Flourishing in Fruit – A Summary

    Over the past several weeks we have looked at the Bible verses that tell us the importance of flourishing in fruit. 

God has provided all we need and expects us to bear good fruit (read and consider Isaiah 5:1-4)

    God wants us to produce good fruit. We, as Christians and members of the kingdom of God, are to be bearing the good fruit of God’s kingdom (consider Matthew 21:43). Jesus said that a tree is known by its fruits (Matthew 12:33), and we have within us (as humans with free will) the potential to bear either the fruit of sin (which leads to death) or the fruit to holiness (which leads to everlasting life, Romans 6:21-23); we can choose to be either a tree lost in the darkness of the devil’s decaying orchard or we can be planted and flourishing in the courts of our God (Psalm 92:13-14).

“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Matthew 7:19 NKJV)

We must be mindful of what buds in our hearts/minds 

    Just as the farmer is watchful of the bud formation knowing it leads to fruit, we also need to be very attentive to what buds in our hearts/minds and determine whether a bud ought to be nipped immediately or nurtured to blossom and develop fruit. We need to be using God’s word (hearing it and doing it, James 1:21-27) so that our senses are exercised to discern both good and evil (Hebrews 5:13-14).

    Examine the buds developed (and developing) in your mind; nip the bad ones to allow room for the good ones to flourish! The health of your soul is worth the daily, if not the moment to moment, efforts needed to keep yourself pure (1 John 3:3) and holy (1 Peter 1:15-16) so you can flourish even more in good fruit!!

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24 NKJV)

Our conduct is our fruit

• repentance (Matthew 3:8) – making the changes that prove that we have turned our backs to ungodliness and worldly lusts (Titus 2:11-12, 2 Timothy 2:22) while clinging to what is good (Romans 12, John 14:6)
• righteousness (Philippians 1:9-11, 2 Corinthians 9:9-11) – doing what is right in God’s sight, according to His commands and instructions (James 1:21-25, 1 John 3:7)
• good works (Colossians 1:9-11) – doing good for others, generously sharing our blessings with them (Psalm 68:19, 2 Corinthians 9:7-8)

Our words are our fruit

    Jesus said that our words come from the storehouses of our hearts (Matthew 12:34-35). Those who love Him should always be working to have good storehouses that are well-curated (and carefully guarded), guided by God’s good and perfect will, and full of the treasures of wisdom, knowledge, and righteousness (Colossians 2:2-3, Ephesians 5:17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 12:3-11) so that the words we draw from our hearts are good and beneficial (Ephesians 4:29, Colossians 4:6).

“I will guard my ways, lest I sin with my tongue…” (Psalm 39:1a NKJV)

When we walk in the Spirit, the Spirit can bear His fruit in our lives (read and consider Galatians 5:16-26)

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth) finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.” (Ephesians 5:8-10 NKJV)

When we live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit (allowing God’s word to transform us, Romans 12:2, James 1:21-25, 1 John 2:15-17), and when we work continually to identify and remove the debris of selfishness/selfish ambitions/lusts (Hebrews 5:14), then our hearts will be a good soil (Matthew 13:23) in which the Spirit can develop and bear His fruit.

“…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23 NKJV)  

When we flourish in bearing good fruit God will be glorified!

    Bearing good and proper fruit only happens when we abide in the True Vine and when His words abide in us (John 15:7). We need to hear God’s words (in His word, the Bible), take them into our heart, and purpose to do what He says (James 1:21-25). Hearing the word is the seed planted, thinking on it and allowing it to shape our thoughts and choices is the seed taking root, and then doing and saying what He has instructed through His word is bearing fruit. Consider the parable of the sower in Luke 8:4-8, 11-15. When we do this, God will be glorified!

