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The Need for More Workers 

Jesus sees the world differently from us. When we see a crowd of people, we may develop a certain sense of excitement, wanting to join them. Or maybe we feel overwhelmed by crowds and prefer to retreat to a more peaceful place. But Jesus had a different kind of reaction: “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them” (Matt. 9:36, NIV). Jesus knew that something was missing in the lives of the people around him. No matter if they were sad, happy, busy or bored – they were essentially lost, like sheep without a shepherd are lost. 

Jesus was already doing his part to meet people’s needs. After all, as Jesus went through their towns and villages, he was “teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness” (v. 35). However, limited by his earthly body, Jesus knew that there was only so much he could do. He recognized that there simply were not enough workers to bring in such a mighty harvest. But instead of starting a marketing or fundraising campaign to solve this problem, Jesus said to his disciples: “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field” (v. 38). 

Faced with the overwhelming physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the people around him, Jesus had one solution: prayer. At this point, Jesus had a regional ministry, reaching out to people in Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. However, we need to read this Gospel in light of the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20), which is the key passage for interpreting the entire book. Since in Matthew 28, Jesus talks about discipling all nations, we can conclude that his invitation to prayer includes asking for laborers to go into all the harvest fields of our world today. 

Praise the Lord for …

· His compassion for all people 

· His invitation to partner with God in prayer

Pray that …

· Jesus would give you a heart of compassion for the people around you

· God will send out laborers into his harvest fields, especially to work among unreached people groups