Fruit Production

-


Scripture

Matthew 21:43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.

Observation

Speaking directly to the religious leaders Jesus let them know that if they were not producing spiritual fruit, they would lose the kingdom. We know the rest of the story and the gospel became a message of salvation for all — Jews and gentiles alike!

There was an expectation that God’s people would be an evangelistic people! The gift was not for them alone to hoard. What God had provided was to have been shared with the world around them so that others might know the one, true, living God.

Production of fruit was the sign of a healthy and growing relationship with God. No matter how hard the religious leaders tried to look good on the outside, Jesus could see right through them and tell that they were not producing the fruits of the kingdom.

Application

If Jesus were here today, what would he say to us? Are we producing the fruit that he expects from one in a healthy relationship with him?

There is the fruit of the Spirit which is to be evident in our lives. This should be seen every single day in our interactions with those around us. But there is also the fruit — those who are coming to Christ — which ought to be evident.

I’m running into more and more Christians who will have never led anyone to Jesus Christ. They’re absolutely terrified at the idea and so, they quietly go about their business, almost hoping that their Christianity remains under the radar screen.

The reality is that the fruit of the Spirit will lead to other fruit as well. When we are living in the fullness of the Spirit then it’s almost impossible not to have the love of Christ spill out of you and touch others that need to know him!

It’s that waiter/waitress that you talk to in the restaurant that’s having a bad day and suddenly they notice your compassion and want to know more. It’s the people you run into at the grocery store, or the barber shop.  It doesn’t take a memorized plan of salvation to show someone the way to Christ — it’s the way in which we live on an everyday basis that ought to open doors for those conversations.

How will Jesus respond to us? Will he look at us and tell us that the kingdom will be given to those who are producing fruit? May God help us to be in a fruitful relationship with him!

Prayer

Lord, please help me to see those around me the way that you do. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more