[Steve Myers] Well, we do live at an interesting time in this calendar year, don't we? It's springtime, it's springtime. We are beyond the Passover now. We've completed the days of Unleavened Bread. The A.B.C. calendar year is coming to an end, so it's all over about the crying at this point. School year, I know a lot of you who are in college, you feel the pressure, it's getting difficult because finals are upon us. So that's happening as well. Even the end of the school year for other students is coming to an end. So this is a tough time of the year sometimes when you really think about whether it's the weather, whether it's the events that had been happening. You maybe even heard the little story about this little sixth grader.

It's the end of the school year, he's coming home with this report card, he opens it up and he is scared to death. He said, "Oh, no, why does school have to be so hard?" And so he's trying to figure out, "How can I tell my parents about these bad grades. "I don't know how can I get out of getting punished because once they see this, oh, boy, am I in trouble." So he's thinking and thinking all the way home. Finally, gets there and he hands the report card to mom and dad and they just can't believe it. They're just shocked just looking at this. And right away the little boy holds up his hands and he says, "Well, mom and dad, what do you think the problem is? Is it heredity or environment?" So he tries to get out of the problem.

When you think about the difficulties that we face, especially at this time of the year, it brings me back many, many years ago. Many years ago I remember a time that the flowers were blooming. It was absolutely beautiful. I mean the grass is green. The trees are budding out, the leaves are turning green, I mean life is springing up everywhere. Then came April 8th, and 10 inches of snow. It was supposed to be springtime, are you kidding me? Ten inches of snow and you think “Well, that's unusual.” I mean the one food thing was we got out of school, so that was great. That was great. It wasn't too many years later, a little older, April 4th, 11 inches of snow. Now, I know I grew up in Wisconsin and that kind of seems like a normal thing. But wait a second, I was much older, we got to 1990, and get this, it wasn't April, May 10th, 7 inches of snow on May 10th, 1990 in Wisconsin, do you believe that? That's a way… well, okay. This is freaky, right?

That's just freak weather. It doesn't normally happen. It's springtime. It's wonderful. It's beautiful, but we were going to take my mom home last Sunday. She lives in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. On April 15th, that's last Sunday, do you know how many inches of snow they got? Nineteen inches of snow. And just 16 miles away in Amherst, 33 inches of snow last Sunday. Unbelievable. Now, originally, I called my brother a wimp for not wanting to drive through that but then I had to take that back. That's a lot of snow. Well, when you think of that that's supposed to be springtime, its springtime then. How could anything survive? How do the plants survive that sort of thing? I mean, they're beginning to bloom, they're beginning… I mean there's no doubt. Springtime plants have a tough life. They are tougher than any other growth. Even though it's supposed to be green, it's supposed to be sunny, it's supposed to be warm, it is a difficult time. And plants at this time of the year they have to go through the cold. They have to go through some time, yeah, it snows in Cincinnati as well. They have to go through the winds. They have to go through even the ice that may appear at this time of the year. And, of course, you compare that to the summer breezes, the warm winds, the wonderful sun that's on our faces during the summer time.

Yeah, it's nothing to compare to when you think of that. And when you think of springtime, this is not the easiest time to begin life. I mean you think about that saying we even have for March, what's the old saying? "If it's in like a lamb, marches out like a lion." And sometimes that's the way spring is. And when you think of the seasons, I think there's a connection there to our lives. Think about our lives right now. Many of us are going through trials, we're going through difficulties, we're going through challenges, and when you think about the springtime, you can't help but think, "Why is it so difficult? Why are so many challenges coming this way? Why is it like that?"

Well, you know, when we think about what God's plan, what is His purpose, we know that in His plan for mankind, He's demonstrated that purpose through His Holy Days. And His Holy Days are wrapped around the seasons. They're wrapped around the harvest seasons in the Middle East. And we could probably all turn to Leviticus 23 or maybe Exodus 23, where it details that plan and that purpose and how there's a connection there to what God's purposes are all about because we know just like the plants that are harvested in the springtime whether it'd be in Palestine, whether it'd be here.

