At harvest time the farmer gathers the fruits of the growing season. Sometimes the harvest is enriching and satisfying; and sometimes it is slight and disappointing. But the Bible states (Gen. 8:22), "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest . . . shall not cease."
The universe of Spirit is characterized by the ceaseless impartations of divine Mind, God, and His ever-productive and active spiritual ideas. In the spiritual universe, there are no cycles of time, no growth from molecule to maturity, and no disappointing results. Thus in Christian Science, real harvest is not an accretion of things, but the acceptance in human consciousness of divine ideas and the individual utilization of these ideas in human experience. Harvest time, spiritually conceived, is illustrative of the eternal productivity of good and its rhythmic unfolding of peace, plenty, and harmony.
Jesus occasionally referred to the harvest in order to teach some fundamental truth to his listeners. He once declared, "Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest" (John 4:35). The Master knew that man, the reflection of God, infinite good, exists at the standpoint of unlimited spiritual opportunity. Aware of the completeness and perfection of man as the image and likeness of God, Jesus sought always to impress upon his followers the availability of the good already at hand.
