God's Business Plan: Cultivating Disciples in the Kingdom -

For years I believed that God and business were very separate worlds. Like we would go to hell if we combined our faith with making a profit. In my post How to know if you have the Spirit of Entrepreneurship I refer to Entrepreneurship as an anointing. It is something that comes from God, that constant pull into something bigger than yourself. I believe that I have the spirit of Entrepreneurship and that my ventures are God ordained. God created everything and provides a model for everything, including business. One day I was praying and I saw the phrase flash before me “Cultivators Worship”. I thought what does that mean? I started reading the bible and writing down scriptures and notes. At the end of about 4 full pages of notes God said, “That’s my Business: Cultivation; Cultivating Disciples in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Cultivation: Planting for Fruitfulness or Evil?

A Cultivator is a person or thing that cultivates something. To Cultivate means to (1)prepare and use (land) for crops or gardening; break up soil in preparation for sowing or planting; raise or grow (plants) especially on a large scale for commercial purposes; (2) try to acquire or develop (a quality or sentiment or skill); try to win the friendship or favor of someone; apply oneself to improving or developing (ones mind or manners). So this idea of cultivation lead me to think about the ways in which one could cultivate. Do our actions prepare us for fruitfulness or for evil?

What are you Cultivating?

Based on the definition there is cultivation in the context of preparing for sowing or planting. In Genesis 9:7, God gave Noah a command, “Now be fruitful and multiply, and repopulate the earth.” This saying “be fruitful and multiply” is often used in reference to making babies. Now repopulate the earth refers to repopulating mankind, be fruitful and multiply refers to how we live our lives; what we cultivate.

A few verses down in Genesis 9, there is a story of Noah and his sons. After the flood Noah began to cultivate the ground and planted a vineyard. He made some wine from his vineyard and became drunk and laid naked in his tent. His son Ham saw this and went out to tell his two other brothers. His brothers Shem and Japheth, took a robe and covered their father without looking at his nakedness. When Noah woke up and found out what happened, he cursed Ham’s son and blessed Shem and Japheth’s sons. (Genesis 9:20-27 NLT)

Gossip Cultivates a Curse

This story teaches me this, Gossip cultivates a curse. Ham was the first person to encounter his father in this way, instead of honoring his father by covering him up in his state, he went and told his brother’s; probably pointing and laughing the whole way. Ham wanted to share a good story, possibly desiring to have the attention on him to make himself look good and make his father look like a fool. Because of Ham’s gossip his son is cursed to be the servant of the other sons who were blessed because of their Fathers’ honor and discretion. His actions cultivated a curse.

Planting Trouble Cultivates Evil

In the book of Job, we learn of Job’s many misfortunes because of the devil wanting to test his faithfulness to God. Job was the richest person in his entire area, and he lost everything; including his family. Even though all these things happened he never cursed or blamed God. His friends heard everything that happened and came to see him. They seemed to try to make sense of everything that had happened to him. In Job 4:7 Eliphaz says, “Stop and think! Do the innocent die? When have the upright been destroyed? My experience shows that those who plant trouble and cultivate evil will harvest the same.” He also states in Job 5:6, “But evil does not spring from the soil, and trouble does not sprout from the earth. People are born for trouble as readily as sparks fly up from a fire.”

Eliphaz was hinting to Job that maybe he sowed something to reap all this evil that he had encountered. Even though this was not the case in Job’s situation, this story teaches me that planting trouble will cultivate Evil. Evil does not just spring up out of nowhere; humans who are known for sowing trouble, will cultivate evil on the earth.

Cultivators Worship into the Favor of God

The second set of definitions of Cultivate refer to desiring to acquire or develop a quality or skill; or to win friendship or favor of someone. I wonder, whose favor would it be most beneficial in earning? I will tell you! The favor of God is so beneficial in every aspect of our lives! God wants us to be fruitful and multiply, his business plan depends on it. When he talks about being fruitful and multiplying he means in our lives, with our lives.

The definition of fruitful is (of a tree or plant) producing much fruit; producing good or helpful results; productive. When something is productive it is beneficial, valuable, rewarding, profitable, successful, etc.. In another post, Applying the word of God to your life: How to pray for growth in Christ, I touch on God’s plan and purpose for us. He created us with a purpose, to praise and glorify him. When we cultivate worship as a lifestyle, we are cultivating favor with God; in doing that we are bound to be fruitful. When we think of a successful business we think of money. When God thinks in terms of success for his business he measures fruitfulness.

Cultivating Disciples for fruitfulness

Matthews 25:29-30 says, “To those who use well what they are give, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” God created us for his business of cultivating disciples in the Kingdom. He produced us and invested in us gifts which are to be used to cultivate other disciples and establish his Kingdom on earth.

As a good “businessman”, God expects his investment to return a profit! What he pours into us, he wants us to be fruitful with it and multiply it and pour back into the kingdom. Now, what happens at your job if you are wasting company resources, lazy or unmotivated, creating trouble among your colleagues and not producing the numbers or outcomes that you are expected to? Let that marinate for a minute…

Are you cultivating disciples for the Kingdom?

Ok! That was a lot! In another post I will discuss what you can cultivate to gain favor with the master using the parable of the three servants in Matthews. Take a deep breath! Have you thought about what you may be cultivating? Is it worship or is it trouble? Are you developing your gifts so that God can get a return on his investment? Are you being a fruitful disciple, cultivating disciples in the kingdom or are you wasting kingdom resources? Comment below and let me know what you think!