Tilling and Planting

Tag: Spiritual Fruit

  • Real and Fake

    Real and Fake

    Intro

    Wrapping up the Sermon on the Mount, we enter into a list of real and fake Christians and how to identify them. I think these passages are all pretty familiar to us (as has been most of this sermon), but I hope to not only refresh your memories, but also bring new perspective on each of them.

    Spotting the Fakes

    Real quick before delving into each of the individual sections, I want to tie this to my post about judging rightly. In that post, I explain that Jesus wants us to judge, but to do so with humility, love, and kindness. Not with condemnation or a holier-than-thou attitude. And these sections very quickly destroy the claim that Christians can’t judge people period. After all, how in the world can we spot the fakes if we don’t discern (judge) their actions? And how can we then warn others about them if we haven’t determined (judged) that they are fakes? Food for thought as well as additional arguments for judging rightly. This allows us to not only steer people back onto the narrow path, but also help to spot the real from the fake Christians.

    Real and Fake Prophets

    “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”

    Matthew 7:15-20 (NIV)

    This first warning Jesus issues about “real and fake” deals with false prophets. I think a lot of times when we read this, we think about people outside the church either intentionally trying to deceive people to get money or self-proclaimed prophets like Joseph Smith (founder of Mormonism) who added onto the Bible with his Book of Mormon. And while that certainly could fit, the passage also says they are wolves in sheep’s clothing. We as Jesus’ followers are called sheep. Therefore, this passage also refers to people within the church who claim to be Christians and yet are not living for God. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be the leaders. Could be anyone.

    Jesus says we know them by their fruit. In other words, we can identify them by their actions, their lifestyles. Are they producing fruit consistent with the Fruit of Holy Spirit? Do their lifestyles match the lifestyle that Jesus tells us to live? If they aren’t producing fruit watch out! They may be hanging around church to deceive, disrupt, or distract the body. And we must be able to discern that and reject anything they say that does not line up with the Word of God. We should do the loving thing and try and correct them (gently) but if they reject us, then it would be better to interact little with them. If they aren’t seeking God and they find their message is being ignored, they’ll move on.

    If you find that the false prophet is in leadership, approach someone else who’s in leadership there. Because it could be that person has also deceived the others on the leadership team. But you may also find that the entire leadership team falls into this camp of false prophets. At that point just leave.

    Real and Fake Disciples

    “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

    Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV)

    The next warning Jesus issues about “real and fake” are disciples. Unlike the previous one where there’s much more intent of deception and a focus on people gathering a following, this one is more broad and more introspective. Jesus is warning us about self-deception. His desire is for all His disciples (that’s us) to be genuine and seek His will and do His will for the glory of God the Father. However, many so-called Christians deceive themselves into doing lots “for God” but not for His glory. They’re doing it either for the praise of man, or their doing it because they’ve deceived themselves into believing in a works-based salvation rather than trusting in Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross.

    This one is scary because so many people will go their whole lives believing that they are going to Heaven because the did such-and-such for the Lord. But they’re going to get there and get a rude awakening. And Jesus lists out some pretty impressive things including prophesying and miracles. Honestly it’s hard for me to imagine anyone being able to perform miracles in Jesus name and not be saved. But Jesus seems to say it’s possible. But how?

    There’s really two possibilities here and both could fit the overall context of the Bible. And some people might fall into one category or the other on the day of judgment. But one thing they have in common, they never came to true faith in Jesus and thus will not spend eternity in Heaven with God.

    The Options

    The first possibility on how unsaved can perform miracles is the deception of Satan. The magicians of Egypt were able to mimic a few of the plagues as well as the staff-to-serpent sign. Now it is possible that these magicians used sleight of hand and similar things. But it’s also possible there was some demonic activity going on. The New Testament also warns about false signs and wonders designed to deceive people. Again, some of these are going to be fake and not miracles at all, but some could be demonic. Then there’s the example of the psychic girl that Paul rebuked. These types of “miracles” are likely the most common for the demonic – after all they can communicate with each other and spread information around to make psychics appear genuine. And as my pastor says, they can also “predict” the future by causing the future they just predicted.

    The second possibility is that God will empower unbelievers for His glory. The best Biblical example of this is Judas Iscariot. He followed Jesus for His entire ministry and performed miraculous signs and wonders like the other eleven. However, his heart did not belong to the Lord. And he ultimately betrayed Jesus and then hung himself in shame. God saw fit to use Judas alongside the other disciples for His glory despite the condition of Judas’s heart. And God might continue to do that today and in the future. Why? I don’t know. But Paul said that there were people preaching the name of Jesus out of envy and rivalry (Philippians 1:15-18) and he rejoiced! Why? Because the gospel was still being preached. So if these miracles are genuine, then praise the Lord and give Him glory.

