Matt 7:16 "You will fully recognize them by their fruits. Do people pick grapes
from thorns, or figs from thistles?" AMP
Three years ago, after a night of fierce wind and thunderstorms, a willow branch
found itself broken away from its mother tree. As he was lying there alone on
the ground, condemned to a horrible death of starvation and dehydration, he
wondered what life could have been, if he had remained united with the Mother
tree. He had no hope. His outcome was clear. No help could come from anywhere.
He was going to die!
All of a sudden, he overheard a screech of tires and two eagerly young boys
running towards him. Before he knew what was happening, he felt himself being
lifted up into the air and transported with great care to the trunk of the car
with screeching tires, where he was laid down.
A short distance later, the trunk was once more opened again, and again he was
lifted out and moved to an unknown destination. As he laid on the ground, he
noticed that these two young lads had brought a bag with them of the purest dirt
he had ever seen. Not far away, he could hear the sounds of a ditch flowing with
plenty of fresh water. As he tried to lift his head, he saw two boys digging a
hole with the help of their daddy.
"These are nice people", he thought. "They took the time to prepare my burial
place! I won't die unknown in an unknown place. These are good people!"
To his astonishment, however, he wasn't buried in the hole. Instead he felt
himself being planted in that hole filled with the purest dirt. Hands were very
carefully firming up the dirt around him, and soon he received a long drink of
water.
"Don't they know that trees don't grow from broken branches?" He wondered.
"Trees grow from the fruit that falls to the ground!"
To his amazement, day after day, these caring boys watered him, and he never had
a week go by without one of them giving him a hug. He felt himself loved and
cared for, and to his astonishment, roots started to grow out of his limbs! A
miracle had happened! From an assured death he was released and through the help
of these loving boys a new life had been provided to him.
This year my boys celebrated that branch's third birthday and unknown to all of
us, that weeping willow branch had become a tree that has started to bloom and
carry its own fruit. Wow! What love can do!
God is in the business of miracles and He does the same thing to all of those
who are lost in this world and whose destiny is hopeless. He picks them up and
carefully embraces them with His love. If they accept Him into their life, they
find themselves miraculously transformed by His grace and before they know it,
fruit is forth coming. Their life is filled with love and radiates with divine
love.
One may wonder what kind of fruit Jesus is talking about in Matthew 7. The
answer is found in that chapter itself.
To the amazement of many, Jesus first makes sure that we know what that fruit is
not.
Matt 7:20-23 "Therefore, you will fully know them by their fruits. Not everyone
who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does
the will of My Father Who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, Lord,
Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name and driven out demons in Your name and
done many mighty works in Your name? And then I will say to them openly
(publicly), I never knew you; depart from Me, you who act wickedly." AMP
The fruit is clearly not just being a believer and is not just driving out
demons in Jesus' name and doing mighty works in Jesus' name. But if these are
not the fruit referred here, what could it be?
Very simple:
1. Matt 7:23 "I never knew you." AMP That fruit is having a personal
relationship with Jesus.
2. Matt 7:24 "So everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them
[obeying them] will be like a sensible (prudent, practical, wise) man who built
his house upon the rock." AMP That fruit is acting upon Jesus' words and obey
His voice.
3. Matt 7:25 "And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat
against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had been founded on the
rock." AMP That fruit is finding it's foundation on the rock of Jesus Christ.
In one word the fruit referred to here is living the real life of a Christian.
What is a Christian, but one who follows Jesus Christ in everything he does?
Jesus is the One who makes that fruit possible in our life, not us. As long as
we depend on Him and develop a personal relationship with Him, fruit will be
fort coming!
Is your fruit forth coming? If not, come to Jesus and accept His invitation of
becoming your personal friend. Fruit is an assured thing for those having their
foundation in Him!
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
messages. HTML and plain text versions available.
The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.