HARVEST IS RIPE, by Roger Roth Sr

HARVEST IS RIPE, by Roger Roth Sr

The Book of Revelation has hundreds perhaps even thousands of interpretations, each portending a description of the significance of events related to the day in which we live. Each of these interpretations is dependent on the perception of the person seeking to unravel the mysteries of this writing. To some it is a description of events that seem so fanciful that it can never be fully understood. To many it is a book of doom and gloom, a foreshadowing of great evil about to be unleashed upon the earth.

There are even those that use their interpretation as a wedge to mentally or emotionally manipulate and control through fear, those who are open to their prophetic descriptions. They will often say things like, “don’t believe it just because I say it but check the scriptures for yourself.” The problem of course is that they usually are not asking the hearer of their teaching to study and come to their own conclusions but rather to accept their interpretation of the biblical evidence they present. There is a big difference between what one hears and how he hears. How we hear determines our maturity and it is our responsibility.

As we have discussed in previous articles there is only one method that can give us complete confidence that what we believe biblically is actually accurate. I will not relay this once again in this writing except to say that if you are either being motivated out of fear or by a desire to use the descriptions of this last book of the bible as a hammer to beat a certain conduct or belief within the reader, you will never come to the greater knowledge of this book.

This book is the book of the Revelation of Jesus. Think how great that is. If we want to have Jesus revealed to us, to search out and discover the hidden things of Christ, it is in this book. How often do you hear people say, “I want to know Jesus”, or “Jesus show me who you are?” That opportunity has been afforded to us in the teachings of this book.

In chapter 14, for example, we are told of the great harvest of people upon the earth. It is part of the progression within the book of Revelation that takes the reader from understanding Jesus in His heavenly manifestation to the earth, to understanding Jesus in His manifestation in the Body, to His ultimate manifestation in His creation.

In the beginning of this chapter there is the description of the remnant, that have the name of God written in their foreheads. Since we understand from chapter one that Jesus is speaking to us in this book through signs and symbols, we understand that these do not literally have a name carved in their head any more than the worshippers of the beast have 666 carved into their foreheads. This is symbolism, like calling Jesus the Lamb of God. Is He literally a Lamb? No, but He symbolically takes on certain characteristics of a Lamb.

666 is the measure of man in every dimension. So, if we were looking at this as symbolism we’d understand that this is not about inserting a computer chip or carving a number but rather the full carnality of man in his thoughts (forehead) and in his hand (his works).

So likewise, the name written in the forehead in chapter 14 is not a literal name but rather what the name signifies. A name signifies identity and nature. The Father’s name is his nature. This remnant, the first fruits, the 144 thousand, in chapter 14 are those who have taken on the nature of the Lamb’s (Jesus’) Father. These are the first to awaken to the reality of the coming Kingdom age, those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes, that is they are in total submission to Jesus.

There are seven or eight (depending how you count) angels (spirit messengers that bring messages) in this chapter. The messages include overcoming the accuser; the everlasting gospel; the elimination of confusion (fall of Babylon), etc. The remnant awakens to each of these as we come to the harvest of the fruit that is of God and the harvest of the fruit that is of the earth. There must be a separation within people between the things that are of God and the things that are of the earth.

Mark Hanby, who is a ministry father to some of us, has made this point clearly when he speaks of harvest as being a separation. When grain is harvested there is a separation of the seed from the chaff. The bible also speaks about the separation of the wheat from the tares, which is separating seed from weeds. These are two different separations. One is within and the other without.

Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God, Lk 8:11. The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom, Mt 13:38. So is the seed the word of God or is it the children of the Kingdom? From the unity of these two scriptures we see that the seed is the word of God in the children of the Kingdom, (that is they have a Kingdom mentality). The children of God are the ones that become the seed.

What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD, Jer. 23:28. In discussing false prophets and their message, God asked Jeremiah and interesting question. For us as well it would be good to know what chaff is as related to wheat.

Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable, Lk 3:17. This is the separation of things that are within. The chaff unlike tares are part of the seed. They are the protective covering in which the seed is held as it is maturing. Without the chaff, the seed could not develop properly. In the bible chaff sometimes includes the straw part of the plant as well.