We know God is harvesting people. There's a connection to the harvest of the crops and what God's ultimate purpose is, how He's harvesting people for eternal life in His family forever. And so there is an indisputable connection to this time of the year especially for us. As God's people, right now, and maybe the big harvest lesson to begin with, maybe the biggest harvest lesson has to do with our Savior, Jesus Christ. You can just write down 1 Corinthians 15:20, you're probably very familiar with this passage because it points to our Savior. And the beginning of the harvest where it says, "Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." I mean, a short little passage was so powerful pointing out the fact that firstfruits, they're the beginning of the harvest, that's where the harvest begins. They're the firstfruits to ripen. They're the first ones to mature, and Christ as our forerunner, He was the first of the first. He led the way to point out the fact there are many more to follow.

And so God uses that analogy of the harvest over and over and over again throughout His Bible, throughout His Word, and throughout those Holy Days. And I think it especially illustrates what's going on in our lives today. Because Christ was the first but there are more to follow. And I will have you turn over to James 1:18. With this little bit of background, we begin to see Christ was the first and, of course, the implication is there are more to follow. There are more to follow. He's the first of the firstfruits, but notice the way that James puts it. James 1:18 reveals that it didn't stop with Christ. Even though we went through Passover and Unleavened Bread, that's was only the beginning of the barley harvest in the Middle East. How long did that harvest go on? Well, it started during Unleavened Bread and it continued all the way to Pentecost. That initial harvest, that first harvest, those firstfruits were harvested during that whole period. And James makes the spiritual connection here, James 1:18, he says, "Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures." And then James goes on to show how those firstfruits, how you and I should be living our lives.

And so it points out the fact we're that harvest, we are that initial harvest, what's going on in Palestine right now as they're harvesting their barley represents us. It's symbolic of us as that firstfruit spiritual harvest, the harvest of people. And so when we make this connection to the springtime and what's happening in our lives, boy, He points out the fact we've got a job to do. There's a job to do. We are called out now. Now is our time, springtime is our time. And we're to be different than the rest of the… The rest of the harvest isn't ready yet. That's not going to happen until later in the year, later in God's plan. But right now God's dealing with us and we're to be different. And when we ask that question, why is it so difficult? Why so difficult? Well, let's think about that for a little bit because as we think about the concept of God's plan and His purpose in connection to the springtime, in connection to firstfruits, it begins to reveal why. Why? Why is it so tough? Why is it difficult? I had a couple of things to think about as we consider this very fact.

First of all, the world, those out in the world they're not growing right now. They're not growing right now. If you were to look out in the world in this sense, still brown. There's no growth. There are no leaves budding. There's nothing going on. You see the world has not germinated yet when you think about it spiritually. So to think about that in that sense, the world is not spiritually growing right now, in the springtime of God's plan. And we know there's a number of reasons for that. We know that Satan has a part to play in that. Revelation 12:9 reminds us this entire world is deceived by Satan the devil. Yeah, we know that. We also recognized the fact that they're sleeping, they're sleeping. Something else has to happen for them to wake up. Romans 11:8 tells us that they are in the “spirit of slumber.” Yes, ancient Israel is in the spirit of slumber, but so is the world at this time. They're in the spirit of slumber so they don't hear. And why don't they hear? Why haven't they germinated? Why isn't the world's spiritually growing? Well, we know what John 6:44 says, if you'd like to turn there, you certainly can. John 6:44, fulfilling your passage that reminds us, still brown grass out, still no leaves budding, it's not happening for them yet, why? Because John 6:44 reminds us of what Jesus Christ Himself said.

Christ said, "No man can come to Me except the Father draw him." You see, and God hasn't woken them up yet. He hasn't drawn them to Himself yet. So they're still not germinated, still brown grass out there. And it represents the fact that God isn't working with everybody right now. That's the point God's making, that with these various harvests He's working with some right now, but the vast majority, He's not. He's not. So God is not working with the entirety of humankind right now. So who's He working with? Just a few, just a few right now. And so when we consider what our Creator is doing, He's in charge. He's the God of the harvest and He controls the harvest. And so right now God is only choosing a few. He is drawing them, He's drawing us out of this world, really just a few, in comparison, just a relative few people, and as Luke records for us, in Luke 12, it's just a little flock, it's just a little harvest compared to that big harvest that's going to be happening later.

