Title: That Tree, That Fruit
Contents
Bible Text: Matthew 7:15-20
the tree and the fruit
In any age, behind the truth, there is a lie. Every time new money comes out, counterfeit bills follow. Behind a real doctor is a quack. Under the name of a doctor, a false doctor takes care of it. The reason fake drugs are sold is because there are real ones.
The thorns bear fruit similar to grapes. Thistle produces flowers that resemble the flowers of the fig tree. But the essence of every plant is its fruit. After it bears fruit, you know what kind of tree it is. The fruit is a natural product. It cannot be decorated or deceived. The tree bears its fruit. The fruit is a symbol of abundance and life.
“You will know them by their fruits” (verse 16). “You will know them by their fruits” (verse 20).
The fruit of his lips
Those words come out of that person's lips, and those words come out of that person's lips. “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked contains poison. (Proverbs 10:11) A man speaks out what is in his heart. There is a person who is like a spring that supplies the water of life to the dry land.
“Get rid of crooked speech from your mouth, and keep crooked speech from your mouth, look straight into your eyes and look straight ahead with your eyelids” (Proverbs 4:24-25). The thorns and thistles are fruitless trees and represent the nature of the false prophet.
People notice what is important to them. A believer will see the church and the cross wherever he goes. When such words come out of a person's mouth, what is in their heart comes out of their mouth.
If you change your mind, you will change the world. Change your words and I will change. There is no greater mystery than positive thinking. If you think you can't do something before you do it, you're really failing. On the other hand, if you think you can do it and say you can do it, you will succeed, and even if you do not necessarily succeed, you will work hard.
“Thus says the LORD, who creates the fruit of the lips” (Isaiah 57:19)? It means that God makes it happen. There is freedom of speech and freedom of speech, but the outcome of what is said is the responsibility of the speaker. The responsibility of the horse soon determines his fate.
Among those who returned from spying out the land of Canaan, “The land we went through to spy out is a very beautiful land. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into it and give it to us” (Numbers 147-8). ) All those who said that went into the land of Canaan.
“We grumbled against Moses and Aaron and wished we had died in the land of Egypt or in this wilderness” (Numbers 14:2). Those who said so could not enter the land of Canaan and all died in the wilderness.
It is said that words become seeds. God promises to do what I hear.
“As you have heard in my ears, I will do to you, and your corpses shall fall in this wilderness” (Numbers 14:28-29).
As a Japanese proverb says, “A kind word warms the three months of winter. I say. Saying nice things isn't that hard. It is easier to say the word than not to say it and pass it by. If you can afford to send out a kind word, you will hear a good man. A healthy word of humor always helps. There are times in life when you are overwhelmed with anger and frustration. But once you get past it with a smile, you'll feel like you did a really good job.
The good tree Jesus spoke of is a good person. “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit” (verse 18). The tree bears its fruit. The fruit attests to the tree. Negative people can't say positive things. For he is not a vine or a fig tree, but a thorn and a thistle. Be a good tree and bear beautiful fruit.
The fruit of the righteous
“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but the wise find people. (Proverbs 11:30) Who is the righteous? “There is none righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10). David is said to have been conceived from his mother's womb to the left. The righteous person referred to here is not a person who is righteous through his own discipline or effort, but “the righteous.” The righteous are those who are in a right relationship with God. Those who have been forgiven of their sins through the blood of Jesus. It is the righteous person who experienced God's love and grace.
“The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel, from faith to faith, but the righteous one will live by faith” (Romans 1:17). The fruit of the righteous is man. The apostle Paul called himself a sinner. He was called the monster among sinners. Then he calls himself a righteous man. “Believing in God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3).
“Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great crowd was added to him. (Acts 11:24) This shows that Barnabas, a righteous man, is gaining people. The righteous person's concern is people.
The apostle Paul says that he became a slave in order to win people. The thing is that no matter what you do, you can only get people. “I was free to all, but I made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more” (1 Corinthians 9:19), giving up my right to become a slave.
Some call him Saul, some call him Paul. Saul is a Hebrew name and Paul is a Roman name. He became Saul to win the Hebrews, and Paul to win the Romans.
To a Jew like a Jew, to a Gentile like a Gentile. To make him and himself the same. It is like Jesus became a man. As for the weak to the weak, to many, the various appearances were made in order to win the few.
Knowledge and wisdom are different. Knowing a lot and being wise are two different things. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts and information, and wisdom is the combination of experience and insight. Knowledge comes from men, and wisdom comes from God.
“The wise will shine like the light of the firmament, and the one who turns many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever” (Daniel 12:3). Be the star of
The fruit of that hard work
“You will eat according to the toil of your hands, and you will be blessed and prosper. (Psalm 128:2) Those who do not like toil have nothing to eat. Those who delight in toil will reap the fruits of their labor. You will “prosper” even in the midst of all kinds of difficulties in the world.
“Toil” is the result of human punishment, and “toil” is the secret of human happiness. The punishment for plowing the ground and sweating was given to those who sinned. On the other hand, it is the grace of God that you reap what you sow and receive according to your toil.
Jacob had only one staff when he left the house, but when he returned home, he led a large flock of sheep and prayed like this.
“I am not worthy of all the grace and all the truth that you have shown your servant. I have crossed this Jordan with only my staff, and now I have made two flocks. (Genesis 32:10) It is because of his hard work in the first place. “In this way I have spent the heat of the day and the cold at night, without even having time to close my eyes. (Genesis 31:40)
Hard work is the toughest and most difficult work. Toil is the sweat that athletes shed while training. To work until exhausted.
The phrase “bread of toil” means that you have to work hard to get something to eat. You have to work hard to make a living. Working hard to make a living is the most basic thing.
It requires a labor of love. The Thessalonian church was known for its “labour of love.” It takes a labor of love to attain spiritual honor. It takes a lot of hard work to gain social honor. Glory always accompanies all hard work. Glory shines even higher when the results achieved through hard work, insults, and humiliation are contributed to society.
I saw agave blooming at Hallim Park in Jeju Island. The lifespan of agave is 60 years. It lived for 60 years until it bloomed. It blooms once, lasts for a month and then ends. They lived for 60 years to bloom for one month. So the flower is more precious.
It takes a lot of hard work and sweat to finish something. The fruit is the fruit of hard work and sweat. What we need to keep in mind is the process rather than the outcome. Effort is a process, not a result.
There is a mountain called “Annapurna” known to mountaineers. The world's first peak is Everst, and Annapurna is the eighth highest in the world, meaning "Goddess of Abundance" in Sanskrit. More than 3,500 climbers have been to Everest. However, few have conquered the summit of Annapurna Mountain. That's how dangerous it is. The land of abundance is always empty. A seat of glory awaits us. The hard work that goes up there leads to the glory of the conqueror.
Let's go every day to that high place! Hold my feet, my lord, that I may stand there!
Jesus said. “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (John 12:24)
There is no such thing as goofy. “It is true that he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. (2 Corinthians 9:6) As long as the earth exists, “sowing and harvesting” continues without ceasing.
Strive to be a good tree. The fruit is on the tree. The righteous prosper like a palm tree. The righteous are like the tree of life, and the wise win. Labor is not in vain. God was with Joseph. Joseph named the eldest son Manasseh, which means “I have made all my troubles and the affairs of my father’s house forgotten”, and the second son’s name is Ephraim, and “God has made me multiply in the land where I labored” (Genesis 42). :51-52) means. The tree is its fruit, the man is its fruit.