Dr. Phillip Brassfield
The Scripture often applies agricultural metaphors to the Kingdom of God. Israel is called a grapevine, fig tree, and an olive tree. Jesus said the Kingdom is like a Sower who went forth to sow. The Word is called the incorruptible seed; Paul calls Jesus the seed to whom the promise was made.
Jesus often used metaphors of the seed as it related to the Kingdom of Heaven. But, why the seed? The concept of the seed is a Biblical picture of the coming of the Kingdom. Why is the concept of the seed so powerful? Because the seed is the carrier of the will of God. When God wants to produce His purpose and plan on earth, He deposits His will in a seed and then sows it in the earth.
Everything that God wants to do on earth, He puts in a seed, fills it with His will, and then places it in the hand of a man or woman to be planted in the time and location where He wants it to grow. Man’s role is to be a steward of God’s will in the form of a seed. From our finances to our family and ministry objectives, they are all seeds filled with God’s will. We don’t own the seeds, we only steward them. It’s not our will that fills them and makes them grow. It is God’s. God is the owner and giver, and as such, He alone has rights to their purpose. We, as stewards, have only responsibilities.
God’s plan for your life is more like a seed to be planted than a door to be opened. Jesus is a great example of this. Jesus was the seed carrier of the Kingdom of Heaven. Paul calls Jesus the “seed to whom the promise was made,” (Gal 3:16). Jesus was filled with the will of God, and He even called Himself a seed. In John 12:24, He says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much fruit,” speaking of Himself and His death on the cross. Jesus became the seed that continues to produce a huge harvest of sons and daughters of God in the earth.
As with Jesus, God embeds His Kingdom will in a seed, but it must be sown. When it is sown in faith, it will produce a multiplied harvest in time. But the seed must die. Why? Because it is the corruptible container of the incorruptible. When it dies, it releases the incorruptible will of God inside. What kills the seed? It dies as it is sown. The sowing of the seed produces the death of the seed and allows the outer shell to be broken. And how do we sow the seed? Faith. In the Scripture, the Bible talks about the process of sowing the seed in three phases. And there are three key words I want to draw your attention to. It speaks of (1) seed, (2) time, and then (3) harvest.
Watch these three key words…
The first key word is Obedience!
The seed phase is where the seed is sown. It is the act of obedience when I take what God has given me, and, as a responsible steward, I sow it in the field that God has assigned me to. It is writing the check, making the call, making the decision to do what God has asked of me. The emphasis here is not just on doing something, but doing the right thing, the thing for which you are called.
The second key word is sacrifice.
The time part is where the seed dies in what would seem to be a sacrificial death. It is in this phase the corruptible part of the seed surrenders to the will of God, (the incorruptible part), that is inside. The Apostle Paul teaches this principle in 1st Corinthians Chapter 15. In context, He is speaking of the human body and what it will be like in the resurrection, but we see the sowing and reaping principle explained as well. He says in verse 36, “…what you sow is not made alive unless it dies.” In verses 42-44, he goes on to say,
“…the body is sown in corruption but raised in incorruption”, v43 “it is sown in dishonor but raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, but it is raised in power.” In verse 44, he tells us that it is sown in one form, but raised in another: the first, natural; the second, spiritual.
The time part is where faith takes over and begins to work on the seed. I call it the “death of faith.” “Faith feels like death to the flesh. I have never done anything by faith that felt good to my flesh!” “Faith kills the corruptible part of the seed, so that the incorruptible part can be released. Sowing the seed as an act of obedience, but in the time phase, faith is in control. Faith breaks down the hardness of the outer shell, neutralizes the corruptible nature with its strong controlling desires, and allows water, the Holy Spirit, to get to the inner incorruptible will of God to bring life to it, and release it to grow. This was so encouraging to me, even in the context of giving and tithing. When you tithe, even though you know it’s right and proper, the feeling of loss or sacrifice that you have when you write the check tells you that it is working. Faith is doing what it is designed to do, breaking the outer shell of your me-o-centric carnal nature that wants to be in control and is killing your flesh, so that the will of God can come into your finances!
The Third Key word is Multiplication…
And then the Harvest… In the seed is the principle of Heaven, the will of God. When it is sown, and it endures the “death of faith,” the corruptible part of the seed, the outer shell, is broken and discarded, so that the incorruptible part, the will of God that is in the seed, can germinate. With the limitations of the flesh out of the way, now the spiritual side of the equation kicks in, and the life in the seed begins to grow. But with one exception – now, instead of being one unit solely existent in the form of the seed, it is transformed into a multiplying, fruit-producing engine of the Spirit. Natural limitations are lifted, and exponential potential is released. Formerly impossible situations become not only possible, but expected. God’s will is now being released into the life of the situation; Heaven is coming to earth. Jesus‘ prayer and ours is now coming to pass. God’s will is being done on earth as it is in Heaven. With the flesh dealt with, God’s will is released without resistance, and a Kingdom Harvest begins to multiply more and more, moving through the process of production into a state called fruitfulness by God.
This article was originally published in the 2023 Spring Edition of the Destiny Magazine. You can find the online edition here.