And when you consider what God is doing, through Jesus Christ, the first of the firstfruits, He makes way for the harvest, for the firstfruit harvest. And by the power of God's Spirit, we recognized it is a spiritual harvest. And by the power of His Spirit, it makes that initial harvest possible. And when the Church began, you know, Peter pointed that fact that it was fulfilling this prophecy of Joel, that God poured out His Spirit at that time on His people, those He's drawing out and ultimately we'll pour that water of His Spirit on all of mankind, that all mankind will have an opportunity but each in its own order, each in its own order. And it's a reminder. What's God doing now is most of humanity, the water isn't pouring on them yet, right? The Spirit hasn't been poured on them. And so God's not… He will but that water of His Spirit hasn't been poured on the vast majority of mankind, it just hasn't happened yet.

Now, of course, that reminds me of the story I heard about water. There this was this tall Texan that was visiting up in New York, and it's always hard to impress a Texan, isn't it? Because everything is bigger, everything is better in Texas. And they're usually not too shy to tell you about that, are they? So this Texan is visiting up in New York and their guy figures, “I've got him.” He takes them to Niagara Falls. He takes them to the most beautiful place it seems in the whole country. And New York is kind of bragging a little bit. He's saying, "Well, look at this, you Texans you've nothing bigger and better than this drip, do you?" The Texan thought about that for a minute and he said, "Yeah, you're right but we got a plumber that can fix that."

I mean, it's a reminder, maybe a corny one. But God hasn't let that water of His Spirit flow to all of humanity yet. There's a power of that Spirit that makes it possible. And even when you consider those that are religious in the world, you know, they have a form of religion and we can't criticize them, we can't make fun of that. But the fact is they have a zeal for God, the Scripture says but not according to knowledge. It's not their fault. It's not their fault because God hasn't poured out His Spirit on them yet. He will, and, boy, that probably would be an easy fix when He does. But the fact is they haven't, like the rest of the world, hasn't awakened from that winter sleep yet. Not yet. And like that spring where the snow just came down without end and we got out of school, it is a tough time for those that God is working with as a firstfruit. It is a difficult time. God has called us and He's working with us and we're a part of the Body now. When you think about those that He will call, what will it be like for them when He calls them? What will life be like for them? When God finally opens their mind to His truth, not going to be like it is today, is it? It's going to be totally different. It will be totally different.

There's a wonderful passage. We rehearse them at the Feast of Tabernacles every year. We go over those passages like in Isaiah 11. You may know some of those things by heart once you begin to talk about them. There's that passage that's about the wolf, and what does it dwell with? No, it doesn't eat the lamb, it dwells with the lamb, right? Isaiah 11 talks about it. It says, "The leopard is going to lie down with the little goat." No, it's not going to eat the goat, they're going to live together. The little child could put its hand on the snakes den, no problem. It's going to be a different kind of world. And Isaiah spells that out so clearly. He even tells us the desert is going to rejoice, it's going to blossom, it's not going to be a desert anyway, God is going to change the world, the physical characteristics of animals. It will be a totally different… well, imagine what people will live like? What will their life… they're not going to have Satan to have to deal with? They won't have to overcome his evil desires for them. That won't be there. People are going to have a break. Life, we could say, is going to be more like a summer breeze. It will be different. It will be different.

Now, of course, compare that to today. Let's think about that for a moment. What about life today, why is it so difficult? Perhaps when we consider that we think of what Paul wrote to Corinth. Let's look at 2 Corinthians 4:8. Have you ever thought like Paul thought here? It's hard not to sometimes. It's hard not to sometimes because he points out the challenges of the springtime. He points out how icy weather can really detract from what our goal is. He points out, yes, sometimes it's going to snow, sometimes it's going to be windy and it's going to knock us down. And so he writes about that to God's Church in Corinth and he writes it to us as well. Notice what he says, 2 Corinthians 4:8, he says, "We're hard-pressed on every side, yet we're not crushed; we're perplexed, but not in despair;” verse 9, he says, "we're persecuted, but not forsaken; we're struck down, but we're not destroyed—“ he says, "we're always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body." That even though we have the challenges, even though we have the difficulties, even though life is tough for springtime spiritual plants, it doesn't overwhelm us because we have a different perspective. We recognize the dying of our Savior Jesus Christ and it changes our perspective even though life is tough.

