Sunday Sermons
Be Fruitful
Be Fruitful
Often when we hear the above expression the first thing that comes to our minds is having a couple having children. We are used to hearing the Bible expression, "Be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28) in this sense. In this lesson I want to talk about another kind of fruit bearing, that is, being very productive spiritually and doing good.
A Repeated Emphasis
It is clear that we are expected to grow spiritually and be involved in doing good:
Colossians 1:10 "So that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God"
John 15:2 "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away".
Titus 3:14 "Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful"
All Throughout My Life
We are admonished to begin serving God while young (Ecclesiastes 12:1), and it is often stated that even during hard times and in old age, the believer will be fruitful:
Jeremiah 17:7-8 "Blessed in the man who trusts in the Lord... for he will be like a tree planted by the water... and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield its fruit"
Psalm 92:14 "They will still yield fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap and very green"
Fruit Bearing Principle: I Must Be In Christ
John 15:4-5 "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me....for apart from Me you can do nothing".
We might be tempted to question the above verse and say something like, "But I know various non-Christians who seem productive and are involved in good humanitarian causes". True. Yet when Jesus talks He is always talking with eternity in mind (Matthew 7:21). So the fruit under consideration here is not merely what might help someone temporarily or just in this life, but what results in real spiritual growth, and results in others being saved. He is not merely talking about someone who is helpful and productive, He is talking about someone who is right with Him, therefore, someone who is being eternally helpful and holy.
Fruit Bearing Principle: I Cannot Do It All on My Own
Clearly in John 15 I need to have a right relationship with Jesus. Observe how many times Jesus emphasizes the importance of abiding in Him (15:2 "in Me"; 15:4 "Abide in Me"; 15:5 "He who abides in Me"). Added to this, I need to keep my abiding current (15:6). It is not enough to say that I abided in Him at one time in the past. There is no credit given in this verses for a mere past tense abiding. It is present or nothing. Other passages make it clear that faith and baptism are essential conditions for getting into Christ (Galatians 3:26-27), and continuing the follow the word of God is essential for remaining in Christ (John 15:6).
Fruit Bearing Principle: I Must Follow Scripture
Observe how Jesus inherently connects our abiding in Him, or being right with Him, with our taking His words seriously (John 15:3; 7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you"; "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love" (John 15:10). Carefully note. Many people in the religious world speak of God's love as being unconditional. On the one hand, we did not need to meet any conditions for Jesus to die for us, yet from the last verse noted, there is a conditional side of God's love. We only remain right with Him as long as we obey Him.
The Truth About Pruning
First, we need it! There are a number of things that God can use to help us grow. In this section the word of God is emphasized (15:7). As we seriously study Scripture, take it seriously and apply it to our lives, we should be getting rid of anything that does not please God, or anything that is hindering us in our Christian life (Hebrews 12:1-2).
Leaves or Fruit?
In Matthew 21:18-22 we find the account where Jesus cursed a barren fig tree. The text says He was returning to Jerusalem in the morning and was hungry. He saw a fig tree that was full of leaves but in examining it closer it was absent of any fruit. This account is recorded for us, because the Jewish nation at the time was like this tree. The fig tree has fruit before it has leaves. So here, early in the spring, is a fig tree that is advertising its fruitfulness, but is has none to offer. The city of Jerusalem had just welcomed Jesus as the Messiah (Matthew 21:1-11; and yet in a matter of days the same city would cry out, "crucify, crucify Him". The city was all leaves and no fruit. The people claimed to serve God. Claimed to believe in God. The Scriptures were read here on a daily basis. Yet it was all leaves. So how about me? Someone noted that the we can look really good from a distance if we are nothing but all leaves. We might look fruitful, but it is all leaves. "Hey, I got leaves, I look together, I look spiritual, I look good". In addition, an abundance of leaves can easily hide the fact that I am unfruitful.
| Leaves | Fruit |
| I merely attend the services. | I actually worship. |
| I pop in and out of services. | I stay to encourage. |
| I read the Bible. | I apply what I read to me. |
| I talk the Christian life. | I live it. |
Pruning is Uncomfortable
Someone noted that in pruning you must be willing to temporarily sacrifice appearance or looks for growth and future fruitfulness and attractiveness. Plants and trees that are really pruned do not look pretty at this stage. In like manner, in accepting the pruning we must be willing to be uncomfortable. Or, in other words. The plant or tree will die, become diseased or never really produce if we are intent upon keeping it pretty (comfortable) all the time. Another way of saying this is that true spiritual growth only happens when we are willing to shake things up in our lives and make some radical adjustments.
Too Much Side Growth?
When the plant or tree is throwing all the energy into more branches and leaves, very little fruit results. Years ago I had little house with an apple tree in the backyard. The tree would sent up all sorts of sucker branches and these needed to be ruthlessly removed or I would get very few apples. If I allowed these to remain, they would take all the energy that would have produced fruit and put into it a worthless branch. So do I have a lot side growth happening in my life? That is, is a lot of my energy going into stuff that does not help me spiritually and will not matter in eternity? In addition, remember that all sorts of things in life are going to constantly want to tap into our time and energy. Let's be very diligent about making sure that our best energy goes to God and the things of God.
Pruning Takes Courage
A little snip here and there is not the pruning that is needed. It reminds me of religious people who speak of temporarily giving up beer or chocolate for some religious holiday or season. This is not pruning in which you have a small handful of clippings, but rather pruning that results in a wheelbarrow load of debris. Anything else is just a fearful snip. When it comes to spiritual growth, let's think big like God does. How about the goal of being like Christ? (Ephesians 4:15; Colossians 1:28). How about being intent upon becoming that person that many people believe that you and I cannot become?
Mark Dunagan | mdunagan@frontier.net
Beaverton Church of Christ | 503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net
