48. We Reap the Harvest

We now understand the two harvests, one in and one out, as Jesus specified over and over. Both harvests are of the earth. There is no harvest of the unregenerate at this time. That means that it is a harvest of Christians, those who are born again, whether in or out.

We understand that when we say, “born again Christians,” we mean all who receive Christ, even if they do so only seconds before the resurrection of our bodies. We and God count them as “Christians” and thus part of Christ now, even if at present they are unregenerate.

This harvest, then, is for the season of Tabernacles.

Jesus through Us. I saw a white cloud, and upon the cloud was sitting One who resembles the Son of Man, having a golden crown upon His head and a sharp and eager sickle in His hand. And another angel came out of the temple, crying in a great voice to the One sitting on the cloud, “Put forth Your sickle and reap, because the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth has ripened.” And the One sitting upon the cloud swung His sickle upon the earth, and the earth was harvested.

First, “resembles the Son of Man” is a visionary way of saying, “Christ in His body.” Thus we are right to say that we are the ones who reap the harvest, Jesus through us.

The Authority to Reap. Second, here is the “sharp and eager sickle” in Jesus/our hand, from Paul’s gospel, the authority to reap, the word given to us to speak. …down to the finest details of the Energeia, the mighty continuous and swirling action of His ability to cause ALL to be subject to Himself (Philippians 3:21). – We are… as God Himself inviting through us. …Be reconciled [reconnected – graced] with God (2 Corinthians 5:20).

And third, this is the harvest of the earth. That means the harvest of the Feast of Tabernacles, the harvest into Christ in all that Jesus is, into Christ Community, into love one another, into the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Our Jesus Secret Page. Before continuing let’s set out our Jesus Secret page, titled “We Reap the Harvest.” We already have the first three boxes from the two previous lessons, “The Real Issue,” “Resolving the Curse,” and “Ask and Believe.” Inside the topic of the harvest of the Feast of Tabernacles, there are three fascinating words we want to explore, actually in this order – harvest, ripe, and reap. I do not want to split that into three little boxes, so we will have one box, “The Harvest,” with a weaving together of the meanings of these three words.

There are two harvests in our picture, however, and we will look at the second harvest first in order to end in triumph.

The Dividing Line. Before we look at the awful second harvest, we need to separate between the two harvests, one in and one out. What is the dividing line? Both harvests are of the earth, that is, of the presently in-part Church, of people who are born again and who have some knowledge of Jesus.

Of truth, most of Jesus’ parables are an attempt to cause us to know this dividing line and its impact. Then we see that we’ve already been here in our study, for Chapter 7 is also, “From the Firstfruits to the Harvest.” The dividing line there is being sealed in the mind, from thousands to millions. – Then the dividing line in Chapter 11 is similar, focusing on the work of the Spirit in the heart.

Christ Sustaining All. This time, we want to look at the same dividing line through our familiar diagram of John 1:3 and Hebrews 1:3.



The guy in the middle is “the earth.” He cannot continue to halt between two; he must choose Christ or not-Christ. – BE reconciled – graced – with God.

– OR – . Symmorphosed with Jesus – OR – symmorphosed with sin. Jesus Sent into me – or – sin remaining in me and Jesus faraway and someday. I am just like the Lord Jesus Christ in all ways inside of God – or – I have a sinful human nature, God can’t fill me now.

Love one another now – or – “heaven” someday. Knowing the Father sharing life with me – or – knowing sin. Coming every moment out from God’s thoughts concerning me through the good-speaking of a Jesus who comes into union with me and connects me with the Father – or – sitting in myself, clamoring about “all my sin.”

The Second “Harvest.” This dividing line is very clear and very Biblical, yet utterly unknown in Nicene theology. Let’s take a brief moment to look at the second harvest, for this is something more horrifying and more wicked than I have ever contemplated.

“Send forth your sharp sickle and gather in the clusters from the vine of the earth, because its grapes have fully ripened.” And the angel sent forth his sickle into the earth and gathered in the vine of the earth and cast it into the winepress of the pain-filled anger of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed out of the winepress, as high as the bridles of the horses, to the distance of one thousand six hundred stadia.
 
Absurdity versus the Gospel. Christians have interpreted this line literally, as divorced from themselves and the gospel, that is, as a future battle over the natural city called “Jerusalem” in which so many people die that the blood flows as described. To get this much blood, however, would require that you slit the throats of 100 billion humans all at the same time. Why would God include such an absurdly impossible happenstance inside His Covenant with us?

