`What is Christian Worship?’ Series: Harvest Sunday
Luke 12: 16 – 21
Please encourage everyone to bring with them something they consider represents Harvest
Every year for many years my family and I have made a harvest loaf together. We have brought in other people - especially children from St Giles’ – to show them how the loaf is made and to remind them of why we make this loaf. I have been into St Giles’ School making loaves with them and telling them about how God provides the seed and the growing conditions so we can eat and be filled.
‘Bring the best of the first fruits of your soil to the house of the Lord, your God’ Exodus 23: 19
Q. Ice breaker - Looking at what has been brought, or:
Do you have any memories to share about ways you celebrated Harvest or still do?
Was Harvest Festival important when you were at school?
What do you think about when Harvest is mentioned?
Prayer and worship, giving thanks. You may like to sing a song of celebration together. You may also like to have some fruit and veg or pictures to help your thoughts.
Q. Why do we celebrate Harvest?
It is a special time of year although today very few of us are farmers, our lives do depend on there being food produced for us to eat.
Q. Do you grow produce which you can eat? Is that easy?
Q. Is food the only kind of Harvest?
Q. What is special about waiting for the Harvest?
Q. What should we do after the Harvest? - Replant for next year?
Q. What do you notice about God’s harvest and his huge generosity?
Q. Is this an example for us all?
Read together Bible Reading Luke 12: 16 – 21
Jesus tells many parables and often they have an agricultural context.
Q. Why do you think this is the case?
Q. If Jesus was telling parables today, what might he chose as his context?
In the passage from Luke, we hear about a rich man whose land produced a good crop.
Q. What did he choose to do with the crop?
Q. Why was this challenged by Jesus?
Q. How do we become rich towards God?
Q. Is it the fact that the man was rich which is a problem?
Q. How do we today copy that man – Take life easy, eat, drink, and be merry?
Q. What could we do differently?
Reflection
Spend time thinking about how we could share our Harvest with others.
Consider the other kinds of Harvest – the fruit of our labours – the result of good education – bringing people to Christ.
Q. Are we truly grateful for what God has done for us in providing natural resources not only food but everything he has made?
Further Bible passages on the theme of Harvest:-
Gen 8:22 - Seedtime and Harvest
Exodus 23:16 - Celebrate the Feast of the Harvest with the first fruits.
Matthew 9:37 - The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.
John 4:35 - Look at the fields, they are ripe for harvest.
Heb 12:11 - It produces a harvest of righteousness.
Rev 14:15 - For the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Closing Prayers
That we may appreciate all good gifts around us and thank God
For those who are starving for food
Those spiritually starving due to many circumstances
That we may become workers in the harvest