What did Jesus really express in His statement:
“The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.’
Matthew 9:37
Jesus makes this identical statement on two occasions, raising many questions about why He said this.
1. Is it an expression of inadequacy?
Even though Jesus was sent by the Father and fully prepared and empowered by the Holy Spirit to accomplish His mission, He was confronted with a lack that would hinder His objective.
- Was He overwhelmed by the task and expressed this feeling of inadequacy?
- Did He not correctly evaluate the task He was to accomplish?
- Did He not have adequate resources on earth to fulfill His mission?
State of Laborers – The First Church.
During the time of Jesus, it is estimated that the global population was around 300 million.
Under the Roman Empire, about 45 million people lived, of which Palestine had a population of roughly 500,000.
So when Jesus eventually recruited around 120 laborers at the end of His ministry, the ratio of labor required for the harvest was:
1 Laborer: 2.5 million people!
2. Did Jesus convey to us a Problem?
Jesus first made this statement in Matthew 9, at the very beginning of his ministry, which he carried out alone. The lack expressed here would have been a problem from the very start!
‘Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”’ Matthew 9:35-38
The disciples mentioned here are not the 12 apostles because the’ Twelve’ were appointed immediately after this account in Matthew 10. This would imply that His recruiting was to fill the gap in human resources.
3. Is it a complaint?
The second time this is stated in Luke 10:2 is when Jesus sent an additional 70 workers recruited for the task. Yet, He said this even before sending them out!
This would seem like a complaint if Jesus were responsible for providing the laborers.
Or, if some human agency were to provide the labor, this would be blame-shifting!
After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go. Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Luke 10:1-2.
4. Who is Responsible for the Harvest?
The greatness of the harvest is not coincidental or unforeseen! Whoever planted and prepared the Harvest Field was also responsible for recruiting the harvest force! In most of Jesus’s parables, He referred to the master of the field as one responsible for recruiting and sending laborers to the field. (See Matthew 20)
Therefore, Jesus refers to the “Lord of the Harvest!” as the One able to provide the Labor.
And so, why is there a shortage of labor?
The Laborers are Plentiful. – The Harvest is Few!
Today, 2000 years later, the picture has changed!
There seems to be no lack of labor; instead, there is a lack of Harvest being reaped!
According to the report ‘Status of Global Christianity 2024′ by the Center for the Study of Global Christianity of Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary, there are nearly one Billion Evangelical/Pentecostal Christians. These can be considered as the source of laborers for the Harvest.
There are nearly 47,000 Christian Denominations, 4.2 Million Churches/Congregations, and 14 Million Christian Workers Worldwide Today.
There are plenty of Laborers!
But the Harvest brought in seems so tiny compared to the work done!
Look at the comparison between the Early Church and Today in the ratios of the Churches, Workers, and Christians to the ‘Lost’ people in the following chart:
“Laborers were Few”
“Laborers are Plentiful”
It is pretty clear that the ‘Laborers are not Few’ in the Church Today!
However, compared with the harvest to be reaped, what is achieved is minimal!
Over 5 Billion people are to be brought in as the Harvest.
Out of that, 2.5 billion people will never meet a laborer in their lifetime!
So what is the Solution? We will discuss this next week!
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, we thank you for raising many laborers in the past 2000 years for the Harvest Field.
Lord Jesus, give us a revelation of what it means to be laborers.
Give us an understanding of where the laborers are and how they could be raised for the harvest to finish the task.
We are willing to be your laborers in the Harvest field.
Help us see the urgency of rallying the laborers to bring them to the harvest field.
We pray that the global church will focus on the Harvest as a priority.
Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!
John 4:35.
He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame.
Proverbs 10:5.
Next Week: Where are the Laborers? Bringing the Harvesters back to the Harvest!
Advance Notice: One Month from Now!
