35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 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.” ~ Matthew 9:35-38
I recently posted a short that collected over 3,000 views. To say the least, I was ecstatic, but the more views I got, the more comments I received that were filled with insults, digs, and hatred simply because my views differed from theirs. The more I read, the more my heart began to break, not because my feelings were hurt or because I was offended by their comments but because they are people claiming Christianity. That means that they are supposed to represent Christ to the world.
Imagine if I was an unbeliever and this was me digging into the Bible for the first time; I would be completely turned off by Christianity because of these people. The internet has allowed us to feel comfortable insulting, mocking, and hating others. We don’t think twice before we spew hatred in the comment section while still arrogantly saying that we are Christians.
Imagine how many souls they come in contact with every single day and how many of those souls they’ve turned away from Christianity because of the bad fruit that they bear. The more I think about it, the more my heart aches. There’s a reason the laborers are few. It’s not because there aren’t enough people who know about Christ; it’s because there aren’t enough people who know Christ.
Here’s what I mean. It’s not because people don’t know about Christ that the laborers are few; it’s because our hearts are so cold that we don’t love enough to labor in the fields. We know who Christ is. We know His name. His book, but we don’t know Him. We know things about Him, but we don’t have a relationship with Him.
Christ then goes on to admonish us to pray that the Father will send laborers. He’s not saying praying that more souls will hear about Christ, but that laborers will come. Yes, we’re praying for those who have never heard, but we’re also especially praying for those who have heard and accepted but haven’t changed. Those who are still filled with hatred. Those who refuse to accept correction or guidance. Those who cherry-pick. Those who know of Him but have yet to pick up their cross and follow Him.
Dear LORD, please forgive me for all the times I didn’t share Your love with people. For all of the times that I was a poor witness for You. Please, LORD, have mercy on Your Church and begin to open the spiritually blind eyes. Melt the cold hearts of those who represent Christ to others. Raise up a standard in all of Your Church that we might not turn others away because of our hatred and mockery, but that they would know You are God because of our love and our good works. Fill your field with laborers, LORD God, so that souls might be harvested. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.
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