And we can rehearse those stories of Paul and the apostles preaching and teaching the Word. And how often is it right connected the stories of how they were beaten or how they were scourged or how they were stoned. And yet they rejoiced for those things. Life is tough. Life is tough and it brought Peter to the conclusion of saying, "We must through many tribulations enter the Kingdom of God." It's no different today. It's no different today. Life is a challenge and its part of our calling. It's part of our calling.

I was reminded of this a number of years ago when Kathe and I were shopping for china. Not my favorite thing, I don't really care about china. Shopping, in general, I'm not really big on. I was like, "Oh, I have to go look at plates, really? Well, okay, we need to do this." So we're looking at china. "Well, what's the difference between this one and this one?" "I like that cheap one, that's beautiful. That is beautiful. What's wrong with this one?" And you're looking and comparing these things and, of course, there are goods… Have you walked into a china shop? Oh, boy, they got you. They got you. So what's the difference between this one that I like that's really cheap? This one is unbelievable, why is this so expensive? I don't understand what's the difference? Why is this porcelain so costly?

Of course, salesmen have an answer for everything, right? But it made sense after I heard the explanation. He says, "Because there's a whole lot more to the process. There's a whole lot more to the process because it has more done with it and to it.” Then he gets into at least technical descriptions of, "Well, this fine porcelain has been through cone 14." I was like, "Cone what?" I only know ice cream cones, don't tell me about that. What? So he's explaining all these things. He says, "It goes through a kiln that's up to 14,000 degrees centigrade." I was like, "Wait a second, I'm not British, I don't understand. What is that?" He's like, "25,000 degrees Fahrenheit."

"What? You got to be kidding me?" And he says, "Not only that, look at this beautiful china, look at this porcelain." He says, "There are beautiful blue flowers that are on a yellow background with a greenish trim." He said, "That has to be fired in the kiln three times, at least three times. And so because more has been done to it, it is that much costlier. So for the border, for the background, and finally, the design, all of that had to take place so that it would be this final, beautiful piece of fine china." I thought about that. I didn't go for the price still but it definitely got me thinking about things and especially maybe mixing our metaphors between the firstfruits and the harvest and this china. I mean think about that for a minute. When we go through the fire, when we go through the trials, when we go through the difficulties and we go through the heat of challenges and tribulations, God is bringing us ultimately to display His design.

We're to look like Christ and that doesn't happen automatically. It's not something that happens by absorption. It's something that we experience. It's something that we go through. And so these difficulties that we face in the spring time point to that very fact that God is helping us to fully display the character and qualities of His Son, Jesus Christ. In fact, that led the apostle Paul to say some amazing things. If you turn over to Romans 8:18, I want to be able to say this and you know sometimes it feels like, "Oh, maybe I haven't learned how to say that in all situations." But Paul certainly learned how to do that. Romans 8:18, amazing passage, something that, yeah, I got to keep that in the forefront of my mind. Romans 8:18, Paul says, "I consider the sufferings of this present time" this springtime in the growth and calling of God's people. "I consider the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." And, you know, there are times when we get knocked down and it's tough to get back up. It's tough to pick yourself back up and get into the fire all over again.

But Paul didn't do it alone. He didn't do it alone. He saw that God was the one that was bringing us through the cold and the ice and the snow. He was also the one, on the other hand, bringing us through the furnace so that we will reflect that beautiful design. And so he even says the creation itself, verse 19, “The earnest expectation of the creation eagerly awaits for the revealing of” that beautiful porcelain, that beautiful china, “the revealing of the sons of God.” His children in His image. And, in fact, it's an amazing reminder of one aspect of our calling. If you want to hold your place here in Romans 8, Peter says a couple of remarkable things as well, 1 Peter 2. Look go over the 1 Peter 2:21, because Paul talks maybe a little bit in general about the sufferings, that, "Okay, we're going to suffer, there's going to be difficulties, there's going to be challenges, and yet there is this amazing glory to look forward to in the Kingdom of God is His very own children, as His offspring." We can look forward to that.