    What do We do?

    So what do we do if we suspect that someone performing these miracles are not true disciples? Two things: determine if their message lines up with Scripture, and determine if their fruit lines up with Scripture. If either of these is “no”, talk to them in love and gentleness and try to steer them onto the narrow path. If they refuse to listen, then they are probably in the “false prophet” camp and we should avoid them and warn others about them.

    But as I opened this section with, we must beware that we are not deceiving ourselves into falling into this camp of false disciples. And we may have the right message to boot! But don’t live in fear about whether you’re actually saved or not; if you’re questioning it, there’s actually a good chance you are saved. If you need assurance, pray. Pray hard and read your Bible. Talk to someone who’s more mature in the faith. Search your own life for fruit. If you find you are living in sin and have no desire to change, that’s a red flag. If you find that over time since your point of salvation you have been making progress in overcoming sin and are producing more fruit of the Spirit, then those are indicators that you are truly saved.

    Real and Fake Builders

    “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

    Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV)

    This is a story I first learned through song format. Which is kind of funny when you think about it. “What would make a good children’s song?” “How about the story of a couple of guys building houses and the one guy’s house comes crashing down.” “Perfect!” I titled this section “Real and Fake Builders” because only a fake builder would build on a foundation of sand. So be sure to check that guy’s credentials before you hire him!

    All joking aside, this store contains powerful truths and warnings. Again, this one is more introspective. Jesus warns His followers against merely hearing His words and then doing nothing with them. He compares such people with a foolish person who builds his house on a sandy foundation. Sand is very unstable and pretty much guarantees that something is going to go wrong. And this isn’t a warning about ignorance. The foolish person is not stupid or ignorant. The foolish person already heard the truth. But the foolish person chose deliberate action to not do what they know to be the correct way of doing something.

    In contrast, the wise person hears the words of Jesus and puts them into practice. As a result, he can weather anything that life throws at him because he has Jesus’ teaching and Jesus Himself to fall back on. Jesus and all of His teaching forms a foundation that is rock solid.

    Sidenote

    An interesting tidbit about this parable is that it echoes many Proverbs that contrasts wise and foolish people. So His listeners hearing the initial part of “a wise man” probably expected to hear the contrasting actions of the foolish man. This was a common style of teaching for the Jews and was very familiar to His listeners. This wasn’t the first time Jesus used a familiar style of teaching, nor would it be His last. Though in many of Jesus’ familiar styles of teaching, He often subverted expectations in some way. Does Jesus do that here? I say yes. After all Jesus opens this parable with “everyone who hears these words of mine”. That’s bold. Jesus is putting His words on par with Scripture and on par with the very words of God. That definitely ruffled some feathers amongst the religious leaders. Which actually leads to my final point.

    True Authority

    When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

    Matthew 7:28-29 (NIV)

    In the end, we see that the crowds were amazed. Because Jesus taught with authority, unlike the religious leaders of the day. Honestly, given how much the religious leaders puffed themselves up, it’s almost weird to hear such a statement. They lorded themselves over the common people, so how could Matthew write that the teachers of the law didn’t teach as if they had authority?

    Well, what I found out when I asked this question is that the religious leaders actually would have always appealed to the highest authority. In rabbinic tradition, it often meant referring to the which “line” of rabbis a particular teacher came from. In more genuine cases, the teachers might have appealed to the authority of Scripture and the author – either the human author or God Himself. But when Jesus taught, the authority He appealed to was Himself. No other teacher, no rabbit, etc. For Jesus was and is, the ultimate authority.

    And at the end of the day, we can identify real and fake people by whether they accept the ultimate authority of Jesus Christ (1 John 4:1-3).

    Wrapping Up

    We all need to be able to discern those who are real followers of Christ and those who are fake. The ones that are fake are dangerous since they often sound good, but underneath are not living for Him. These people can deceive many others into believing false doctrines. So we must be alert to not fall into that and to help guide people out of it.

    That’s the end of my series on the Sermon on the Mount. In many ways it feels like it went too fast. I didn’t go into real depth on most of the topics, so if there is one that you you want me to go into greater depth, please leave a comment on this post or on the post where I touched on that topic! I don’t want this blog to only be what comes to my mind, but also what you, my readers, want to understand better. So please leave a comment or reach out to me through the contact form.

