Let it Rain

Heb. 10:35-37
"Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.
For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry."

James 5:7, 8
"Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh."

It is not essential for us to be able to define just what the Holy Spirit is. The nature of the Holy Spirit is a mystery. Men cannot explain it, because the Lord has not revealed it to them. Men having fanciful views, may bring together passages of Scripture and put a human construction on them, but the acceptance of these views will not strengthen the church. The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified in the words of Christ:
"When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment."
John 16:8.

It is the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin. If the sinner responds to the quickening influence of the Spirit, he will be brought to repentance and aroused to the importance of obeying the divine requirements. The Spirit is given as a regenerating agency, to make effectual, the salvation wrought by the death of our Redeemer. The Spirit is constantly seeking to draw the attention of men to the great offering that was made on the cross of Calvary, to unfold to the world, the love of God, and to open to the convicted soul, the precious things of the Scriptures. Having brought conviction of sin, and presented before the mind the standard of righteousness, the Holy Spirit withdraws the affections from the things of this earth, and fills the soul with a desire for holiness.
If men are willing to be molded, there will be brought about a sanctification of the whole being.

The Spirit will take the things of God, and stamp them on the soul. By His power, the way of life will be made so plain, that none need err therein. From the beginning, God has been working by His Holy Spirit through human instrumentalities for the accomplishment of His purpose in behalf of the fallen race. This was manifest in the lives of the patriarchs. To the church in the wilderness also, in the time of Moses, God gave His "good Spirit to instruct them." Nehemiah 9:20. And in the days of the apostles, He worked mightily for His church, through the agency of the Holy Spirit.

The same power that sustained the patriarchs, that gave Caleb and Joshua faith and courage, and that made the work of the apostolic church effective, that same power has upheld God's faithful children in every succeeding age. It was through the power of the Holy Spirit, that during the Dark Ages, the Waldensian Christians helped to prepare the way for the Reformation. It was the same power that made successful, the efforts of the noble men and women, who pioneered the way for the establishment of modern missions, and for the translation of the Bible into the languages and dialects of all nations and peoples. And today, God is still using His church to make known His purpose in the earth.

Today, the heralds of the cross are going from city to city, and from land to land, preparing the way for the second advent of Christ. The standard of God's law is being exalted. The Spirit of the Almighty is moving upon men's hearts, and those who respond to its influence, become witnesses for God and His truth. In many places, consecrated men and women, may be seen communicating to others, the light that has made plain to them, the way of salvation through Christ. And as they continue to let their light shine, as did those who were baptized with the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, they receive more, and still more, of the Spirit's power. The outpouring of the Spirit in the days of the apostles was the beginning of the early, or former rain, and glorious was the result. Thus the earth is to be lightened with the glory of God. {AA 51-53}

That is what the "early rain" did, and does.

Just like a farmer who prepares the land for the seed, he must wait first for the early rain to fall, so that the soil can be worked. The human heart is the land in which the Holy Spirit is to work on, so that the truths of God can be planted. Once the heart is softened, then the Holy Spirit plants the seeds of truth, and the seeds starts to sprout in the heart. The seeds continues to grow into marvelous plants, and then the plants produces the fruits. As time wears on, the fruits can be seen, and it is known what those fruits are, by their appearance, being pears, apples, or even heads of broccoli. In any case, the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE. Love will manifest from the heart. Every word, every action, will have Love, all in them. Then the "latter rain" will fall, and the farmer goes to collect the harvest. The harvest is soon to come.

It is impossible for the seeds to flourish in a heart that has not been worked. It may appear to be growing, but when the winds come, (which are trials and temptations), and the seeds that have fallen by the wayside, they are blown away, never to be rooted. Or when the heat of the sun beams down on the tender plant that has fallen on stony ground, and has not taken root, nor watered and nourished by the soil, they just burn up. They will not be part of the harvested fruit.

To the end of time, the presence of the Spirit is to abide with the true church of God. But near the close of earth's harvest, a special bestowal of spiritual grace is promised to prepare the church for the coming of the Son of man. This outpouring of the Spirit is likened to the falling of the latter rain; and it is for this added power, that Christians are to send their petitions to the Lord of the harvest "in the time of the latter rain." In response, "the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain." "He will cause to come down . . . the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain," Zechariah 10:1; Joel 2:23. But unless the members of God's church today have a living connection with the Source of all spiritual growth, they will not be ready for the time of reaping. Unless they keep their lamps trimmed and burning, they will fail of receiving added grace in times of special need.

Those only who are constantly receiving fresh supplies of grace, will have power proportionate to their daily need, and their ability to use that power. Instead of looking forward to some future time when, through a special endowment of spiritual power, they will receive a miraculous fitting up for soul winning, they are yielding themselves daily to God, that He may make them vessels meet for His use.

Daily they are improving the opportunities for service that lie within their reach.
Daily they are witnessing for the Master wherever they may be, whether in some humble sphere of labor in the home, or in a public field of usefulness.

To the consecrated worker there is wonderful consolation in the knowledge that even Christ, during His life on earth, sought His Father daily for fresh supplies of needed grace; and from this communion with God, He went forth to strengthen and bless others. Behold the Son of God bowed in prayer to His Father! Though He is the Son of God, He strengthens His faith by prayer, and by communion with heaven, gathers to Himself, power to resist evil, and to minister to the needs of men. As the Elder Brother of our race, He knows the necessities of those who, compassed with infirmity, and living in a world of sin and temptation, still desire to serve Him.

He knows that the messengers whom He sees fit to send are weak, erring men; but to all who give themselves wholly to His service, He promises divine aid. His own example is an assurance that earnest, persevering supplication to God in faith--faith that leads to entire dependence upon God, and unreserved consecration to His work--will avail to bring to men, the Holy Spirit's aid in the battle against sin.

Every worker who follows the example of Christ will be prepared to receive and use the power that God has promised to His church for the ripening of earth's harvest. Morning by morning, as the heralds of the gospel kneel before the Lord and renew their vows of consecration to Him, He will grant them the presence of His Spirit, with its reviving, sanctifying power. As they go forth to the day's duties, they have the assurance that the unseen agency of the Holy Spirit enables them to be "laborers together with God." {AA 51-56}

May God tend to you until the harvest.