Bearing Fruit

 

Our spring garden is coming to a close. We are still picking some tomatoes but the Texas heat has just about caught up with everything else. We had a productive crop for our little garden this year. Our one disappointment was the squash plants, which grew abundantly and looked pretty but never produced any fruit. This has been an ongoing issue with them. I am ready to move on and use the space for something else, although my wife might be willing to give them another chance.

 

The ultimate measure of our lives in God’s eyes is whether we are producing fruit or not. Jesus told His disciples, and us as well, just before He died, “I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last” (John 15:16). This is not an option but an obligation. Jesus made this clear, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it may be even more fruitful” (John 15:1-2).

 

We may see our work in the Church or in Christian organizations as bearing fruit but this is not always the case. Henri Nouwen said, “We have been called to be fruitful – not successful, not productive, not accomplished. Success comes from strength, stress, and human effort. Fruitfulness comes from vulnerability and the admission of our own weakness.” The only fruit that will last comes from Jesus and our abiding in Him, as He reminds us, “If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The things that we do under our own power and will and not through Jesus may well have value but they are not the lasting fruit God desires.

 

The branch that is attached to the vine will bear fruit because it receives nourishment and everything else it needs from the vine. It doesn’t have to do anything except pass on that which it has been given. The branch that is detached from the vine cannot bear fruit because it has no source of nourishment. We must remain attached to Jesus to produce lasting fruit, drawing near to Him through prayer, His Word, and fellowship with His people.

 

We live in a world that places constant demands on our time and attention. Sometimes we need to allow God to prune away anything that is drawing us away from Him. We need to consciously make our relationship with Jesus a priority so that our busy-ness doesn’t get in the way of our abiding in Him and turning to Him for all that we need each day. When we do so, we can bring the love of Christ to those around us and we will be bearing fruit that lasts.

 

Abide in Him today.

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The individual posts in this blog have been collected into a book, Reflections From the Basic Truths Blog.  It is available for free as an ebook through Barnes and Noble, https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reflections-from-the-basic-truths-blog-james-yarmchuk/1147055811?ean=2940181202702, Apple Books, and multiple other book websites. It is available for a minimal charge on Amazon and can also be purchased as a paperback through them.