A World without Fruit
Can you imagine a world without fruit?
My wife and I have 3 kids. They are all unique in their own ways and one of the things that we’ve noticed about them is that there are different foods that they crave.
My son loves vegetables. I know, that may sound crazy, that a teenage boy would love veggies… but he does.
My youngest daughter loves chocolate. Some of you can identify with her!
Our middle daughter loves fruit. I think strawberries are her favorite. She eats them almost every day. She loves strawberries, blueberries. watermelon, grapes, you name it! She loves fruit!
I asked her that question the other day… Can you imagine a world without fruit?
Her response? “I would die!”
And I think I would too! Can you imagine a world without watermelon? No bananas!? No strawberries, grapes, or tomatoes? Are tomatoes a fruit or a vegetable? I never can remember!
What’s worse? Can you imagine a world without banana pudding? A world without Apple Pie!? A world without a Cherry Limeade drink from Sonic!
It’s hard to imagine a world without fruit!
A World without Spiritual Fruit
What happens when we think about that question in spiritual terms? What if we lived in a world absent of the fruit of the Spirit?
A world without love.
A world that doesn’t know joy.
A world devoid of peace.
A world that lacks patience.
A world where kindness is a foreign language.
Where goodness doesn’t exist.
Where people aren’t faithful to each other.
Where those who are gentle get run over.
Where no one has self control.
In many ways, that seems to describe the world we’re living in right now.
We can say the world is a dark place. We can talk about everything that’s gone wrong and how things aren’t the way they’re supposed to be. But the reality is, in so many ways this is what the world looks like without fruit. Without the fruit of the Spirit.
A Church without Fruit
But let’s not stop there. We can be critical of the world around us and, let’s be honest, that’s not hard to do. I think we also have to have the courage to ask the question…
What if we were a part of a church that was absent of the fruit of the Spirit?
What happens in a church devoid of the Holy Spirit? What if we were a part of a CHURCH that was absent of the fruit of the Spirit?
What happens in a church where there is no love, no joy, no peace, no patience, no forgiveness… what happens in a church that lacks the fruit that is produced by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?
That’s precisely the problem the churches in the province of Galatia were facing some 2000 years ago. This is why the Apostle Paul wrote to them. They had experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit when they first decided to follow Jesus. They had seen miracles done in their presence by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Gal 3.3-5).
So now… after having seen and experienced the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives, they’ve turned away from God, from His Spirit, they’ve stopped allowing the Holy Spirit to produce the fruit of the Spirit in their lives.
Do you know what happens in a church when you turn away from the presence and power of the Holy Spirit? Do you know what happens to a church that isn’t seeing the fruit of the Spirit produced in the lives of its members?
When you read this letter Paul wrote to these churches, not only is the answer to that question painfully clear, it’s also painfully familiar.
How do you receive the Spirit?
Here’s what Paul writes to these people who belonged to the church in Galatia…
Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! – Galatians 3.1-2
Remember, the primary problem in these churches was that some people found their primary identity in who they were before Christ. Not only that, but they thought everyone else had to become like them before they became like Christ.
These Jews who had become Christians, followers of Christ, believed that those who were Gentiles, non Jews, had to become Jews before they could become Christian. They had to keep the law of Moses before they could come to Christ.
So Paul says… Is that how it works? Is that how it happened for you? Did you have to obey the law of Moses before you received the gift of the Holy Spirit? No! Of course NOT!
Then Paul says this… and you need to underline, circle, highlight… don’t miss this!!!
You Received because you Believed
You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. – Galatians 3.2
You received because you believed. This is true for everyone. Whether you are male or female, Jew or Gentile, slave or free. When you believe, you receive the promised Holy Spirit of God. (Galatians 3.28).
You received the Spirit of Jesus because you believed in Jesus. That’s how it happened. That’s how it always happens. There’s no other way it can happen. This is the only way it happens. When you believe in Jesus you receive the Spirit of Jesus!
