by Pastor Mark Downey
Scripture Reading: Luke 10:2
In prophecy, what is the harvest? From today's Scripture reading, the harvest simile commenced during Christ's lifetime, as He sent out 35 advance teams of 2 disciples (student interns) each (70) to the venues where Christ would go for ministering. If the prohibition of going to the heathen and Samaritans was sound advice, is there any reason to believe that they would go to places where Christ was not scheduled to go? Does one harvest their crops in thickly wooded forest, the frigid tundra or tropical jungles? No, we harvest our crops from the cultivated areas from which we planted seed and gave nourishment. Christ bids His students, whether it was directed to the 12 or the 70 is immaterial, to pray for the Lord of the harvest, which is proof of prayer being made to He who has the care and charge of the whole election of grace, to wherever the elect reside, that He will send forth laborers into His harvest. Why? Because the elect are scattered throughout the world and are a particularly vast multitude, specifically Christ's compassion for the lost sheep of the house of Israel; men perishing for a lack of knowledge and sheep without a shepherd. The harvest is not found in every square inch of the earth, but in the fields of the world, where a potential bounty is planted. Universalism would go on missions where they dared to check Christ's orders. They lacked not only an understanding of the prophetic harvest, but hindered it as well; they gave that which was holy to the dogs (Mt. 7”6). Global elitists, i.e. those who want to rule the world without Jesus Christ, do not want Bible prophecy to interfere with the status quo and their power structure. And so prophecy must be distorted and managed in their favor.
Now the question arises, in light of the parable of the wheat and the tares, was the harvest that Christ ordered, partially fulfilled in His day, and then postponed until sometime in the future? The analogy of a field is the appropriate venue, which takes in all of the Israelitish nations and cities, that would be overwhelmed by alien immigration. We've see this ebb and flow of racial integration for the last 2000 years. And likewise the jewish purges from over 100 Christian countries.