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser… I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing… By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples.” (excerpt from John 15:1-8 NKJV)

    It will always be an excellent use of our time to read and study God’s word. Learning more about Him and His way is the best – and only – way to transform our hearts (Romans 12:1-2) so that they become storehouses of good things that we can share with others through our words and actions. When we purify our hearts (1 John 3:1-3) we clear the debris from the soil of our hearts and make it a good receptacle for the Spirit to bear His fruit. And we can flourish in good fruit that will bring glory to our wondrous Father in heaven!!

From wherever you are right now, determine that you will 

flourish even more in 2024 in bearing good fruit!!

You can do it! So can I!!

Flourishing in Fruit – That God May Be Glorified!

    I would like you to consider a few verses today as we near the end of our Flourishing in Fruit study. These verses tell us one of the important reasons why we must be developing and bearing fruit – so that God will be glorified!

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:15 NKJV)

    As we studied earlier, our conduct is our fruit – this includes good works (which we were created to do, Ephesians 2:10) – and so, when others see, it will cause them to look to God, praise Him, and thank Him!

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser… I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing… By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples.” (excerpt from John 15:1-8 NKJV)

    Bearing good and proper fruit only happens when we abide in the True Vine and when His words abide in us (John 15:7). We need to hear God’s words (in His word, the Bible), take them into our heart, and purpose to do what He says (James 1:21-25). Hearing the word is the seed planted, thinking on it and allowing it to shape our thoughts and choices is the seed taking root, and then doing and saying what He has instructed through His word is bearing fruit. Consider the parable of the sower in Luke 8:4-8, 11-15. When we do this, God will be glorified!

“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:9-11 NKJV)

    We need to be practicing righteousness (1 John 3:7) – making a daily determination to know more of Jesus so we can walk as He walked (1 John 2:3-6). When we are filled with the fruits of righteousness God will be glorified!!

    What does glorifying God mean? It means that one is recognizing His wondrous value and awesome substance. They are valuing Him for who He really is, esteeming Him worthy of all praise.

    When we obey His commands – abide in His word, practice righteousness, do good works – we are declaring Him to be wise, we are proclaiming His word to be truth and worthy of attention and obedience. Read and consider Romans 12:1-2 – we prove to ourselves and the world that God’s will is good and acceptable and perfect when we let it transform us!  

    Are you bearing fruit that will glorify God?

You can do it! So can I!!

“Father of…” (Part 1 of 2)

    While I was studying for our previous “God of…” series, I came across a few verses that described God as “Father of…” and wanted to share them with you.

Father, from the Greek ‘pater’ (Strong’s #3962), it is used of our heavenly Father, He is our originator, our Creator, and as we purify ourselves we come to resemble Him more and more (1 John 3:1-3), as we learn to walk just as His Son, Jesus, walked (1 John 2:1-6).

    These “Father of…” descriptions are only found in the New Testament:

• ·         Ephesians 1:17 – “...the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory…”
• ·         Ephesians 4:6 – “…one God and Father of all…”
• ·         Hebrews 12:9 – “…the Father of spirits…”
• ·         James 1:17 – “…the Father of lights…”

    Let’s dig into the first two passages this week and find what these descriptions mean!

“Father of glory” (Please read Ephesians 1:15-19)

    In Paul’s prayer he desires that God, the Father of glory, will give the Ephesian brethren the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, that they would understand and know the hope of God’s calling, the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and the exceeding greatness of His power toward those who believe, that all this may be according to the working of His mighty power.

‘glory’ in this passage comes from the Greek ‘doxa’ (Strong’s #1391) which simply means opinion, but always in the New Testament it means a good opinion, what brings about a good opinion. When speaking of God the Father of glory it expresses His infinite worth, the very majesty that is God; that is an essential part of His nature.

    Being blessed by Him with every spiritual blessing (read the whole of Ephesians 1) should bring about and increase our good opinion of Him: that God, the Father, is all goodness, all mercy, all grace, all compassion, all generosity, all might, and all majesty (Jude 25).