But Peter puts a little bit of a different twist on it as well. You notice 1 Peter 2:21, when you consider the difficulties and tribulations that we're going through right now, Peter says this, verse 21, chapter 2 of 1 Peter, "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps." I'm called to this. Wait a second. I'm a Christian. I've dedicated my life to God, shouldn't everything be great? Shouldn't everything be… I shouldn't have to go through difficulties. I shouldn't have to deal with problems. Life should be good. It should be the warm breezes of summer all the time, shouldn't it? Because I love God and I love His way. I'm trying to follow Him. So shouldn't things go smoothly?

And yet, Peter says, "We're called to suffer." And, of course, we think of our Savior. He didn't deserve that. He already was fine china. He was already the Son of God. He was Emmanuel, God with us. And yet, like Peter says, He committed no sin and look what He suffered. And we will suffer because we're striving to be in the image of Jesus Christ. We will suffer because we've been called out of this world, and this is a sinful place and we will suffer because of that, and we will suffer because it's life. This is not God's world. And we will suffer because of that. And yet, if it's possible can we move to have the mindset of Jesus Christ, that no matter what happens we have a different perspective. In fact, just over a page in my Bible, 1 Peter 4:13. Can we have this perspective? 1 Peter 4:13, Peter says, “rejoice… rejoice to the extent that you partake in Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad about exceeding joy." Wow, what a change of perspective that is, that we can recognize, you know, this world, this physical life, this isn't what it's about. This is just the fist… this is just the springtime. This is just the springtime and the seasons are going to past. The time will change when God's Kingdom will be established.

This world is just a temporary step in that master plan of God. He doesn't even see this as reality in that sense. The reality is the Kingdom. This is just a temporary existence, just that initial step. And so when we really recognize that and really take it in, strive to be of the mindset that Peter had, it changes our perspective. So that we can see God's got a bigger plan, a bigger purpose. And that bigger purpose is something that He's got in store so that He can harvest potentially everybody. That's what God wants. He doesn't want any to perish but all to come to repentance. He wants everybody in His Kingdom. Now, He gives us the choice, but that's God's purpose and His plan and He calls us at the very best time, the very best time for us. We have the best opportunity to be a part of His family when He opens our mind to His truth, and our time is now.

God wouldn't call us at a time when we have the cards stacked against us. No, He calls us at the best time for us because He's on our side. He wants us to succeed. He looks forward to the time we can be in the family. And so, yes, this time is difficult because it's springtime and we face challenges that others in the future won't have. We've been called in the difficult age. We know the god of this world is not our god. We know who sits on that throne right now but he's going to be kicked off of that throne and Christ will rule this world in the future. And so in the meantime, we've got to fight the fight. We have a daily battle, spiritual warfare and that pulls against our human nature, it pulls against us and the pressures of society, the pressures of culture, the pressures of our jobs and the difficulties we face every day, it is a battle against evil. That's our calling.

Paul said we're not just fighting a physical battle, its spiritual warfare. We're fighting spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6 reminds us of that. And not only that, we got to fight ourselves. We have to fight our own desires, our own thinking, our own ways. And being a firstfruit, that's what we are. We are God's firstfruits and being that firstfruit is a requirement that we overcome Satan. It's a requirement that we overcome the temptations of this world. It's a requirement that we overcome our human nature. It's a must. We have to get away from wrong thinking, wrong actions, wrong ways of doing things our way. And that's going to require tremendous effort, tremendous resolve, self-denial. God expects it. We have to be willing to pay the price. We have to go against the flow of this world and swim upstream. We've got to do those very things. And when you compare what life will be in the future to now, it's tough. It's tough, no doubt.

