Those who sow in tears will reap with cries of joy.

 

Wednesday, August 23, 2023


Psalms 124; 125; 126

2 Samuel 22:1-16

Acts 19:1-20


Observance: Tydfil, martyr (d. c. 5th C)


Those who sow in tears will reap with cries of joy.


Twice a year we are all told that our Australian culture was formed on the beaches of Gallipoli in the First World War. This seems, however, like a bit of an early assumption. It wasn’t until the second half of the last century that having convict heritage changed from a source of shame to pride; and in the lead up to the upcoming Referendum we are now hearing of the “New Indigenous”: people who have recently discovered Aboriginal ancestry and instead of hiding it, are looking to discover more. This “return”, of people with Aboriginal ancestors looking up their elders, is causing no end of division, and it makes one wonder about the situation in Israel when Psalm 126 was written.


Babylonian armies had razed the nation to the ground and hauled off a large portion of the population into exile. Many years later, as we read in Ezra and Nehemiah, these exiles were allowed to return to their homeland. Today’s Psalms speak of the joy of those who looked up from their harvest to see their friends and families finally coming home.


Spiritually speaking, Jesus is out looking for the lost, dedicated as He is as the Good Shepherd. Every soul is precious to our Lord. Heaven erupts in joy when just one sinner repents and is brought home (Luke 15:10). Those who went before us, who are now with the Lord, are “a great cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1). They, like us, “witnessed” to the goodness of God in their lives, and when we have finished this earthly race and return home to be with our Lord and theirs, the cries of joy will be deafening.


This work is hard. The enemy is in the air, looking to snatch the seeds the Lord has planted (Matt 13:1-9) and which we are tending (1 Cor 3:6-9). Often we are in tears from the effort. But the reward is worth it: growing the family of God, building the kingdom of heaven. And we will reap the harvest with cries of joy.

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