“Father of all” (Please read Ephesians 4:1-6)

    The very foundation of our faith, the things we all must agree on to “maintain the unity of the Spirit” is found in Ephesians 4:4-6. There is one body (Christ’s body, the church, Ephesians 1:22-23), one Spirit (the Holy Spirit of God), one hope of your calling (eternal life with God, Colossians 1:5, 2 Peter 3:11-13, Philippians 3:12-16), one Lord (Jesus Christ, Acts 2:36), one faith (Jude 3), one baptism (for remission of sins, Acts 2:38; 22:16), one God and Father of all (of all Christians: Ephesians 5:1-21, 1 John 3:1-3, 1 Peter 1:13-21), who is above all (Genesis 1:1, Psalm 97:9, 1 Corinthians 11:13), through all (Romans 1:19-20; 11:36), and in you all (1 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 John 4:12-16).

    God is over all of this, all of us, it was His plan before time began (Ephesians 1:4) to grant all these benefits to His creation; He begot the plan and begot us. He desires that His creation will seek Him (Acts 17:26-27), follow His plan (Romans 8:28; 12:1-2, 9-21), so we may one day see our Father as He is, for we shall be like Him (1 John 3:1-3).

    Our God is our Father, the eternal Father of all who believe and obey (Isaiah 62:2, Acts 11:26). Do we run to Him, talk to Him, and seek comfort and guidance from Him as our Father (Hebrews 4:16, Philippians 4:6-7, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4)?

     He will not leave us nor forsake us. He loves us and blesses us abundantly every day (Psalm 68:19). He is the very Father of glory – everything that is good, perfect, and glorious is found in Him and comes from Him (James 1:17-18) – do we give Him the proper glory He deserves (Ephesians 3:20-21, Revelation 4:11)? Do we proclaim His praises as we should (1 Peter 2:9)?

    Let’s think on these things, and determine to seek God our Father each and every day and glorify Him throughout our lives!

You can do it! So can I!!

"God of... glory"

    As our study continues, we are now getting to terms that appear only one to two times in the Bible. This week we will look at the description “God of glory” mentioned once in the Old Testament and once in the New Testament.

In a psalm of David, Psalm 29:3-4, and in Stephen’s sermon, Acts 7:2-3

    ‘Glory,’ in this Psalm 29 passage, is the Hebrew word, ‘kabod’ (Strong’s #H3519), meaning abundance, honour, glory, and splendor, and in the Acts 7 verses it is the Greek word ‘doxa’ meaning a good opinion that determines value, its use in reference to God tells us of His infinite worth and value that has always been and will always be.

    Stephen had seen the fruition of God’s plan; separated from Abraham by over 2000 years, Stephen knew from the Scriptures all that God had promised AND fulfilled to Abraham, he knew the history of Israel, the people descended from Abraham (the twelve sons of his own grandson, Jacob/"Israel"). Stephen was living in the time when “all families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:1-3) through Jesus’ coming. Stephen proclaimed Jesus as the Just One, who came to save, but whom the Jewish people rejected, betrayed, and murdered (Acts 7:51-53). Stephen was, with his good opinion of God, desperately trying to remind the Israelites of God’s unsurpassable value; that His word did not, does not fail. The promise given to their esteemed patriarch, Abraham, WAS fulfilled – they could have been blessed, they still CAN be blessed, but like they did with Jesus, they turned on him.       

    As the crowd showed anger at his words, Stephen looked up into heaven and “saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55) and even as he lay dying from the rocks hurled at him, Stephen prayed to God that He would not charge the people with this sin (Acts 7:59-60) – even in his last breaths he wanted the people to know of God’s value in their lives – that He was trustworthy, that His words are trustworthy, that they need to turn to Him and give Him the glory.

“Give unto the LORD, O you mighty ones, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders; the LORD is over many waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.” (Psalm 29:1-4 NKJV)

    David, who lived halfway between Abraham and Stephen, proclaimed God’s glory to all, not only through his psalms, but through his complete trust in God, shown by his words and conduct throughout his lifetime. He, too, had seen the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham (of a land, Canaan, and a name, Israelites), and assured of God’s abilities he looked toward the future when the promised Messiah would come (Psalms 22, 110).  