    Outro

    If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

    Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

    Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!

  • Fruit of the Spirit

    Fruit of the Spirit

    Intro

    “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.” I think we’ve all heard this before. It’s an often quoted passage from Galatians that children are taught. Sometimes I think we teach children this verse because we want them to behave that way. But that’s just a theory.

    But given that, what do these all mean? Sometimes I think we go through this list without fully grasping what each one means. Especially since the original Greek may or may not mean what we think it means. Dive in with me to see what Paul is really telling us about the Christian lifestyle here.

    My Experience

    I’ll be honest here. I haven’t always been good about giving a personal connection with each of the topics I’ve written about. And that’s a bit unfortunate. Because frankly, the best blogs and messages are the ones where the writer or speaker has a personal connection to it. Some reason or motivation that gives them a reason to truly love the topic and be passionate about it. Many of the topics I’ve written about have all been fantastic topics that I enjoy and recognize as foundational. But to put a personal touch on each, I just couldn’t do. I mentioned a few times during my series on Baptismal Regeneration that I’ve had personal encounters with people who believe that way. That made me more invested in those than in some of the others. I genuinely wonder how many of you picked up on the different tone because of that.

    But all that to say is that for this topic – the Fruit of the Spirit – I have a more interesting story and connection to it. And before jumping into talking about the Fruit, I’m going to share it.

    The French Chef

    Many years ago in high school, I volunteered at a local church’s Awana program as a junior leader for the Sparks age group – Kindergarten through 2nd grade. One semester, the topic for the kids teaching was the Fruit of the Spirit. And to help them learn it, the Sparks director – Mrs. Pat – found a fun skit to help the kids learn and remember. And she asked me to play as the titular character, a French Chef named Chef Tellzeetruth (gotta love these children’s skits, lol). As this chef, each week I would come in and talk with Mrs. Pat about a different aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit and would use a different real life fruit to symbolize the Spiritual side.

    Now, I do not remember any of the fruits used or anything I talked about specifically, but I do remember that during this time I personally grew in the very characteristics I talked about during those Wednesday evenings. Amazing how that works. Sometimes to see the growth that you desire, you must step out and teach another. I mentioned in my introductory post that I was known for my Biblical knowledge and would get asked questions periodically. And if I didn’t have the answers, I would find them. That research and searching helped me learn as well. And that’s what I’ve found with my blogs also. So, a little encouragement here is to step out and help others learn. Share your knowledge and search for ways to learn more. Volunteer like I did. Teaching kids is a great way to learn more yourself! The questions they ask, lol.

    Now that I’ve said all that, let’s dive into today’s topic. I first want to cover the context in which Paul wrote this passage before going into the individual fruits.

    The Context

    Here’s the passage from Galatians as we know it and tend to teach it.

    But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)

    The immediate context of this verse is Paul contrasting a life lived by the Spirit vs one lived by the flesh. The preceding verses have this to say.

    The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5:19-21(NIV)

    Having these two different lists to contrast is important. After all, many of the godly characteristics listed here could technically be seen in some form in non-believers. However, it’s probably not a lifestyle – and it certainly has no eternal value. So sometimes you need to look for additional fruits (good or bad) to discern if someone is living by the Spirit or gratifying the desires of the flesh.

    Paul’s whole deal here is arguing against the need for circumcision and obeying the law in order to follow Jesus and be saved. And he warns that anyone who practices any of these sinful lifestyles should not be fooled into thinking they are in Christ simply because of circumcision. And it’s only through the power of Holy Spirit that anyone can overcome these lifestyles and life the Christian lifestyle – as characterized by the Fruit of the Spirit.

    One thing I wish to mention as an aside. If you are a Christian who struggles with a sin and are actively fighting it and trusting in God to help you overcome, you do not fall into Paul’s warning. Paul’s warning only applies to those who are not even trying and feel no reason to stop. These people are most likely not even saved – no matter what prayer they may have prayed or the fact that they were baptized at some point in their life.

    The Fruit

    Moving on to break down each characteristic of the Fruit of the Spirit. Notice I said “characteristic”. Also notice that the Bible uses “fruit” singular. It’s actually one giant fruit that manifests itself in 9 distinct ways. Cool right? And to keep it in front of us, here’s the passage again.

    But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)

    You’ll notice that rather than “patience” the NIV uses the word “forbearance”. I will be discussing that in the section on patience. Now let’s go through each one to see what Paul meant and the expectations for us.