So how do we make it? How can we survive? How can we survive when we are knocked down and the snow is over our heads and the ice is all around us? How do firstfruits survive? There's an amazing passage in Ezekiel 36:26, that is a great summary. It's a wonderful reminder because, you know, if we try to do it on our own, we're reminded we can't do it. When we're covered with a foot of snow, 19 inches of snow over it, we can't get out from under it. The weight weighing us down and it's impossible to dig ourselves out. But Ezekiel 36:26 reminds us survival is possible. In fact, it's what God wants for us. Notice Ezekiel 36:26, he was inspired to write for us. He says, "I will give you a new heart. I'll put a new spirit within you; I'll take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” You won't be stone, you'll be a living, breathing, active individual living by the power of God's Spirit. So he says in verse 27, "I will put My Spirit within you and I'll cause you to walk in My statutes, you’ll keep My judgments and do them."

How do we dig out? How do we survive? By the power of God's Spirit, because it makes the relationship with God possible, it changes our perspective. We see life differently. We recognize we're going to be buried without dependence on God. And firstfruits, we as the Body of Christ, His Church, we have to have a closer dependence on God. It has to be there. We have to be submissive to His Spirit in every aspect of our lives and recognize when the trials are tough and it seems overwhelming, God has a purpose. He has a plan. And He will not allow us to fail. When we dedicate our lives to Him and we're dependent on Him, we trust Him, and we rely on His Spirit and His power to get us through. We have to do that. We can survive that and God has survival, not only survival but He wants us to bloom. He wants us to produce. He wants a big crop that's what He wants from us. And so it's possible by depending on Him, by depending on Him.

I was reminded of this a while back when I saw one of these lawn ornaments, you might say, "What's a lawn ornament got to do with any of these?" But this particular lawn ornaments… I had two little boys, and one of them was pumping one of these spigots like a water hydrant, like a, yeah, like a water hydrant. The other little boy is down there trying to drink out of it as this water is flowing through here, and it's blasting through. This water is just blasting through here. The one little boy is just pumping away, pumping away, pumping away, and the other little guy is trying to drink of the water. And I was looking at this thing thinking, "How does that work?" You know, what's causing this thing? You know, why is this little boy just… he must be really… and maybe it's a battery or something.

I wasn't really sure why this little boy was just pumping away and this water is spewing out of there until I looked at a little closer. And when I looked at a little closer, yeah, it wasn't plugged in. It wasn't powered from a battery or anything like that. You know what is causing it to work? There was a hose attached to it and it was water pressure. The water pressure was flowing through and it was causing the little boy to move his arm up and down and up and down. The other little boy then could drink the water. And so he wasn't pumping at all. Well, he was moving. He was definitely at work but the real action was the water that was flowing through. The water was flowing through that. I began to think about that a little bit, the water, it was the water that was doing the work in that sense.

And you think about that today, yeah, we've got a part to play. We've got to do our part but God's Spirit, the power of the water, you know, the power of living waters flowing through us better be moving us. And by the power of His Spirit, we can achieve. We can drink in His way, His will. And by that living water flowing through it, allowing that… that's what we got to do. We can allow that in every instance, in every case, in every aspect of our life when God's power is flowing through us and in us, it does change everything. And as we look at that as firstfruits that's how we survive. We allow those living waters not only that cause us to survive but it feeds us as well. So we grow and we produce. Yeah, we’ve got to have our hand on the pump, no doubt about that, but we recognize where our strength comes from, we recognize where the power over sin comes. It's not because I'm doing it, God is doing it in me and through me, that's how it's possible. And when I recognize that and rely on that yeah, we're called at the most difficult time. No doubt, it's springtime in the plan of God. But it is the best time for our spiritual growth. That's why God calls us now. He's called us to succeed.

In fact, if you kept your place in Romans 8, you could go back there for just a moment. Romans 8:12, now, Paul didn't probably have that pump on his mind, but it sure reminds me of this passage when you consider living waters that are flowing through us. Because Paul makes this connection here for us as God's firstfruit enduring, surviving, and thriving during the most difficult time for spiritual growth is absolutely possible with the power of God. Notice, verse 12, Roman 8:12, Paul writes, "Therefore, brethren, we're debtors— not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh." Yeah, we know it. Verse 13, "If we live according to the flesh, we'll die." This temporary existence will come to an end, "but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live." There's that game-changer. There's that whole different perspective on what life is all about. Verse 14, he says, "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God." You know, if you're looking for a definition of a Christian, verse 14 is it.