    This man of the Old Testament, David, and this man of the New Testament, Stephen, proclaimed God to be the God of glory: God, the author and personification of all that is splendourous and honourable; God, whose value and worth is beyond compare.

    Do you see Him, think of Him; speak of Him in this way? Do you value Him? His Word? More than all others, more than all other things? Be confident, like David, in the God of glory and proclaim His goodness and greatness (1 Peter 2:9). Be concerned, like Stephen, and tell others of God’s incomparable value and all that His has supplied for them to know the truth and be forgiven of their sins!

    We serve the God of glory!! Let’s give Him the glory!!

You can do it! So can I!!     

"God of... the earth"

    Used only three times, almost like fence posts placed at the beginning, middle, and end of the Bible, this term describes a consistent, unchanging God, a superior God over all, and a Sovereign God in a place of pre-eminence.

Genesis 24:3 – Isaiah 54:5 – Revelation 11:4

    God of earth means that our God is God of the entirety of earth – every earthly realm – and every inhabitant.

“The earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness, 
the world and those who dwell therein.” 
(Psalm 24:1 NKJV)

    The term “God of the earth” is used only three times, but statements about the earth belonging to God are sprinkled throughout the Bible:

During the ten plagues in Egypt – 

“So Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; the thunder will cease, and these will be no more hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD’s.” (Exodus 9:29)

When refortifying Israel’s faith and awareness of the Law – 

“And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good? Indeed heaven and the highest heavens, belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all that is in it.” (Deuteronomy 10:12-14)

When God answers Job – 

“Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him? Everything under heaven is Mine.” (Job 41:11)

When David described “the King of glory” – 

“The earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the waters.” (Psalm 24:1-2)

When Asaph wrote about “the Mighty One, God the LORD” – 

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and its fullness.” (Psalm 50:12)

When Paul was teaching the Corinthians he quoted Psalm 24:1 – 

“Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions for conscience’ sake, for “the earth is the LORD’s and its fullness”” (1 Corinthians 10:26, in some translations this quote is repeated in verse 28)

    Step outside, or look out the window, Our God – the God of earth – created all that you can see by His word! He is over and above all that we can see and hear and touch and taste and feel – it’s all His, just as you are His! Let us honour and respect Him for all He has provided to us in this earthly realm, making it possible to seek Him and find Him (Acts 17:24-28), to live and thrive as His child, and to grant us a soul within our earthly bodies that will live on with Him in eternity (1 John 3:1-3)! 

You can do it! So can I!! 

"God of... Heaven"

    The second most used term referring to God is found 17 times in the Old Testament and only twice in the New. It’s probably the first fact we learn about God in childhood: “God lives up in heaven;” we sang songs about being careful with what we do and say because “the Father up above is looking down in love,” and that simple fact is as complicated as this term for God gets.

God (Strong’s #H430) – elohim – means divine being

heaven (Strong’s #H8064, Hebrew/O.T.) – shamayin – means the abode of God

  (Strong’s #G3772, Greek/N.T.) – ouranos – means the highest heaven, the dwelling place of God

    You may be thinking, ‘I already knew all this, what more is there to say on the subject?’ Well, I have found through my own personal studies that anytime a term/phrase is mentioned more than once in the Bible each usage is enveloped in a little bit more information so that when we look at each one we learn a bit more and end up with a rather complete picture when we are done!

Side study: Try this for yourself in studying, for example, the phrase “the fear of the LORD” (throughout the Bible) or in studying the passages that mention Joseph of Arimathea (in the New Testament gospels).

