Good Fruit

 

Growing up, academics were very important to me. I worked hard to maintain my grades, but I was not interested in anything extracurricular.  I was minimally involved in anything outside the academic requirements.  My social life with friends outside school was far more important to me at the time.  But I often admire my classmates who engage in those activities. I wondered how they managed to excel, holding high positions in school, and I envied the recognition they received for their involvement. 

Now I see the difference in our daughter.  She puts a lot of effort into her extracurricular activities.  She is always volunteering and signs up for every club.  Her involvement and hard work have paid off; she went from class treasurer to class president.  I see the effort she puts in behind the scenes to reach this point, something I never cared to do. 

I wanted to be recognized, but I did absolutely nothing to get there.  

I learned the same to be true in our spiritual life.  

We desire the blessings and fruits that Christ has to offer, but we cannot expect to cultivate them with wishful thinking or merely doing the bare minimum. Just as growing good fruit requires constant nurturing, our spiritual growth demands continuous active engagement.

Jesus tried to explain this concept to His followers. He explained that you will not find figs and grapes growing on thorn bushes and thistles (weeds). Weeds grow without care; you do nothing. Though they may sprout, they cannot yield good fruit. But good fruit-bearing plants require nurturing and attention. It demands our time and effort to be planted, watered, and cared for. You don't have to be a bad person to produce bad fruit; simply doing nothing will do.

Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?  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. (Matt. 7:16-18)