Why you Must Bear Good Spiritual Fruit

In my country, during the dry season (January to June), fruit trees are in full bloom. In my mother's front yard there are two Julie mango trees that are currently full of flowers, ready to bear delicious mangoes that we all love so much.



In the bible, Jesus describes himself as a vine and those branches that do not bear good fruit are cut down and thrown out, and those that bear good fruit, He prunes so that they will bear even more fruit. (John 15:12).



But what is this fruit that Jesus is speaking about? We find the answer in Galatians.


"But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control." (verses 22-23).



Yes, these all comprise one fruit. You will also notice that the Spirit, i.e. the Holy Spirit, is what gives us this fruit.



So the next question might be, how do I get this Spirit? Again, we look to the bible for the answer.


"...Repent, and let everyone of you be baptized in the name of the Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:38


So we see that in order to bear fruit we must repent and be baptized in order to receive the Holy Spirit.



But what is the significance of bearing good spiritual fruit? In Jesus' time there were religious men called Scribes and Pharisees. These men knew the Scriptures like the back of their hands, and outwardly they appeared righteous and godly. But they did not fool Jesus. He called them hypocrites because he knew that inwardly they were 'lawless'. (Matthew 23:28).




There are people like that around today. They show an outward image of righteousness, but inside, they care nothing about Jesus Christ and his teachings. They only care about giving a good impression rather than growing, developing and nurturing a good clean and pure heart.



This is what turns people away from Christianity, because they see through the hypocrisy and deceit of those who purport to be Christians. These are the ones who bear false fruit. Jesus warned us about them:


"Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep, but are really wolves that will tear you apart. You can detect them by the way they act, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit. You don't pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles. A healthy tree produces good fruit, and an unhealthy tree produces bad fruit" (Matthew 7:15-17)


It is only through the fruit of the Spirit that you can tell who is a true Christian.



As I anxiously await the mangoes to bear on my mother's tree, I am reminded that I need to share them with others. There is no way we are going to eat all the mangoes that will come forth from the trees. This is what living a true Christian life is all about- sharing. When we genuinely share our fruit with others we feel a sense of satisfaction and completeness in our lives that nothing else can give. Not to mention the joy that others feel by our generosity. In turn our fruit will develop even more.



This is why it is important to bear good fruit - so that others can see we are genuine and to share and show caring for others. It is only possible once you stay connected to the vine - Jesus Christ.


"I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5

About the Author
Visit Lisa Granger's webiste: livethebible.lisakg.net to learn more about the Fruit of the Spirit