What Kind of Fruits Are You Producing in Your Life?

There are many false converts out there today (Matt 7:21-23), but believers will be known by their fruits just as unbelievers will be.

I Never Knew You

There are many false converts out there today (Matt 7:21-23), but believers will be known by their fruits just as unbelievers will be. Jesus warned that “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matt 7:21). If we say we believe, we will live what we believe, and that is in obedience to Christ, and the command to love one another like Jesus Christ sacrificially loved us (John 13:34-35). Loving our enemies is evidence of Christ in us for He died for the ungodly, wicked enemies of God (us, i.e. Rom 5:6-10). He loved us first (1 John 4:19), but we must recognize the false from the true converts in order to warn them that they might not be saved, for someday, when it will be too late, Jesus “will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matt 7:23).

Known by Their (& Our) Fruits

Earlier in Matthew chapter 7, Jesus spoke about the fruits and the fruits reveal the roots. Our Lord said that there will be “false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matt 7:15), so how can we spot a wolf hiding out in sheep’s clothing? Jesus said “You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matt 7:16a). You wouldn’t try to pick tomatoes from a thorn bush, would you? You would look for the fruit and not the thorn. Jesus says “A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit” (Matt 7:18), so all the fruit you see tells you about the root, you see.

Fruit Inspection – Galatians 5

A self-examination to see if we’re rock-solid in the faith is never a waste of time. In fact, we’re commanded to do that in Scripture. The Apostle Paul said, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test” (2 Cor 13:5)! That’s an imperative command in the Greek, so where do you go to in the Bible to examine ourselves? I like the book of 1 John, but in Galatians, we’re taken through a fruit inspection and sometimes, I fail the test, but the question is, which fruits am I producing the most of? Are they godly or of the flesh?

Fruits of Unbelievers

Remember that we once were like the lost are now. We are not better than others…we are just better off than others, so by God’s grace, there we could still be…trapped in and enslaved by sin. It was only by God’s good grace that He saved us from that former life and not by our own effort or works (Eph 2:8-9). If you look closely at some who profess belief in Christ, which fruits do they produce the most of? The Bible says “the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal 5:19-21). Do you see more of these kinds of fruits in people who profess to believe or the more godly fruits, produced by the Holy Spirit (Gal 6:22-23), because “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal 5:24).

Fruits of the Saints

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Now contrast that with the people who you seem to think are the most godly and you know are true believers and then those who profess to believe. The obvious fruits or evidence of a person’s faith comes from the Holy Spirit, so “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Gal 5:21-22). Now only Jesus lived out all of these fruits, and I don’t know anyone who has all of these godly fruits, but I do know I lack some of them at times. My question to self is, “What takes up the most space in my fruit basket?” Is it “anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy” or is it “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness [and] goodness.” Ask yourself as I have asked myself, which fruits do I show hanging from the branches of my life? What fruits do others see the most of in us? What do I see the most of?

The Fruit Producer

Let’s be clear. Any fruit we produce is not from our own effort. It is from Jesus Who is the vine, and the branch cannot produce fruit without the vine. Without being attached to the vine, the branch would wither and die. So would we if we do not abide in Christ. Whatever is not growing in nature is dying. Jesus says, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). I just checked and “nothing” is not a little “something.” It is nothing! Now if we abide in Him, then we can bear “much fruit,” but again, this fruit gives glory to God for this is what God does through us. We don’t ask the Lord, “Jesus, what can I do for you,” but rather He says to us, “What can I do through you.” Even if we bear godly fruits, it is “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8). He gets the glory; we tell His story.

Conclusion

If you know of someone who says they believe but does not show fruits of the Spirit, warn them that those who practice such things will not inherit the Kingdom (1 Cor 6:9-10; Gal 5:21) and they will be shut out of heaven and the presence of God (Rev 21:8). Warn them in love, before it’s too late (Heb 9:27). As for you, I pray you have put your trust in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. If that has not happened yet, my friend, you are in real danger of hell fire. And I mean, in immediate danger. You’re one breath, one heartbeat…one accident away from eternity when it will be too late to repent. Today is the best day to believe (2 Cor 6:2) since tomorrow is no guarantee. If Jesus Christ came today, here is your fate (Matt 7:21-23). This is why I plead with you as you read this, repent today…and I mean right now. Put your trust in Jesus Christ. If you do not, you will face God’s judgment after death guaranteed or at Jesus Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), which could happen at any moment.