But notice the phrase – And the winepress was trodden outside the city. Then this – Therefore, we should go forth to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach, that is, the accusations against Him (Hebrews 13:13). The accusations against Jesus that He does not save.

Hebrews 10. Then consider this layout of thought from Hebrews 10. – No consciousness of sins. – For by one offering, He has perfected those who are continuously being made devoted by God. – Entrance into the Holiest inside the blood of Jesus. – Our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil consciousness.

– If we willingly continue in [the consciousness of] sins – there no longer remains a sacrifice [inside our consciousness] but a certain fear and expectation of judgment, a zealous fire that is ready to eat up that which opposes. – Of how much worse penalty, do you think, will he be worthy who has disregarded the Son of God and placed no value on the Blood of the covenant in which he was made devoted?

Not Enough for Me. The Blood is not enough for me!!!!

If the blood of 100 billion humans were to be shed, five times as many as came out from Adam, it would not measure against one drop of the Blood of the Lamb.

No, not for me – if the Blood of the Lamb were to flow out from the place of Sacrifice outside the city to the same measure in my sight as the blood of 100 billion humans, it WOULD NOT BE enough for me. – I AM A SINNER. I HAVE A SINFUL human nature. God, You might have given Your Son to be my life, but I choose rather to blame You for the rotting corpse of a dead body of sin that I claim You force me to carry.

A Continual Shock. God sent Jesus to be one of us so that He could understand the waywardness of humans. God gave the life of His Son, in shedding His Blood, that Jesus might win our hearts. We cannot comprehend the continual SHOCK it is to our Father when the Blood of His Son is NOT ENOUGH for Christians, when they refuse to live inside of God, inside of all Grace, because they are “too evil for God.”

“Too evil for God” is a smokescreen assault against God. The issue is not “sinless perfection.” God alone takes our sin from us, but only when we give it, with ourselves, entirely to Him. We walk with no consciousness of sins for one reason only. – The Blood is enough for us.

Jesus Saves Us. All Christians are coming out from the good-speaking of Jesus in all things and in every moment. To claim that “I have a sinful human nature” is to accuse Jesus of causing our present actions of sin. It is to blame God. God pleads with us over many years, “Let the Blood of My Son be enough for you. – Put the Lord Jesus Christ upon yourself, upon all that you are, and let the Blood take care of everything not-Christ.

Present actions of willful sin come out from a present hatred of being like God and a present lust for superiority, unrelated to anything real or true, unrelated to ANYTHING of the past. – Jesus alone saves us.

Harvested Out. What do we mean, then, that millions of Christians alive today are about to be “harvested out.” God never forces Himself upon anyone; receiving Jesus happens only out from a full willingness of heart. Jesus said that even what they have is taken away from them; He spoke of weeping and gnashing of teeth.

I believe that they are set aside in the heavens, actually remaining in a state of hades, of not knowing God, through the Age of Tabernacles, and for some beyond that time, aware that the people who sat next to them in Church are living resurrected lives, while they continue to refuse Jesus. The day comes, however, when they also will give thanks.

One-Third. Zechariah speaks of the harvest of Tabernacles. – “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; then I will turn My hand against the little ones. And it shall come to pass in all the land,” says the Lord, “That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one-third shall be left in it: I will bring the one-third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined, and prove them as gold is proven. They will call on My name, and I will answer them” (Zechariah 14).

The difference between the one third who are harvested into all that is Christ versus the two thirds who are removed for the present season is that the Blood is enough for them.

The Gospel in the Vision. Our eyes are not on those Christians who refuse Jesus, but on the more than 100 million who receive Him in all joy. – So that the proving of your faith, which is more precious than perishing gold, being refined through fire, that your faith might be found into praise and glory and honor inside the unveiling of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:7).

The first harvest, then, is the Feast of Tabernacles. In fact, Chapter 7 gave us a view of those gathered into this Feast, multitudes without number; then Chapter 14 gives us the mechanism and moment of that harvest. We want to place the meaning of this harvest before getting into our intriguing and exciting two words – ripe and reap.

The Days of the Harvest. Lift up your eyes and see the fields, for they are white for harvest already. The one who reaps receives his wages, and gathers together fruit into age-unfolding life (John 4:35-36).