What is a Christian? What is a true follower of Jesus Christ? One who is led by the Spirit of God, these are truly the sons and daughters of God. And so we see that connects us in an inseparable connection when we submit to Him to a close enduring relationship. When we see that relationship explained in verse 15 “You didn't receive a spirit of bondage but you received the Spirit of adoption and we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’" We have a close relationship with God. We are His children. “The Spirit bears witness” to that very fact and “we're children, verse 17 says, "heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,” talk about close relationships. You see as firstfruits, we're special to God. We're sanctified. We're separated to God. We could say we're holy to God. And so, we live our life with that perspective. And we follow Him. We keep His commands. We do is will. We recognize that He loves us and we demonstrate that love to Him by submitting to His Spirit, keeping His commandments, following Him. And we more than just survive, we thrive. Because we recognize God is doing something, something unique with us. He's preparing us. He's preparing us in a way that's different from the harvest that comes later.

We're receiving special training, special guidance from God and that's it. Special preparation and we recognize the fact, for us, it's not just about me and my eternal life, it's not just about me and my salvation that I want to be saved and be in the Kingdom of God. Yeah, that's critical. I want to be there, absolutely. But for us, for God's Church, for the members of the Body of Christ, we know there's more. It's not just about our personal salvation but it's also about others. It's about preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in the Kingdom of God. He's called us to be a part of a greater mission as well, to do our part, that every joint, every ligament, every single one of us has a vital part to play in the preaching of the word of God.

So God is preparing us and using us as instruments in His hand to do that very thing. So we have a greater mission as God's family, as His Church today. And, of course, our own salvation is critical as well. We've got to overcome sin. We've got to conquer self. We've got to conquer and develop holy, righteous, spiritual character. It has to come that way because we, as the Church, His wife, the wife of Jesus Christ, we must make ourselves ready. So we can be a Church without spot, without a wrinkle, without blemish. That's our calling. In fact, the apostle Paul often compared the challenges that we face today. He often compared them to the games, to the Olympic games. He talked about the battles and the fights and the races that we have to continue to run, to run that race. He says we're not going to be a shadow boxer, we're not just boxing the air. We're in the real deal here and we are wrestling spiritual forces of wickedness. That's the way it is.

And, in fact, I have reminded the calling that we have when I was reminded of the story of a man who competed in the Olympics. A number of years ago, there was a man named, Fujimoto, you'll never guess what country he came from. He came from Japan. And he competed on the gymnastics team at the summer Olympics, 1976. While he was doing his floor exercise, and a terrible tragedy happened. He started his final roundup of different tumbling exercises, and as he did one of the last ones, he did a flip and came down on his feet wrong, so wrong that it broke his right knee. Actually, it seemed to separate that joint. And somehow he was just able to limp off, the coaches ran out. They helped him off, you know, the floor, and it seemed like that was it. There goes the gold medal for Japan because he had to compete in one more exercise. In fact, it was his best exercise. It was the rings. His best exercise and everyone felt they were just going to have to default and dropout. But Fujimoto decided he's going to go for it. He's going to go for it.

So imagine, getting up on those rings, they helped him up there and he began that exercise and he's going through the whole routine knowing there's a dismount coming and “I have to land on that horribly painful knee. There's no way around it. I have to. If there's any chance of succeeding as a team I have to do it.” And so he went through his routine, everybody in the audience knew he was injured as well. You can go on YouTube, you can watch the routine. It's amazing. And so here he comes to the end of that, everyone's waiting for that dismount. And he wasn't just easing himself down, you know, on his feet so he could kind of limp off. He didn't do it, he went for it. He did a triple summersault twist, flips off of those rings right on his feet. Then they came out and helped him off. But he came up landing squarely on a broken knee and they asked him about it later and there's a number of articles you can read about it. He said, "Yeah, it was horrible. The pain just shot through my body like a knife." He said, "But even though it brought tears to my eyes, I now have a gold medal. The pain is gone." The pain is gone.