We can look at the descriptions of tares, chaff and wheat as the separation of wicked and righteous people, as it is commonly understood (Ps 1:4; Jer 13:24) or we can see them, as they usually are in scriptures as allegories (Dan 2:31-35; Job 13:25; Hos 3:13; etc., that hold a spiritual significance.

Chaff can be seen as those ideas we hold on to in our youth until the truth is formed in us. They comfort us and aid us and help protect our beliefs (like the chaff protects the seed) until we reach maturity, (become ripe seed); but when I became a man I put away childish things, 1 Cor 13:11. It is part of the maturation process. Paul said it this way in Galatians; Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father; until the time of maturity.

Over ten times in scripture it speaks of the wind driving the chaff away. This is an obvious metaphor for the process of separating the immature things within us once the truth has been matured. It is the wind (the action of the Spirit of Jesus, Lk 3:17) that causes the separation, we don’t have to do anything but to allow the truth to grow within. It is God who works in us to bring us to perfection, not our human effort.

Chaff cannot be digested by humans but it does have value as fodder and ruffage eventually contributing to the fertilization of the earth. The tares likewise are separated at harvest time. Tares are a type of rye seed that is poisonous for human consumption. These are not part of the plant like chaff but grow up with the seed until the maturity of the seed makes it evident as to what is good seed and what is not. If we try to separate the tare and the wheat plants before the seed matures, it is hard to distinguish between the two and we pluck up the good as well as the bad.

This is like people who sometimes try to make someone become a “mature” Christian, according to their idea of maturity or adhere to a religious doctrine or adopt a prescribed lifestyle. In their efforts, they often injure the seed. There is a set time within the plant for the maturity of the seed and that process of sanctification needs to be done at the discretion and wisdom of the Spirit.

He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. Mt 13:37-40.

Angels are the harvesters. How does that work? Do they pull the righteous at the right time out of the earth in some type of rapture? Do they physically tie up the wicked and throw them into a fire? Or are these images, metaphors of a spiritual process? God is a consuming fire. He is a fire of construction for His people. Like fire, the Spirit of God burns up everything that is not of God. He burns up the wood, hay and stubble and that same fire purifies that which is of gold, silver and precious stones. Is it people that are being destroyed or is it wickedness, lies, wrong thinking and the like.

Note that we are told that the harvest is at the, end of the age (world). If we see all that God is doing as limited to a single age, we may be missing his plan for the ages spoken of in Ephesians and elsewhere. This is a precursor to the Kingdom, Mt 13:38. Will there be separation of people with different destinations at the end of this age? Failure to see the separation of the things that are evil or cause offense from those things that have been perfected is a great limitation.

This is the separation of the things that are without. Tares are not part of the wheat or the plant that is part of the growing process of the wheat. Tares are separate from the wheat plant but in the early stages of growth they closely resemble wheat. Whereas the Lord separates the seed from the chaff; he will thoroughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat; The reapers (angels) ones that separate tares from the wheat; I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares. Tares are the word in people that stands in opposition to God.

The enemy sowed the tares while men slept. The separation, the harvest comes when the remnant awakens to the messages from heaven. This is how the angels reap those that are wheat. The angel’s messages are received by those who are awakened to them. In this process, the darkness is cast out by light.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit, Jn 12:24. The Greeks wanted to see Jesus. Instead of answering their inquiry Jesus spoke of being glorified and as a grain of wheat dying to bring forth abundant fruit. Hidden message? If you want to see Jesus, you need to be planted.

Matured seed has a purpose and that is not to live as a glowing kernel but rather to be planted in the ground and die and in so doing give life to an abundance of seed. If the remnant is seed that has the nature (name) of the Father and is like Jesus, then its death to self will bring forth much seed. This is what the seed or the children of the Kingdom are to become. The field (the world) is ripe for harvest. It was in Jesus’ day and it is in ours.

Roger Roth Sr. is a ministry son of Dr. Mark Hanby. Together with his wife Karen, they are the set ministry of a local church in Northeastern Wisconsin, and oversee the Bloodline Network Newsletter. They consider it an honor to work with Dr. Hanby for many years, helping to oversee the ministry of Papa Mark’s extended family—”The Father’s Heart.”

Any questions or comments please contact them at rogerandkaren@live.com