The harvest is millions of Christians entering into all the Life of Christ as God means it, right here on this earth, right now in this age. The first Day of the Harvest is, “We together are filled with all the fulness of God.” The in-between days of the Harvest are, “We are just like the Lord Jesus Christ as one body together.” And the Great Day of the Harvest is “The knowledge of God flows out from us into all creation.”

The Completion of the Age. I had you read Matthew 13, and especially the Parable of the Tares. All the parables in that chapter are related directly to this harvest. The Church is our inheritance.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Just as we are Jesus’ treasure for whom He gave His all, so our brothers and sisters are our treasure for whom we give our all in return, in Grace, that is, in reciprocity with God.

The harvest is the completion of the age (Matthew 13:39).

A Strong Confirmation. Wow. I had not yet put that verse together with completion. – The harvest is the completion of the age. – The Church, which is His Body, the fulness of Christ who fills all inside of all (Ephesians 1:23).

Everyone thinks that the destruction of evil is what the “end of the world” is all about. – NOT SO. Bringing that precious one third into the full knowledge of Christ their only life now, into the full expression of Christ Community, loving one another with pure hearts fervently, is the ONLY thing the completion of the age is about. This is the strongest Biblical confirmation yet of a certainty I have always believed.

The Harvest. The harvest of the Gospel is the fulfillment of Tabernacles, the harvest into Christ of all given to Jesus in this hour. The dividing line, those in or those out, is the Blood ~ or ~ a faithless “consciousness of sins.” The Blood is enough for those gathered into the fulness of Christ, into loving one another as God revealed.  

Defining “Ripe.” Next we have that hope-filled word, “ripe.” The fields are ripe for harvest.

Ripe (Webster’s 1926): 1. Ready for reaping or gathering; having attained perfection; mature. – Seeds are mature and fit for germination. – Fruit in condition for use as food. 2. Like ripened fruit in readiness and plumpness. 4. Having attained full development; mature. 7. Ready for action or effect, prepared.

To Ripen (Webster’s 1926): 1. To make ripe, as the sun ripens the corn. 2. To mature; to fit or prepare; to bring to perfection or completeness or to a state of fitness for use.

This is clearly a harvest of Christ, not of the lost “to heaven.”

A New Seeing. The Lord gave me the new alteration to our praying at the end of each session, that is, speaking readiness into thousands of pastors and millions of Christians. As we have spoken those words, so my own mind has changed in the seeing of our Christian brethren.

Regardless of what shallowness or mixture we might see outwardly, we KNOW that God has many, many, who are not made visible right now in this world, but who are seriously drawing near to God. Our prayers have been part of making that happen, and now our seeing, as God causes us to see, seals the full measure of our prayers in our brethren.

Ready for Action. Our Christian brethren are as we see them to be, “ripe” and ready for the harvest into all that is Christ. “Fit for germination” means they are ready to bring forth the knowledge of God into the knowing of all. “In condition for food” means that Christ Jesus alone, and as He truly is, is what people will know as they interact with Christians.

“Ready for action.” We see thousands of pastors and millions of believers, all over the world, ready to stand with Jesus, to stand together, ready to throw off the yoke of Nicene theology, ready to be the revelation of Christ Jesus.

Graced. I have been thinking much about God’s definition of being “graced,” that is, the knowing of Jesus Sent into us such that we connect directly with all the good-speaking of God. As the angel said of Mary, “We are highly FAVORED!”

Consider this line. – The Word is living and energeoing. – Those who are “ripe” for the harvest are those who regard the Son of God, a Personal Jesus, coming into them as all the wondrous Words of the Gospel, living and energeoing, such that the Words of the Gospel become the singing of their hearts, the thinking of their minds, and the fabric of their souls. This is the Word of our Testimony.

Ripe for Harvest. We see thousands of pastors and millions of Christians all across the earth who are ready to be utterly with Jesus. They are ready to bring forth the knowledge of God into the knowing of all, ready to be as Christ Jesus in all interaction with others, ready to love one another in Christ Community. Our prayers and our seeing seal them into God; they are ripe for the harvest.

Until All Had Crossed. Paul said that Jesus has “the ability to subdue all to Himself.” This is the power to reap. – Having a sharp and eager sickle in His hand… “Put forth Your sickle and reap…” And [He] swung His sickle upon the earth, and the earth was harvested.

Here is the same picture in Joshua 3 & 4. – The ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan. – So the priests who bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan until everything was finished… and the people hurried and crossed over.

