Investing in People: Planting Gospel Seeds for Harvest

Solomon frames investment as a deliberate, everyday discipline that shows itself in music, work, family, money, and above all in sharing the gospel. Skill develops through steady effort; the guitar player’s hours model the patient work that turns raw ability into a gift for the community. Ecclesiastes 11:1–6 supplies six practical maxims: take risks, diversify your investments, recognize that heavy clouds bring rain, avoid waiting for perfect conditions, accept that God’s activity lies beyond full human grasp, and plant steadily from morning through afternoon. These verses move investment from financial savvy to spiritual urgency—invest time, care, and the gospel in people. John 5:24 reframes the investment’s aim: hear and believe, and eternal life becomes the incomparable return.

The passage insists on courageous vulnerability in sharing faith. Sending grain across the seas represents investments that face shipwreck, delay, and loss; yet God’s word never returns void, and profit can come long after the risk. Waiting for perfect weather paralyzes effort; farmers who wait never plant, and a barn full of seed yields no harvest. Human limits—ignorance about wind patterns or the mystery of conception—should not deter faithful sowing. Responsibility rests with those placed near the soil: share the gospel with coworkers, neighbors, and family; the preacher cannot reach private circles for each person. Practical mission examples—local ministries and global outreach—illustrate diversified, persistent investment.

The text calls for hard, humble labor in human hearts: love others enough to meet needs, listen, and then speak the gospel plainly. Plant often, work all day, and trust God to make things grow. The highest return comes not from clever strategy but from faithfully investing oneself in people for Christ, trusting the Spirit to bring the harvest.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Investment transforms skill into service Solomon connects disciplined practice with public contribution: hours at the guitar convert talent into worship leadership. Spiritual investment works the same way—regular acts of love and presence develop credibility and open doors to gospel conversations. The kingdom values persistent training and patient stewardship of gifts. [55:32]
• 2. Risk belongs to gospel work “Send your grain across the seas” models unavoidable exposure: mission often meets storms, loss, or delay. Faithful witness accepts vulnerability because the promise attaches to the word, not to human control; God honors the risk even when timing and outcome remain unknown. Risk reframes loss as potential seed. [70:16]
• 3. Don’t wait for perfect conditions Farmers who watch every cloud never plant; perfect timing rarely arrives. Obedience requires action amid uncertainty—planting now multiplies hoped-for fruit later. Waiting for ideal circumstances becomes the enemy of harvest. [78:59]
• 4. Accept God’s inscrutable activity Human analysis cannot fully explain how growth happens—wind paths or life in the womb remain mysterious. That mystery frees diligent sowing from demand for guarantees: plant, water, and trust the One who makes things grow. Faith acts without needing full explanation. [81:31]
• 5. No harvest without planting the seed Keeping seed in the barn guarantees no crop; loving without proclamation leaves eternal need unmet. Practical care must culminate in clear gospel speech—offer the promise of John 5:24 so people may pass from death to life. Planting produces possible harvests; abstaining produces none. [92:35]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [35:32] - Learning the guitar: investment example
• [55:52] - From practice to public service
• [57:19] - Ecclesiastes: investment introduced
• [62:44] - Gospel promise: John 5:24 explained
• [70:16] - Risk: send your grain across seas
• [78:59] - Don’t wait for perfect conditions
• [81:31] - Mystery of God’s activity
• [85:19] - Plant in the morning; work all day
• [92:35] - No harvest without planting
• [93:59] - Final exhortation and prayer
• [100:20] - Welcoming new members

Bible reading
Ecclesiastes 11:1–6 (ESV)
1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth. 3 If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie. 4 He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. 5 As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. 6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.

John 5:24 (ESV)
Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

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Observation questions

1. What are the six practical actions or attitudes Solomon advises in Ecclesiastes 11:1–6?
2. According to John 5:24, what are the two conditions for receiving eternal life?
3. What examples from everyday life (like farming or music) illustrate the principle of investment? [55:32]
4. What happens when a farmer waits for perfect conditions instead of planting? [01:18:59]

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Interpretation questions

1. Why does Solomon compare sharing the gospel to sending grain across the seas? What risks might be involved? [01:10:16]
2. How does the mystery of God’s activity (like the wind or a growing baby) free us to act even when we don’t understand everything? [01:21:31]
3. What might it look like to “plant in the morning and work all afternoon” in the context of sharing the gospel with others? [01:25:19]
4. Why is it important to diversify our gospel investments rather than focusing on just one person or place? [01:14:12]

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Application questions

1. Who is one person in your life (coworker, neighbor, family member) you feel led to share the gospel with but have hesitated due to risk or discomfort? What would it look like to “send your grain” to them this week? [01:10:16]
2. Are you currently waiting for “perfect conditions” (more knowledge, better timing, less busyness) before sharing your faith? What is one step you can take to plant the seed now instead of waiting? [01:18:59]
3. How can you balance practical acts of love (meeting needs, listening) with clearly speaking the gospel message? [01:29:00]
4. What are some specific ways you can “work all day” in gospel investment—consistently showing love and sharing truth in both ordinary and intentional moments? [01:25:19]
5. Have you ever held back from sharing the gospel because you felt you couldn’t answer every question or explain everything? How can trusting God’s mysterious work free you to speak simply and faithfully? [01:21:31]
6. Is your seed still in the barn when it comes to someone close to you? What would it look like to lovingly offer them the promise of John 5:24 this week? [01:32:35]