As I thought about that story, sometimes that's a pretty good description of our life. You see sometimes we forget the gold medal, the Kingdom of God, it's on the horizon. We're doing our routine, we're going through the exercise that God has in mind for us. We're growing. We're developing the character of Jesus Christ. We are His firstfruits and He is preparing us for nothing less than ruling in His Kingdom. Wow! This is our opportunity to grow and succeed, that's what He has in mind for us. Yes, we live in this present evil world but it's going to be replaced by that world to come. His amazing Kingdom and ultimately every human being will have that opportunity. And, in fact, you're still in Romans 8 or have your finger there, look at verse 22. Roman 8:22, it reminds us, God's Kingdom will be established. The gold medal, it's on the horizon. This life is just a temporary step in His plan. He's called us now to go through that routine of developing spiritual character, to put on the image of Jesus Christ.

Paul wrote about that here in Roman 8. He says, "The whole creation is groaning," verse 23, "not only with birth pangs, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit," verse 23, "even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption,” Because we recognize this world isn't what it's all about. Our life today isn't the reality of what God has in mind for us. Verse 25, "If we hope for what we do not see, then we eagerly wait for it with perseverance." I mean, how could Fujimoto do that exercise? How was that possible? He didn't focus on just the pain that was coming, the pain that he knew he was going to experience, the suffering that he was called to. He focused on the prize. He focused on the goal.

And as firstfruits, we do the same. We focus on the Kingdom. We focus on that. We eagerly wait for it with perseverance knowing the ultimate outcome, and in fact, there is no doubt. We have an amazing promise from God that even though we could be so beaten down by the troubles and the trials and the tribulations of this life, it causes us sometimes to not even know how do you pray. How can I explain this to God? He says that, where He says we don't even know how to pray, verse 26. But when we rely on God we look to Him, we submit to God's Holy Spirit, God steps in. He “makes intercession for us.” He makes intercession for… We have a God who is on our side, who wants us to succeed, who's going to have that spiritual snow shovel, and get us out from under it when we feel overwhelmed because, ultimately, we can claim this promise, verse 28.

He tells us we know, and, yes, sometimes we've got to remind ourselves of this, but we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, who are called according to His purpose. We know that. We know that. Remind ourselves of that very fact because He says, "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son,” and that's our calling, to be like our Savior, Jesus Christ, “that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” And that's what God's intention is for us to be there at the return of Jesus Christ. And so He says, He's predestined us, He's called us to be like His Son. He wants us to be like Him, to be in that Kingdom and He says, "What does He do?" He makes it right. He justifies us. He cleans us up. He acquits us of sin, we can be forgiven. And ultimately, in that process, He brings us into His family. He glorifies us.

And so verse 31, what an amazing reminder, "What then shall we say to these things?" What should we say to the springtime weather that might be 19 inches of snow? What do we say when the ice wants to cause us to slip? What is our perspective? "If God is for us who can be against us?" There is a great reward that God has in store for us and we can say it's a unique reward. It's a different reward than those who come later. Revelation 2:26 reminds us, you don't have to turn there, "But he who overcomes, and keeps My works to the end," He says, "I will give power over the nations." That's different than those who come later. We can reign and rule with Jesus Christ in the Millennium, in His Kingdom when He returns. He also reminds us, "To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with Me in My throne."

There's a different reward, Revelations 3:21 reminds us of that very fact. These are promises to the firstfruits. That’s to us because we have a special calling and we have a special duty, a special job. And we've been called now to grow and spiritually mature. We're coming through those storms, we're getting out of winter, it is springtime and it's time then to grow. It's time to blossom. It's time to produce.

Yes, it is springtime and during this springtime harvest, the time that's ours, the time that we've been called to, let's remember God's loving purpose for us. He's going to lead us through the troubles and the trials and the difficulties. And as He does that, let's have the right perspective. Let's dedicate ourselves to continue to grow and develop and submit our lives to the power of God's Holy Spirit. Yes, it's true, life is difficult. It's difficult in the springtime but if we keep our eyes on God and His soon coming Kingdom, we will fulfill our calling as His firstfruits.