    Love

    We all probably think we know what love is. But did you know that the Greek had at least 8 different words for love? It’s true. And only a few show up in the New Testament. The two that most Christians are familiar with are philia – love between friends – and agape – unconditional love. Guess which one appears here in Galatians? If you guessed agape, congrats! (If you guessed eros…you might need to do some more study.) Evidence of Holy Spirit working in the lives of a Christian is that Christian having a godly, unconditional love towards people. No strings attached. We love others because God loves them.

    Joy

    When the New Testament talks about joy, it isn’t talking about a happiness dependent on our circumstances. Here in Galatians the word is chara. This word translates as joy or delight and is often accompanied with gladness. Regardless of circumstances. After all, God redeemed us and gives us grace, mercy, and His overwhelming love. Who cares what the world and the devil throw at us? We have the King of kings as our Father! “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” Philippians 4:4 (NIV).

    Peace

    Biblical peace (eirene in the Greek) includes wholeness and harmony with God and other people. It includes a life free of conflict. Now that doesn’t mean that everything will be perfect and tranquil. But if you have true Biblical peace, then regardless of the circumstances, you will choose to not be at conflict. Someone might be angry with you and not want anything to do with you. But you choose to forgive and let it go and not stew about it. You are not in conflict with that person. As far as you are concerned, you are at peace with them. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (NIV).

    Patience

    The NIV translates the Greek word here (makrothumia) as forbearance. Because of the lack of familiarity, other translations will use patience or long-suffering – which is a bit easier to understand. Other words that fit here to help us understand the meaning would be endurance, steadfastness, and perseverance. The root of the Greek word relates to two other words meaning “long” and “passion”. The picture we get with this word is to become “long-tempered” through the circumstances and temptations we go through (as opposed to short-tempered). Holy Spirit empowers us to “forbear” through all circumstances and not give in to temptation to sin or to lie down and give up when the going gets tough.

    Kindness

    I think most us has a pretty good idea what it means to show kindness. Some words that go along with being kind are friendly, generous, and considerate towards others. Putting their needs before your own. The Greek word here – chrestotes – conveys moral goodness, integrity, usefulness, and benignity (not harmful, gentle). The Bible says that it’s God’s kindness that leads to repentance. Not yelling at people that they’re going to Hell because of X, Y, and Z. Let’s save judgment for God and just show people kindness and respect. Okay?

    Goodness

    Goodness (agathosune) means uprightness of heart and life, goodness, and kindness. And when I say goodness there, I mean in action. It’s more than just saying good things, it’s living it out in our personal lives and our public ones.

    Gentleness

    I think this is another one we know pretty well. It conveys humility and compassion towards others. The Greek word, prautes, was translated in the KJV as “meekness” (interestingly, the KJV then had “kindness” as “gentleness”). However, “meekness” became associated with “weakness” and later translators opted for “gentleness” to convey the same thing. But meekness is not weak. When applied to wild animals, the Greek word actually means “tame”. In other words, the wild animal has not lost any strength. But it knows how to control it and when to use that strength. Jesus is the perfect example of meekness. The God who created the universe became a man. With a word He could have destroyed everything, but He didn’t. That’s meekness. That’s gentleness. And we must be like that. Humble, knowing our strength, but not lording it over people.

    Faithfulness

    We all know someone who is faithful. They show up week after week to serve or to help out. Anytime you call them for anything, they answer and they will help you to the best of their abilities. Biblical faithfulness is loyalty, reliability, trustworthy, etc. The Greek word pistis encompasses all these with a dependability on God. Because without Him, we can’t do anything.

    Self-Control

    The last characteristic of the Fruit of the Spirit listed by Paul is Self-Control. The Greek word here is egkrateia. It means the ability to control one’s own body, its appetites and desires – physically and mentally. In the context of the early church in Galatia, it would have been related especially to sobriety and chastity. Today it would relate to these and so much more. I mean, do we really need to be picking up our phone every time there’s a lull in a conversation?

    If you feel overwhelmed by any one of these, just remember that this is only possible with God’s help. Apart from Him, we can’t do anything (see John 15:5). Frankly I’m glad I have Holy Spirit helping me. Because I’d fail at so many of these on my own. Praise the Lord for what He has done in my life!

    Wrapping Up

    I hope from this brief study of the Fruit of the Spirit, you feel that you have a greater understanding of what God desires for your life as well as an encouragement that you aren’t expected to accomplish this alone. Only with Holy Spirit’s help can you live this life. That’s why Paul calls it the “Fruit of the Spirit” and not “Fruit of the Christian”. God bless you all!

    Outro

    If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

    Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

    Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!