By Their Fruit
No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6:43-45
This verse came to my mind the other day as I was describing the attitude of someone very near and dear to me. This young man would be the first to tell you that isn’t where he should be in terms of his Christian walk. I would be one of the first people, if not the first person, to disagree, strongly disagree. My young friend has an interesting relationship with God. He loves God. He is mindful of God. He wants his children to love God but he does ignore God quite a bit, or at least he says he does.
A couple of months ago another young man told me all about his close personal relationship with the Lord. He talked about his accomplishments. He quoted Scripture and attempted to show me the error of my ways. He looked through his plank filled eye at the specks he perceives around him and enumerated them in great contrast to 1 Corinthians 13:5b “ it[love] keeps no record of wrong.” When our conversation was over I felt sad for him. Living under the impression that he has arrived, he no longer feels an urgency to strive toward the goal. Sadly, he doesn’t feel an urgency to encourage others toward the goal either. He seems compelled only, to wield his knowledge like a banner at best and a weapon at worst. While pointing out the lack in my walk, he also chose to point fingers at my other young friend, the one who isn’t so sure of his standing with God. That made me mad. I didn’t see very inviting fruit there.
The verse from Luke says that we know our brothers and sisters by their fruit. Well, let me tell you a little bit about friend number one and his fruit. This is a young man who works long hours, at a difficult job to support his family. He brings that same little family to church on Sundays. His wife knows that he loves her and that she and their children are his top priority. Beyond that, whenever we talk about how things are going in life, this young man measures his progress with one standard, Jesus Christ. Over the years I’ve known him he’s done a forward and back in his relationship with God but he says things like, “I know I’m not where God wants me to be right now.” Or, “God might not be very happy with me right now.” Or my favorite, “I’m really thinking about Jesus lately, how he would see me.” Now, that young man may not make all the right choices. He may make choices that aren’t terribly spiritual, but, when he assesses his life, he looks to God, and to Jesus as his barometer. He decides how well or poorly he’s doing based on what he believes God wants from him. It is a very humble and beautiful stance. I see fruit and beyond that, leaves and buds, the promise of future fruit. If he’s talking to me about God, chances are, he’s talking to his family about Him too.
Thinking about my two young friends I am reminded of the story of Jesus and the fig tree. (Mark 11:13-14, 20-21) Seeing leaves on the tree but no fruit is a bit like seeing person who says the right things, wears the right things but comes up empty, due to surface religion not real faith. We know our brothers and sisters by their fruit and they know us by ours. I like the measuring rod by friend uses. I know I should use that standard more often myself. I need to check my fruit and to make sure I’m still planting seeds for future growth.
This verse came to my mind the other day as I was describing the attitude of someone very near and dear to me. This young man would be the first to tell you that isn’t where he should be in terms of his Christian walk. I would be one of the first people, if not the first person, to disagree, strongly disagree. My young friend has an interesting relationship with God. He loves God. He is mindful of God. He wants his children to love God but he does ignore God quite a bit, or at least he says he does.
A couple of months ago another young man told me all about his close personal relationship with the Lord. He talked about his accomplishments. He quoted Scripture and attempted to show me the error of my ways. He looked through his plank filled eye at the specks he perceives around him and enumerated them in great contrast to 1 Corinthians 13:5b “ it[love] keeps no record of wrong.” When our conversation was over I felt sad for him. Living under the impression that he has arrived, he no longer feels an urgency to strive toward the goal. Sadly, he doesn’t feel an urgency to encourage others toward the goal either. He seems compelled only, to wield his knowledge like a banner at best and a weapon at worst. While pointing out the lack in my walk, he also chose to point fingers at my other young friend, the one who isn’t so sure of his standing with God. That made me mad. I didn’t see very inviting fruit there.
The verse from Luke says that we know our brothers and sisters by their fruit. Well, let me tell you a little bit about friend number one and his fruit. This is a young man who works long hours, at a difficult job to support his family. He brings that same little family to church on Sundays. His wife knows that he loves her and that she and their children are his top priority. Beyond that, whenever we talk about how things are going in life, this young man measures his progress with one standard, Jesus Christ. Over the years I’ve known him he’s done a forward and back in his relationship with God but he says things like, “I know I’m not where God wants me to be right now.” Or, “God might not be very happy with me right now.” Or my favorite, “I’m really thinking about Jesus lately, how he would see me.” Now, that young man may not make all the right choices. He may make choices that aren’t terribly spiritual, but, when he assesses his life, he looks to God, and to Jesus as his barometer. He decides how well or poorly he’s doing based on what he believes God wants from him. It is a very humble and beautiful stance. I see fruit and beyond that, leaves and buds, the promise of future fruit. If he’s talking to me about God, chances are, he’s talking to his family about Him too.
Thinking about my two young friends I am reminded of the story of Jesus and the fig tree. (Mark 11:13-14, 20-21) Seeing leaves on the tree but no fruit is a bit like seeing person who says the right things, wears the right things but comes up empty, due to surface religion not real faith. We know our brothers and sisters by their fruit and they know us by ours. I like the measuring rod by friend uses. I know I should use that standard more often myself. I need to check my fruit and to make sure I’m still planting seeds for future growth.
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