Bearing Good Fruit
“In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit,
but the bad tree bears bad fruit.”
Matthew 7:17
There is an old story about a young boy who used to sneak out of his second-story bedroom window and climb down a fruit tree to join his friends, especially when he was in trouble.
Yet, one day the father announced that he was going to cut down the old tree because it had not produced fruit in years. That night, the boy and his friends purchased a bushel of apples and they carefully tied those apples to the tree branches. The next morning the father woke up, saw the tree and shouted to his wife, “Mary, I can’t believe my eyes. It’s a miracle! Our pear tree is covered with apples!”
Jesus made it very clear that He expected His followers to bear good fruit. So, how do we bear good fruit in our lives? Unfortunately, I think, too often, we equate bearing good fruit with trying really hard to be more spiritual people—to roll up our sleeves and try extra hard to essentially be more like Jesus—but in the long run, that just doesn’t work.
Bearing good fruit is not about working harder and longer and being more productive. Even the most experienced gardeners and farmers will tell you that in spite of all their hard work—their planting, fertilizing, weeding and watering—the crops will not grow unless they remain connected to their roots.
In the same way, we are not the ones who produce fruit in our lives. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. Our job is to simply stay connected to Christ—our true vine, to receive and rest in what God has already done for us through Jesus.
Today, with God’s grace, may we stay rooted and connected to God and allow the Holy Spirit to produce the fruits of love, peace and patience in our lives. All we have to do is stop, listen and receive.
