Bear Fruit

I believe that with great care and forethought, God created each one of us with unique talents, gifts, passions and abilities specifically suited to serve his purposes for the kingdom. And if we are willing to serve him, God can use us in his master plan. We can be his proverbial hands and feet. We can be his mouth and his arms. Through us, God can touch lives, show love, spread the gospel, and even change the course of someone’s life; all this in an effort to further his purposes here on earth. But what happens when we choose not to use our gifts for kingdom purposes? What will he say if we never bear fruit for the kingdom? In Luke, chapter 13, verses 6 through 9, Jesus tells a parable that I believe affectively answers this question. It says: 

“Then he told this parable: ‘A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ ‘Sir’, the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’” 

No one, whether a follower of Christ, or an unbeliever, wants to look back on their life with regret. When we are old and grey and are unable to accomplish what we could’ve in our youth, we don’t want to be faced with the realization that we never bore any fruit for our king. So I would encourage you to assess your life now. If you are active for the kingdom, great! But if you are only living for yourself, you may want to consider this portion of scripture. The fig tree in this parable didn’t bear fruit for 3 years! How long has it been for you? Are you using what God has given you to affect change for the kingdom? Americans, for the most part, fill our lives many things. Some are simple distractions, and others are important things that need be done. But we are all in control of some aspect of our schedule. And ultimately, we make time for the things that are important to us. What is important to you? I would encourage you to make bearing fruit for our king a priority.

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God created you with a kingdom purpose in mind. Are you fulfilling that calling? Do you even know what your purpose is? If not, I would encourage you to pray and ask God how you can serve the kingdom. In this parable, Jesus reveals that it is our purpose to bear fruit. If we don’t, we are useless to the king; so much so, that the owner of the vineyard ordered that the tree be cut down because it was taking up space. We need to do more than just take up space on this earth. God built us with a longing for purpose. Without purpose, we are unfulfilled. In an effort to fill that hole we may become self-destructive, self-absorbed or complacent. In other words, we become useless to the king. I encourage you to pursue usefulness. I encourage you to bear fruit.

God's Appeal

One of the Bible verses that has always stuck with me comes from the New Testament where a woman was caught in the act of adultery. She was brought before Jesus as the villagers were about to stone her. Jesus said, “let anyone of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her”. Everyone walked away without a single stone being thrown. When all had gone, and after she realized there was no one left to accuse her, Jesus told her to “go and leave your life of sin.” I’ve always wondered how difficult that command might have been for her to carry out. It is difficult to leave a life of sin. It is difficult to change a pattern even with the help of the Holy Spirit. But that is what we are called to do. We are called to repent. We are called to get a new heart and a new spirit. God spoke through his prophet Ezekiel in Ezekiel chapter 18, verses 30 through 32, with these words:

“Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!

God’s words were more than a command, it was an appeal. He was telling the Israelites the same thing Jesus told the woman who was caught in the act of adultery; “repent”. Earlier, God spoke through Ezekiel to the Israelites, explaining that every person would be judged for their own sins; that a father will no longer bear the sin of their son, nor vice versa. Each person was now responsible for themselves, just as it is today. But in doing so, God appealed to his people. He said that he takes no pleasure in the death of anyone. He implored them to repent and live. I believe this appeal is still very valid today. We will be judged according to our own obedience or disobedience. Our parents can’t save us, our pastor can’t save us, and our friends can’t save us. We are responsible for ourselves. God’s appeal is that we rid ourselves of sin. It can be difficult to leave a life of sin. It can be difficult to turn away from our offenses, but it can be done. If it couldn’t, then God wouldn’t ask it of us. So I challenge you, if you are away from God, if you haven’t left your life of sin, do it today. None of us can do it on our own. But that is why Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit.

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God takes no pleasure in the death of anyone. He could’ve been referring to physical death, or he could’ve been referring to spiritual death. In either case, this kind of judgement can be avoided if we get a new heart and a new spirit as he outlined in Ezekiel. Yes, sin is enticing. But greater is he who is in you then he who is in the world. In other words, the Holy Spirit living inside of you is greater and stronger than any foothold Satan has in your life. Do you believe that today? Allow God to give you a new heart and a new spirit; a heart that seeks after him and not the desires of the flesh, and a new spirit that is broken and contrite before him; one that will allow him to mold you into the person he is calling you to be. I encourage you to heed God’s appeal. As he said, “Why will you die, I take no pleasure in the death of anyone. Repent and live!"

Complete Faith

What is “true faith”? What does it look like to truly believe and not to doubt? If you were to drop a ball, I’m sure you would have total and complete faith that it will fall to the ground. You would not doubt. In fact, if things were to happen any differently; say if the ball were to float upward, suspend in mid air, or shoot off diagonally instead of falling straight to the floor, it would probably blow your mind. You may even need therapy after seeing something so incredible. But if you, or I, were to drop a ball, there is no doubt in our minds that it would do exactly what we think it would do. That is “true faith”. That is the kind of faith Jesus had while he walked this earth. He had absolutely no doubt that when he laid his hands on someone they would be healed, that when he wanted to walk on the water he wouldn’t sink, and when he called Lazarus forth from the grave that he would be raised from the dead. It says in John, chapter 11, verses 41 and 42:  

“So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” 

The very next verse describes Jesus calling for Lazarus to “come out” from the tomb; a tomb in which he lay dead for four days! Even knowing this Jesus had absolutely no doubt that Lazarus would appear. In fact, when Jesus prayed aloud, he only did it for the benefit of the people around him, not for himself. So if you want to know what complete faith looks like, this is it. Jesus was as sure that Lazarus would walk out of the tomb, as you and I are that a ball dropped would fall to the floor. And I believe that it is this level of faith that we are to strive to achieve. One reason we believe that when we drop a ball it will fall to the floor is because we have complete faith in the law of gravity. We’ve seen it and experienced it since our first day on this earth. It has never changed, and never will change, unless God performs a miracle. Jesus has known from the beginning of time who the Father is and how he will respond to his prayers. I don’t know about you, but I want to hone my faith to a level that it is equal to, or even greater than, my belief in gravity.

