“And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.  When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”   Matthew 9:35–38 (ESV)

Jesus sees the crowds and has compassion on them. His heart is moved with love and empathy, longing for them like a good shepherd has for his lost sheep. He gives this glorious promise of HOPE, the harvest is plentiful!

In the midst of this global pandemic, fear, and uncertainty, we sense that many are ready to hear and receive the glorious good news of Jesus Christ, the gospel of the Kingdom proclaimed and demonstrated with power. 

The Gospel is -

“the news that Jesus Christ, the Righteous King, died for our sins and rose again, eternally triumphant over all his enemies, so that there is now no condemnation for those who believe, but only everlasting joy” – John Piper

We sense it is Gospel-empowered ‘Harvest Time’ in the nations of the earth.

However, as Jesus said, the laborers are few. He asks his disciples as he is asking us today, ‘therefore Pray earnestly…” When Jesus taught us to pray to our Father in heaven, He used the Greek word proseuchomai—the common word for prayer in the New Testament. But here in Matthew 9:38 and also in Lk 10:2, Jesus used the Greek word deomai, a much stronger word meaning to ‘plead desperately.’

Jesus didn’t simply tell His disciples to pray for laborers to be sent out to the harvest fields. Jesus used a much stronger word—ekballo, meaning to ‘drive out, or hurl forth!’ This same Greek word ekballo is used in Mt 9:34, 10:1 and 10:8 for casting out demons! In both Matthew 9:38 and Lk 10:2, Jesus commands us to deomai (plead desperately) to the Lord of the Harvest to ekballo laborers (thrust them forcefully) into His harvest! Every believer a witness.  Everyone can reach someone and together we can reach the world!

May we ask the Father, the Lord of the Harvest to give his Son, the nations as his inheritance. They belong to him. He is worthy! He is all deserving of all the worship, all the obedience and all the affections of the nations of the earth! May this season, this hinge of history go down as the ‘great quarantine revival,’ a global decade of harvest!

We have a saying in our house of prayer, “Little Keys Open Big Doors.” As we pray desperately, witness bodly, and make disciples consistently, God can use each of us like little keys in his hand to open big doors of awakening and revival in the nations! We pray as Paul did,

“At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ” (Col. 4:3). 

Read more about the Hope of the Coming Harvest 2021 Partnership   |  Download the #HopeofHarvest2021 Flyer

Go Movement

As we did last year, we are partnering with the Go Movement, to see 100 million united in prayer and 1 billion come to Christ over this next decade!  GO Movement | GO 2020

As John Robb writes, ‘No one organization or movement can accomplish such a staggering feat, but if we flow together like tributaries in one unstoppable river, this can be achieved! Getting God’s heart of love for the lost through prayer will lead to our sharing Jesus with them in the power and sensitivity of the Holy Spirit just as the early church experienced.’

Imagine with me…

• 100 million Christians inspired and empowered by the Holy Spirit to pray and share the Gospel with as many as possible in their own communities and to the ends of the earth.

• One billion people being reached with the Gospel and millions upon millions getting saved all over the world over the course of this next decade!

• Unreached people groups hearing the Gospel for the first time and planting new churches among them. We have put together a series of helpful guides to praying for unreached peoples around the world. Here is the ‘40 Days Prayer Guide’ for March 24^th through to May 2^nd.

We praise God for the promise, ‘effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much’ (James 5:16).

May we cry out in 2021 to the Lord of the Harvest in fervent, desperate, Bible-based prayer for this coming ‘Decade of Harvest.’

May the Lamb who was slain receive the due reward for his sufferings!

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing” – Revelation 5:12

For the Glory of the Lamb,

Dr Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect

Full details of the Hope of the Coming Harvest 2021 events including GO Month follow below!

#hopeofharvest2021