Hebrews 4: 12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
The Bible is not a mere novel that should be read and added to a list of literature. It is much more than simply ink on paper. It is living! Every scripture is life-giving. We could spend the rest of our time on earth dealing with one passage and never exhaust all of the truth or meaning from it. Every verse can mean something different to each person who reads it, depending on their needs without ever losing its integrity or essential truth. That is the power of God’s Word!
Context is important. I always try not to pull out a single verse without reading what’s around it. The neighboring scriptures can often provide illumination as to what the author is trying to convey. After all, we are told to rightly divide the word of truth, and the only way to rightly divide scripture is with more scripture. However, this admonition will also help us to avoid tunnel vision as well. We don’t want to get so focused on the specific context that we ignore the universal principles that are at work.
A great example of this is Luke 6:38 which reads, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Most Christians have heard this scripture used (usually right about offering time) when discussing money. If we look at the context of this verse, we see that Jesus is discussing judgment. The previous verse is discussing the judgment and forgiveness that comes to us as a result of us passing judgment or forgiving others. So are all of these pastors, evangelists, and teachers twisting the Bible to mean something it doesn’t?
We might be able to draw that conclusion if there were no other scriptures regarding sowing and reaping in the Bible, but there are a LOT! In the seventh verse of the sixth chapter of Galatians, Paul writes “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” Job 4:8 reads “Even as I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 says “But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.“
So while we see that the context of Luke 6:38 may be talking about judgment and forgiveness, the concept of “you reap what you sow, and plenty of it” is not exclusive, but rather is a basic biblical principle. So can it mean money? Absolutely. Can it also mean misery? You bet! If you make it your job to treat others poorly, you can expect to be treated poorly as well. If you plant a kernel of corn, you cannot expect to harvest tomatoes. Not only that, but you won’t reap one kernel of corn from sowing one kernel of corn. You will get a stalk of corn containing several ears which each have many kernels. God is all about multiplication!
Let’s not ignore the context of scripture, but also not take “A truth” and make it “THE truth”. Let’s avoid tunnel vision and instead open our spirits to receive exactly what God wants to communicate to us.