    What can we learn from the 18 references to the “God of heaven” in the Bible? Here’s what I have summarized:

We should…

          …seek Him (Daniel 2:17-18, also consider Acts 17:26-27)

…pray to Him (Ezra 6:10, Nehemiah 1:4-5; 2:4, Daniel 2:17-18, also consider 1 Thessalonians 5:17)

…obey His commands (Ezra 1:2, 7:23, also consider 1 John 2:3-6)

…offer sacrifices to Him (Ezra 6:9-10, also consider Romans 12:1-2)

…trust Him (Nehemiah 2:20, Daniel 2:44, also consider Proverbs 3:5-6, 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

…give Him the glory and praise Him (Nehemiah 1:5, Daniel 2:37, Revelation 11:13, also consider Psalm 103:1-5)

…thank Him and bless Him (Psalm 136:26, Daniel 2:17-23, also consider 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Ephesians 1:3)

…confess our faith in Him (Jonah 1:9, also consider Matthew 10:32)

…do good for those who fear Him (Ezra 7:21, also consider Galatians 6:9-10)

…not be like those who blaspheme Him because of their pains and troubles and refuse to repent of their evil deeds (Revelation 16:11, also consider what we should do: trust in His help Psalm 34, be faithful to Him, Romans 12:12, and repent of our wrongdoings, 1 John 1:9, 2 Peter 3:9)

 

    From its first mention in Genesis 24:6 to its last in the book of Revelation, our study of the “God of heaven” is a good reminder to us that He is not simply ‘a being up in the sky’ – He is the very God of heaven! The One to whom we can run to at any time (Hebrews 4:16) and who we can always count on! Let’s follow the Bible examples we have taken note of in this study and seek the God of heaven, pray to Him, obey Him, offer ourselves to Him in daily service, trust Him, praise and magnify Him, give Him all the glory with hearts full of thankfulness for all He has done for us! Let us confess our faith in Him, in word and conduct, be a benefit to those who fear Him, seek His solace when we are suffering, and His forgiveness when we sin!    

You can do it! So can I!!   

Why Do We Do Good Works?

    Sometimes it may feel that you are throwing your pearls in the pig pen when you do good works for less than appreciative people, but it is then that you must remember for whom we do these good works. We do them to show our faith, our love, and our appreciation to God for His faithfulness, love, and blessings!

"And whatever you do, do it heartily,

as to the Lord and not to men."

(Colossians 3:23 NKJV) 

    We do good works, not for glory and praise (Matthew 6:1-4) but to reflect God's light into the world. We, through our kindnesses and mercies, show people God, who may not have seen Him any other way. Good works can open doors and open hearts. God's light can shine in places that need His light, simply because of our kindness and care, and in turn He will be glorified!

    We do good works because we have abundance from God. He has blessed us with so many provisions to enable us to share and care for others (2 Corinthians 9:8)

    Consider 2 Corinthians 1:3-4:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any troubles, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted."

God ALWAYS exemplifies the good He wants us to do in the world!

Read this verse again and fill in the blank with "love/loved":

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all _______, who ________ us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to _______ those who are in any troubles, with the _______ with which we ourselves are _________.

Read again using "blessings/bless/blessed"
Read again using "help/helped"
Read again using "encouragement/encouraged"

    Do you get the picture?

    God exemplifies it, so we know what to do and how to do it, and He supplies what we need to accomplish it, so we have no excuse not to do it!

    Doing good works should be who you are. A Christian should be different from the world. Their mind should be constantly renewed in their purpose of proving to the world "what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God" (Romans 12:2).

• You have received love from God --> love others (1 John 4:11) 
• You have received comfort from God --> comfort others (2 Corinthians 9:8)
• You have received blessings from God --> be a blessing to others (Hebrews 13:16) 
• You have been upheld by God --> uphold others (Isaiah 41:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:11)
• You have been forgiven by God --> forgive others (Ephesians 4:31, Colossians 3:13)

    What else can you add to this list?

    Don't give up on doing good! When we do good, we reflect God's light in to the world, that He may be glorified! Renew your mind daily by remembering from whom all blessings come and determine to show the world that God has provided a better way!

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap 
if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, 
especially to those who of the household of faith." 
(Galatians 6:9-10 NKJV)

You can do it! So can I!!