Until Everything Is Finished. Until all the people crossed. – Until everything was finished. – Christ is a many-membered body. – For we are members of one another. – Love one another in full reciprocity in exactly the same way that I love you.

To reap with a sickle is more than just cutting down the ripe stalks of grain, it is to bring the entire harvest into the storehouse and into full usefulness. How do we bring thousands of pastors and millions of Christians into the full knowledge of Christ their only life and into the full reality of Christ-Life together?

The Lamb through Us. We already have the answer to our question, and I am astonished to see the same specific phrases occurring in all the Bible passages entering our picture. The answer is Revelation 12:11 together with John 7:38.

First, we stand firm. This is the Blood of the Lamb. Third, we give ourselves to the greatest act of Love ever to be made visible on this planet. But these two things are clearly inserted into Chapter 15 and our full Victory over the beast for the sake of the Church. Here I want to expand on the second thing, that is, our bright and eager sickle – the words that we speak.

Calling What We See. The testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10). – This One who is continuously giving life to the dead and calling into existence things not existing (Romans 4:17).

I rebuked a brother once for speaking evil of Joel Osteen. His reply was, “I call it like I see it.” Because his mind was anointed by demons, he was sowing to the flesh and reaping corruption. Yet we also “call it like we see it.” We see Christ Jesus in all fulness in our brothers and sisters, and we call Him as we see Him, into age-unfolding LIFE. We sow by speaking Christ; we reap by speaking Christ.

The Door to Father. – We are… as God Himself inviting through us. …Be reconciled [graced] with God (2 Corinthians 5:20).

The verb, “be reconciled, be fully connected – graced with God,” is aorist imperative passive – second person plural. Let me sum up what that means. This is a speaking to many, directly and personally, a creative command, but of something already true and complete, something already accomplished by Jesus.

Here is another way of saying it. – KNOW the Father through knowing Jesus Sent into you. It is the opening of the Door to the Father inside the heart of every believer.

Reaping the Harvest. We speak out from the ability of Jesus to bring all into subjection to His love, "Be reconciled - graced - with God. Know the Father by knowing Jesus Sent into you." As we speak, so multitudes are gathered into the full knowledge of union with Jesus and of His unveiling as Community. We stand firm until every little one who belongs to Jesus has crossed into all the life of Christ.

Made Visible. The profound reality of Revelation 15 is one of the strongest verses in the Bible when we reckon with what it must mean. – You alone are Devoted. …for Your just actions have been made visible and clear.

We are talking about the greatest demonstration of LOVE seen by the entire world. We are talking about a God who, with us, gives His all for the sake of His people. – And we also are committed.

Yet before we look at a Devoted God made visible, we must venture once more into the mire of Revelation 13, into understanding the place wherein we PROTECT the Church.

Reading for Next Time. The next lesson is titled “The Social Fabric.” For that lesson read Revelation 15 several times in the JSV. Also, read “The Number of Its Name” in Through Eyes of Fire.

Revelation 15 is the declaration and position of Victory over the beast and over its image. When I say, “the social fabric,” I am speaking of how I interpret “the number of its name.” We are speaking of the opposite of Romans 12:2, that is, letting the world press you into its mold. Although this Victory is over every aspect of the beast, the social fabric is the fourth aspect we are addressing, and thus includes a box titled “Against the Number of Its Name.”

Let’s Pray Together. “Father God, You have graced us with the good-speaking of Jesus becoming the very words of our soul and with His Blood becoming our entire self-consciousness. Father, we are highly Favored. We walk every moment inside of the greatest Favor that exists.

“Father, our hearts go out over our brothers and sisters, all those whom You have given to Jesus in this hour of His glory, that they also would be graced with the knowing of Jesus Sent into them. God, our Father, we know that You alone are Love, and we are willing for You to be that Love through us.

“Inside of the name of Jesus, we call thousands of pastors, true shepherds of Your people, into a Love for Your people that they have never known before. We speak into them a pure Word out from Your throne, the age-unfolding gospel. Inside of the name of Jesus, we call millions of believers in Jesus in every land on earth, that they might cross on dry ground through the death of Your Son into all the life that is Christ, into the unveiling of Jesus as Community.

“We know, Oh Father, that our confidence in You is all that You need to enter into the knowledge of Your Church. We are confident, Father, that You will make us to be our part in the most wondrous act of Love, Jesus through us, ever demonstrated upon this earth. Let it be as we speak; it is so. God, You have answered us.”