “The heavens belong to our God; they are his alone.  But he has given us the earth and put us in charge.”  

One of the primary meanings of the Hebrew word translated as “given” is “to transfer possession of a thing.”  In Genesis 1:28, the text says that after creating the earth and man, God blessed Adam and Eve and told them to fill the earth and subdue it, and to rule over the fish, the birds and the animals. The psalmist declared, “You made them (mankind) rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet” (Psm.8:6). In other words, God created the earth. Called it good, and them put man in charge.

Now, we weren’t put in charge to rule as we want to rule, but to rule as his representatives on the earth – to do what he would do if he were physically present.  Rulership in the kingdom is not about perks and power but about responsibility and stewardship.  He made us responsible to rule over the earth with care and good stewardship of both culture and the environment. Jesus summed up the principle of representation by saying, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” The idea Is that we would care for the earth and one another just as God would do.

It seems that most people who believe in God seem to hold a theology that God is solely in charge of things on the earth. When bad things happen, we accuse God of being angry, harsh, and vindictive.   When school shootings occur or when tsunami’s kill thousands, we point at God.  However, if we are in charge, then we must take responsibility for most of those things.   The fact that God could control everything that happens on the earth is not the same as saying that he does control every event. It is true that God wields his power and sovereignty over nations and kings and people but he does not do so capriciously or at his whim. It is in response to a people or nations’ choices.

Think of it this way:  If God has given us authority over the earth, then he is compelled to honor our choices and the consequences of our choices. For example, if a father spends a lifetime building a business based on integrity, customer care, and quality products and then signs it over to hIs children, it is up to them to continue his good business practices or not.  If they do, the business will continue to thrive. If not, it will dwindle.  Even if he is available to help them out and give sage advice, it is up to them to involve him or leave him out.  In essence, God has given mankind the family business of operating the earth.

In Deuteronomy 28, God assembled Israel and declared that they could choose blessings or curses as the atmosphere in which they would live.  God promised that If they involved him and were careful to obey his commands, then he would bless then in every way. If, however, they chose to exclude him and live in disobedience to his commands, then curses would be released as the consequence of their choices.  God plead with them to choose blessing, but if they chose curses, he would honor that choice.

If you read the chapter, some of those curses are financial failures, war, disease, mental illness, crime, natural disasters, etc. When Kane killed Abel, the Bible says that the blood of Abel cried out from the ground and that the earth would no longer produce crops for him because of that sin.  That text and others suggest that the creation itself will respond to our sin. The more that sin prevails on the earth, more natural disasters will occur, more disease will afflict the planet, and more war will ravage mankind.  We may blame natural disasters on coal plants or car emissions, but the truth is that our sin contributes heavily to these disasters.

Paul declares in Galatians 6:7 that God will not be mocked.  Whatever a man sows he will reap.  If he sows to the Spirit, he will reap life.  If he sows to the flesh, he will reap destruction.  Our sin does not affect us alone but contributes to an atmosphere of curses because our sin gives Satan the right to kill, steal, and destroy.  It is not God’s desire for man to suffer, but he will honor our choices.  How can we shake our fist at God for earthquakes, forest fires, tornadoes, polar vortexes, famine, and outbreaks of devastating disease when the world is bent on disobedience?  The blood of every aborted child cries out.  Sexual sin and perversion flood the airways.  The word of God is removed from schools and places of government.  The heavens belong to God but he has given us the earth and we are in charge.

It has always been God’s intent to rule though his people and, as the church, he has given us authority in the earth. If we, then, as believers are in charge, then we should take charge – not through violence or religious tyranny, but first of all by obedient living ourselves…then, by evangelizing the world, being a true leaven for righteousness, standing against unrighteousness, and inviting God back into the business through massive amounts of prayer. 

 God is willing to get involved if we ask. God is waiting to bless the nations through his people and through his Messiah.  Because he has put us in charge, he will do all of this with us, but not without us.  God has called us to subdue the earth and rule over the works of his hands with an outpouring of love, truth, and the supernatural power of heaven to bless rather than curse.  God is not angry, he is just a God of his word and if we are in charge, then we should act like it.