In 2017, retired agronomist Marc Dennis was sitting in his garage in Nebraska when he had an idea for a new kind of fertilizer. He used a kitchen blender to combine liquid magnesium with solid nitrogen. For three years he refused to give up, perfecting the ratio. The resulting formula would revolutionize the farming world.

As Paul wraps up his letter to the Galatians, he uses agricultural images to encourage his readers not to give up (v. 9). Before he gets to that, though, he gives some seemingly random instruction regarding financial support for gospel ministers (v. 6). Paul doesn’t provide context for this piece of advice, so his Galatian readers likely needed none. It’s possible that the false teachers in Galatia had advised the people to discontinue their support for the preachers and elders that Paul himself installed to lead the churches. But Paul says, “Share all good things” with these instructors (v. 6).

Then, having previously warned believers against a number of specific sins and encouraged them toward fruit-of-the-Spirit living (5:16–6:5), Paul draws it all together under the broader agricultural principle of cause and effect: “A man reaps what he sows” (v. 7). In verse 8, Paul once again contrasts flesh-living with Spirit-living. “Pleasing our flesh” means feeding our human vanity and desires—a path which will “reap” destruction. Alternatively, “sowing to please the Spirit” involves nurturing the fruit of the Spirit in our life, fertilizing the soil of our hearts toward love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness.

Paul promises the Galatian believers a rich harvest, an eternal harvest, that they will enjoy in good time if they persevere in doing good “to all people, but especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (v. 10).

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