Pay Attention to the Fruit!

While He was on the earth, Jesus gave His disciples some very sound advice, and that is what I want to talk to you about tonight, Friends. In Matthew 7:17-20, Jesus said this, “Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” Now granted in this particular portion of scripture, Jesus was specifically talking about false prophets, but He reiterated this same principal in other places in scripture also. Matthew 12:33 for instance, where He said this, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.” This principal cannot be altered…you cannot get good and bad fruit from the same tree.

 And so I’m sure some of you are wondering, why all this talk about fruit? Well I want to share some wisdom with you today that I believe will help you if you will pay attention and put this principal to work in your life.

 When Jesus talks about fruit in this portion of scripture, He is referring to the way a person lives on a day to day basis. And the way you live is determined by your moral values, your priorities, what you think about and your character. A person’s life will be determined by these standards, and they will show up in what you say, what you do, and how you act and react toward others or what Jesus called fruit. Notice…fruit is what appears on the outside, but it is what is on the inside of the tree that determines what kind of fruit is produced on the outside. This is also true of people…it’s what’s in your heart that determines your outward actions. And that is why it is so important that we be “fruit inspectors”. By watching a person’s fruit, we can tell who they really are and what values they hold in their hearts. A person cannot lie and cheat and steal and commit adultery if they are building good values, morals and character in their hearts. It’s just not possible.

Now, it is true that a person can deceive you for a time. I personally have been deceived many times in my life. I have a problem with trying to give a person the benefit of the doubt, even when I have seen the bad fruit in their lives. Somehow I try to believe that they are really good in their hearts, even though I have already seen the bad fruit in their lives and even though scripture tells me that it is impossible for any tree to bear good fruit and bad fruit at the same time…and so I end up being deceived!

 So I’d like to share quickly how we can both become better at discerning what’s true and what’s not and stop allowing ourselves to be deceived.

 Be a “Fruit Watcher”. Pay attention to the fruit. Now a person may fool you for a while, but sooner or later whatever is in their heart or in their true character is going to come out in their behavior. Don’t ignore it…if it’s a bad temper, if it’s lying, if it’s cheating…whatever it is, pay attention. Here are two steps you can take to tell you if a person has bad fruit in his or her life.

1.    Pay close attention to the leading of the Holy Spirit. How do you feel inside. Do you feel at peace, or do you have a feeling of discomfort or uneasiness inside. You need to learn to listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit because He will guide you into all Truth and He will warn you when you are dealing with someone who produces bad fruit. Scripture tells us “do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God” (1 John 4:1) Listen to what the Spirit of God is telling you.

2.    Look at the inconsistencies in the person’s character. Do they seem one way one time and then another way another time? Remember that principal about how a tree cannot bear good and bad fruit at the same time. If you are thinking the person has somehow changed, then know that the only way people really change is when they have a true encounter with God and they have a repentant heart. And the only way to tell if that change is real is to watch them for a period of time to see what kind of fruit there are bearing. The fruit will ALWAYS tell the true story. You can’t get oranges from an apple tree, and you can’t consistently get good character from a bad tree. Sooner or later the real fruit will show up and you can tell. If the Holy Spirit tells you something is wrong and the fruit tells you something is wrong, then you should trust what you are sensing and steer clear of that person…or you will be deceived.

Friends as we get closer and closer to the end of the age, we are going to need to listen carefully to the Holy Spirit and pay attention to what He is leading us to do. There is going to be more and more deception and we need to beware. Remember, in John 10:27 Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” Amen…let’s learn to hear His voice and to follow Him and Him alone. Until I see you back here again soon, God bless you. Bye for now.