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Faith is a learned behavior. Just like our faith in gravity is learned, our faith in our Lord is learned. The Bible teaches us that we build faith by reading his word. Romans reminds us that “faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God”. Faith is also learned through experience. When we experience God being true to his word, we have faith that he will do it again. So, we gain faith by reading God’s word and experiencing his faithfulness. Are you reading God’s word? Are you putting it into practice? That is how we gain faith. In fact, Jesus says that if we have faith and do not doubt, we can say to a mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. That is as impossible as saying to a man who has been dead for four days to “come out”, but Jesus had enough faith to believe in both.

Reverence Revealed

I’m a fairly big NFL football fan. I love the Detroit Lions, even though they rarely make it to the playoffs. And even if they do, they are usually eliminated right away. But as much as I like the Lions, there are tons of fans who like them even more. They will buy season tickets, go to the game wearing blue and silver face paint, and will proudly display Detroit Lions gear on flags, furniture, clothing and bumper stickers. If you encounter fans like these, you will have no doubt as to where their allegiance lies. There is no question which team they love. Why do I bring this up? Because although believers don’t have to wear clothes emblazoned with the name of Jesus, or display Christian bumper stickers covering the back of their car, the world should clearly be able to see where our allegiance lies when it comes to ours faith in Christ. Proverbs, chapter 14, verse 2 puts it this way:

“He whose walk is upright fears the Lord, but he whose ways are devious despises him.”

Our fear, or reverence, for the Lord inevitably comes out in the way we live, or as Proverbs puts it, the way we walk. So if you reverence God, it should be just as evident as if you don’t. Do you know of anyone who would vehemently argue that they are a Christian, but their actions, words and lifestyle reflect something different? I’ve watched movies where drug lords who secretly kill, run sex trafficking rings, and bribe officials would in public, give money to the poor and support charitable foundations. Inevitably they are exposed, but I have to believe that their heart has already done that work among those who really know them. Likewise, our allegiance is clear to those who know us, whether we want to hide it or convince them otherwise. By our lives, or our walk, people will know where our allegiance lies, but more importantly God will know as well. So my question to you is, how is your walk? Do you fear and reverence the Lord? Because if you do, the proof goes far beyond your words.    

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“He whose walk is upright fears the Lord, but he whose ways are devious despises him.” Do you fear the Lord or do you despise him? Your walk, or your heart, will reveal the truth. If your allegiance is strong, your countenance should be as obvious as if you were wearing a neon sign. But even if you aren’t outwardly expressive with our walk, the Lord will know because he knows your heart. He knows if you fear him, or if you despise him. He knows if your walk is upright or if your ways are devious. It may take time for your reverence for the Lord, or lack thereof, to be revealed to man, but it is as clear as crystal with God. So I would encourage you to take the faith you claim to have seriously. I encourage you to pursue an upright walk with the Lord.

Rejected as Evil

Have you ever been hated by someone? If you have, you know that it is not a very good feeling, especially if you’ve done nothing to deserve it. Being a black man in the United States, I can attest that I have been hated because of the color of my skin. I’ve heard racial slurs, I’ve been ostracized and I’ve been excluded because of my ethnicity. But being rejected as “less than” can’t be as bad as being rejected as evil. In recent years it has become more and more politically incorrect to hate me because of my race. But it has become more and more accepted to hate me because of my Christian belief. When I first read Luke, chapter 6, verse 22, I never thought I would see it played out in my lifetime. But things have changed, and Jesus warned us by saying:

“Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.”

Within recent years, some Americans may have felt a little of what Jesus warns about in this verse. You may have even experience it yourself. If you have, I would encourage you to remember that even though being “hated” doesn’t feel good, Jesus also says that you will be blessed because of it. You see, God considers it a badge of honor to suffer because of your allegiance to Christ. Many have been beaten, imprisoned, excommunicated, mistreated and have even died for their belief in Jesus. And their reward in heaven will be great. You and I may have never felt this level of persecution, but things are changing. I didn’t expect that our culture would hate, or vilify, those who boldly proclaim their faith in my lifetime, but it is happening. Even still, the Bible encourages us not to despair. On the contrary, we are to consider ourselves blessed. In fact, in the very next verse Jesus says, “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets.”  

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If you hold to the Christian faith; if you fearlessly and boldly proclaim what you believe you will be hated, even if your proclamation is done in love. But that shouldn’t discourage us. In fact, we should be encourage. Jesus says that we should “leap for joy” if we are rejected as evil because great is our reward in heaven. Though I don’t think we are called to seek out persecution, we certainly shouldn’t avoid it. Because if we are living a life for Christ, some level of persecution is inevitable. It is inevitable in a way that it has not been seen in my lifetime. So when we are hated we shouldn’t be surprised. Are you willing to be hated? Are you willing to be excluded, insulted and to have your name rejected as evil because of Jesus? You may want to consider the answer to those questions before it happens. It is my prayer for you and for me that we are ready and willing to be hated, because no matter the level of persecution you face, your reward will make it all worth it.