The Tiller of the Soil

I remember a time, years ago, when I was teaching an institute on revival, on a Tuesday evening, to a group of pastors at Oldford Ministries in Memphis. God was pleased to work in our midst that particular evening, as I was preaching out of John chapter 15, from a message I entitled, The Divine Pruning Knife. And as I opened my subject and expounded upon it, that God has a divine pruning knife, and he will sharpen it and cut deeply with it, upon those individuals who desire deeper usefulness to him, as he prunes back the branch for greater fruitfulness to his vineyard.

And in the middle of my message, the faces of the ministers became altered, as they were gripped by a deep solemnity, and when I was through speaking, a line formed to speak to me. And an elderly black pastor put his arms around me, as he hugged me, and with tears in his eyes, he said, I've been a pastor for 40 years, but tonight I'm going home, and when I get there, I'm going to kneel by my bed and ask the Lord to get out his pruning knife on me and my ministry. Well, that pastor was willing to submit to God for deeper usefulness to him.

My text today, friends, can be found in the Gospel of John, in chapter 15, and in verse 1. Here now is the word of God, and may the Spirit of the Lord attend the reading of his holy word. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Let me pause here to say that Christ, in this striking passage of Scripture, is distinguishing himself as the true vine that is unlike any other, and he refers to the Father as the husbandman.

In the original Greek language, the wording goes like this. In contradistinction to anyone else, I am the genuine vine, and my Father is the tiller of the soil. And that's the title of my message today, friends, the tiller of the soil.

I want to explore this aspect of God as the tiller of the soil, God as the master craftsman, God as the refiner of silver. I believe God is on the lookout for the man or woman who is willing to risk all for him. I believe he is continually on the search for the person who is willing to lose his life so he can find it.

I believe God is looking for someone whom he can do wonders through for his glory. In 2 Chronicles 16 9 we read, for the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. With that thought in mind, friends, this message is on usefulness to God, and it is about how God deals with those individuals who desire greater usefulness to him.

How about you, friend? Does this describe you? Do you desire greater usefulness to God? Do you want God to do something deep in your life for the good of his people and for his glory? Are you willing to gamble your life away for Christ and the sake of the gospel? This is a very serious matter, and God will only take serious those who are serious with him. Mere lip service won't cut the mustard. God wants a full surrender to him.

There are some hard questions that need to be addressed by the individual who desires greater usefulness to God. There must be transparency before God and honesty with oneself. I've discipled men for years who said with their lips they were willing to go all out for God, but inwardly their heart was divided.

It was divided by this world. It was divided by their loved ones. It was divided by material possessions.

They were willing to go only so far with God, so long as it didn't cost them anything. God does not work that way, for it cost him his beloved son to suffer and die on a bloody cross for the sins of man. This is where many part company with God, because they are fearful of what God will do with them.

They want to be useful in his hands, but they shrink back from being handled by his hands. They don't want to submit to the pruning knife or the refiner's fire. They still want self to be in control, so they limit what God can do with them.

They choose to live a life of self-preservation while they serve at church in capacities of their own choosing and fail to leave a mark on the world for God's kingdom. I recall a time in my own life where I got serious with God and he got serious with me. Every day I cried out to him with tears running down my face to be more useful to him.

One day in my quiet time he spoke to me, not in an audible voice, but in the small still voice of my heart. He said, If I am to use you like few other men, then you will have to live like few men do. This was the final battleground between self and the cross.

It was either future usefulness to God or a life of uselessness for me. Self had to be willingly annihilated daily on the cross, and there had to be a full surrender to his lordship in consecration from that point forward until he came or called. There was no turning back.

From that point in my life, God began to work as the tiller of the soil. The furrows he cut were deep. The ground had to be laid bare, turned up and turned over for the planting he desired to do, to reap a harvest for his glory.

I didn't know the cost at the time. Years have transpired, and he has been faithful throughout, as he has placed me beneath his divine pruning knife, held me under his refiner's fire, pruning me and purging me and stripping me and emptying me. Let me say this, friend.

If you are sincere with God in regard to your deeper usefulness to God, then there has to be a willingness to be placed in the palms of God, the master craftsman, to be molded by him and handled by him. The greater usefulness, the greater the drastic handling by a sovereign who strips and prunes and purges those who are useful to him. There has to be a surrendered life under the discipline of the Holy Spirit.

There has to be a preparation for a daily dine of self. There must be a deep desire for usefulness to God that runs so deep that one is willing to lose all so he may be gained. Are you willing to lose your reputation? Are you willing to lose your earthly goods? Are you willing to lose yourself by gambling your life away on a bloodstained Christ for the sake of the gospel and the souls of men? How serious are you? God will take no half-hearted surrender.

He will not accept a partial commitment. It's all or nothing, or nothing at all. Christ held nothing back at Calvary.

How can we hold anything back from him? His disciples grew to spiritual maturity and great usefulness, but they had to lay down their very lives to do so. Are you willing to lay down your life, if necessary, for Christ Jesus? Are you willing to lose everything for him? Are you willing to give God complete control over all you have that is dear to you? Are you willing to give all you are to all he is, the tiller of the soul, may have chosen you for something more? But the greater usefulness, the greater the suffering. Are you willing still? May God grant you the grace to go all out for him.

Let us pray.