You can't plant two kinds of seeds in your vineyard!
John 15:4 “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” Let’s also look at Deuteronomy 22:9 “Do not plant two kinds of seeds in your vineyard; if you do, not only the crops you plant but also the fruit of the vineyard will be defiled.” So based on these scriptures, my topic today will be “You can’t plant two kinds of seeds in your vineyard.”
Let’s first look at “remain in me.” Jesus asks us to remain united to Him by a living faith. He wants us to live a life of dependence on Him and obey His doctrines. He also asks us to imitate His example and constantly exercise faith in Him.
And “I in you” says that if we remain attached to Him, He will remain with us and will teach, guide and comfort us. If the branch of a vine should be cut off instantly, it would die and be fruitless. But as long as it is attached, the parent stock imparts its juices and furnishes a constant circulation of sap adapted to the growth and fruitfulness of the branch. So in this example, if we were to separate from Christ, we wither and die. But while we are united to Him, by our living faith, strength flows from Him to us and we receive help as we need.
In Deuteronomy 22:9 God spoke about not planting two kinds of seeds in your vineyard or the fruit would be defiled. When God gave this instruction, He didn’t want his people to sow or plant crops with two different types of seeds, so that a mixed produce would arise and the threat would be added. He didn’t want two different kinds of animals to be mated together or clothing materials mixed together that were not of his approval. He wanted their crops, animals and clothing to remain Holy. God is a God of order. And even though we may not understand God’s commands, it’s always for our good.
Now let’s look at what could happen if two different seeds are planted in our vineyards of life…
As one man grows up, he grows up not knowing God. His parents never taught him who God was. So he grows up depending on himself. He puts himself through college. He gets a great job. He gets married and has two kids. He buys a big house. His life is great. The seed is planted that he is in control of his own destiny. Satan has convinced him that in order to be prosperous in this world, you have to work hard, believe in yourself and be good to others. You get out of this world what you put into it! Right? It’s all about me. Look at me. I put myself through college. I got a great job. I found my wife and produced two kids. And I bought a big house. Wow, look at what I’ve accomplished. Well now the economy has changed for the worse. The job he got is now gone because of downsizing. His marriage is falling apart because of the stress of not making any money and his kids don’t respect him in his own house. And now because he doesn’t have a job, his house is now in foreclosure. The seed has been planted that he is in control of his own destiny.
Satan’s job is to plant the seed of destruction at an early age. It might come in the form of abuse, molestation or neglect. And as a child, if one of these forms of destruction happens in your life, your life becomes tainted. You might grow up feeling like it’s your fault that it happened. Or what did I do to deserve this? Why me? Why doesn’t anyone love me? What did I do wrong? The seed of destruction is planted. Because you grow up trying to fit in, you become obsessed with wanting to feel validated and valued. And you will do anything to be noticed, because then it becomes all about you. Now because all that the man worked for is gone, he’s lost all hope and feels that he has nothing else to live for.
Now as another man grows up. He grows up knowing God. His parents are faithful church goers and are very active in the church. He is also active in church and has given his life to God at an early age. He also puts himself through college and gets a great job. He also finds a wife and gets married and has two kids. He buys a great big house with a pool. His life is also great. The seed is planted that God is in control of his destiny and not himself. God has taught him to work hard, because he knows if he doesn’t work he doesn’t eat. God has shown him to love God first in order to love himself. And because of God’s love manifested in him, he can now love others as God loves us. Well now the economy has changed for the worse. The job he got is now gone because of downsizing. His marriage is on the rocks because of stress. And his kids try to disrespect him in his own house, but don’t get very far. His home is now in foreclosure. The seed has been planted that God is in control of his destiny and not of himself. The seed that he allowed God to plant in his life, will allow him to conquer all of the hardships of this life. Even though the economy has changed, God still takes care of his children. He allows the loss of a job, to introduce a new and prosperous career. That marriage that’s on the rocks, because of stress, can bring that marriage closer together, because of the support a married couple shows towards one another in difficult times. Those kids that tried to disrespect their father will quickly become disciplined in love, teaching them to respect their mother and father as God commands. And the home that is now in foreclosure may open up the door to a more affordable home, to lessen the stress of living above their means.
So which seed do you choose? The seed of destruction? Or the seed of hope? The seed of “it’s all about me”? Or the seed of “it’s all about God who lives in me”? 1 John 2:6 says; “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” This is not an easy task on our own. But God also says in Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” We can’t do it on our own. And God doesn’t ask us to live this way. He wants us to remain in Him, so he can remain in us. He will give us the strength to endure the hardships of this world. You can’t have two seeds (or Gods) planted in your vineyard of life. You have to choose which master to serve. Is it going to be God or Satan? Choose the seed of God today.
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Wanda L. Ball~
