In most of the western world, and northern hemisphere, October is pretty well the end of the harvest season.  All is safely gathered in !  Certainly, around Maybole, in south west Scotland, September’s sunshine seems to have favoured this year’s in-gathering  of crops.  

Years ago I would help a farmer friend at harvest.  I remember rubbing my knuckles sore lifting sacks of corn onto a trailer towed through the newly cut field.  The others didn’t have that trouble, but they were regular farm workers and I was a soft handed city guy!

You might say I wasn’t hardened to country life and labour.  That’s true.  But I wanted to have a hand in the harvest.   

Harvest has another meaning for Jesus.  His concern is with human souls.  This was not a matter of sunshine ripening fruit and grain or Jesus rubbing His knuckles sore.  His work in this harvest was death on Calvary’s cross - shedding His blood for the forgiveness of our sin.

The corn has no escape from the harvest as modern machines swallow up fields of ripened corn – separating grain and stalk, spilling the grain into waiting container and compressing the straw to disgorge it in huge plastic wrapped circular bales. 

Nor can we avoid an in-gathering, but we choose between two harvests.  We may be among those who have asked God, in Jesus’ name, to forgive our sins.  Or we reject God’s offer of forgiveness in Jesus and become part of what Jesus described as the harvest of the tares.

(Have a look at St. Matthew’s Gospel chapter 13, verses 24-30 & 36-43)