Good Morning Friends,
“The next day as they were leaving Bethany,
Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance
a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but
leaves, because it was not the season for figs.
Then he said to the tree, ‘May no one ever eat fruit from you
again.’ And his disciples heard him say
it. ---
In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from
the roots. Peter remembered and said to
Jesus, ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree you
cursed has withered!’” (Mark 11:12-14; 20-21)
This story is about fruit-bearing! The tree was leafed out. It looked good. It had the appearance of health and
vitality. Yet, there was no fruit and
fruit is the purpose of a fig tree! But
this story is not about trees and figs, it is about those who follow
Jesus. And for followers of Jesus, it’s
about fruit-bearing, too!
There are many disciples of Jesus who look
good. They have the appearance of health
and vitality. They do much of the right
stuff. Yet, they have no fruit!! And fruit is the purpose of a follower of
Jesus. Jesus expects those who follow
Him to bear fruit, not to just look good, not to just look religious!
What kind of fruit does God expect in the
lives of those who follow Him? Paul
listed these characteristics and called them the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23) Peter’s list was similar: faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control,
perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. (2 Peter 1:5-7) Those are the characteristics God expects to
see being developed in the life of one of His followers.
Jesus cursed the fig tree that had no fruit
and it withered and died the same day.
That’s how important fruit is to God.
Without fruit there is no life in the tree.
It’s not how religious you look – it’s the
fruit in your life that matters. So,
how’s your fruit?
His, by Grace,
Steve
Oh why does patience have to be on that list! :)
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