Receiving the Spirit but Relying on Human Effort
How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? – Galatians 3.3-4
So what happens in a church where the fruit of the Spirit is absent? The answer to that question is painfully CLEAR and painfully FAMILIAR.
We turn away from the Holy Spirit and we turn towards RULE KEEPING, HUMAN TRADITION, and HUMAN EFFORT.
And the same things that happened in these churches in Galatia happen to us. We’re left FRUSTRATED, DIVIDED, UPSET, and STUCK.
And what’s worse? Because we’re fixated on rule keeping, human tradition, and human effort NOT ONLY are we UNABLE to EXPERIENCE the power and presence of the Holy Spirit in our own lives, but we’re KEEPING OTHER PEOPLE from believing in Jesus and receiving his Spirit, too.
We’re left with human effort that fails us, rules that limit us, traditions that bind us, and it keeps people from being able to come to God, from coming to church!
Your Life without Fruit
Is your life absent of the fruit of the Spirit?
A few months ago one of our neighbors gave us three tomato plants. By the way, a tomato is, in fact, a fruit.
So my neighbor had asked us to come over and plant some vegetables in his vegetable garden which we were happy to do and he had a few tomato plants left over. I wasn’t sure what to do with them.
I’ve never planted tomatoes or had a fruit and vegetable garden, but I love tomatoes. So I found a spot on the side of our house where I thought my wife wouldn’t mind if I planted them.
I dug a hole, put a little of that good dirt that my wife had in the garage for when she plants flowers in it, then I put the tomato plants in the holes.
Then, to be honest, I’ve largely ignored them. They’re on the side of the house so I don’t often see them. Occasionally I’ll water them if I’m outside. And to be completely honest, they’ve produced almost no fruit. Only one of the plants has given us any tomatoes. Those small miniature tomatoes. But we’ve only gotten maybe a handful.
Why? I’m not a gardener but I’m pretty sure I know why.
The ground where they are planted is not very good soil. They rarely get watered, never get pruned, and there are weeds that are growing up around them that go unchecked.
Mostly, I’m disappointed that I’m not getting more fruit, but I haven’t cared enough to do anything so that those plants might bear more fruit.
I could be talking about my tomato plants… but I could also be talking about your life.
What does a plant look like that doesn’t bear much fruit? Come to my backyard and I’ll show you. It’s not planted in good soil, it’s rarely watered, rarely pruned, and weeds go unchecked.
What does a life look like that doesn’t bear much fruit? It’s planted in infertile ground, it’s rarely watered, rarely pruned, and weeds go unchecked.
Without Fruit, there is no…
We said this last week… Without wind, there is no fruit.
And then we said this… Without fruit, there is no…
But we didn’t finish that sentence. I want you to think about how you would finish that sentence.
Because right now, we’re living in a world where there isn’t a lot of fruit.
And it may be that in your life, there isn’t a lot of fruit.
When I asked my daughter if she could imagine a world without fruit, she said she would die.
Right now, we’re living in a world that is dying because there is a lack of fruit.
Right now, you may be dying because there is a lack of fruit.
Fruit has a Purpose
You see, fruit has a purpose. As far as I know, it has one primary purpose. To be eaten. To be consumed. For the sake of enjoyment, refreshment, and nourishment.
And this is important because the work of the Spirit to produce fruit in your life isn’t just for your benefit. You will benefit from the work of the Spirit in your life. But it’s not just for your benefit. It’s for the benefit of others. For the enjoyment and refreshment and nourishment of others. The fruit of the Spirit in your life isn’t just for you, it’s for the sake of others. For the sake of the church and for the sake of the world!
You received the Holy Spirit so others can experience the fruit of the Spirit.
For others to experience the love of God. The peace of God. The joy of God. The patience of God. The goodness of God. The gentleness of God. And the list goes on and on and on and on…
The Fruit of the Spirit in You
What would a world look like without fruit?
I don’t know. But thanks be to God, we don’t have to worry about that. Because the Spirit of God is at work in the people of God to produce the fruit of the Spirit in us for the sake of the world.
And it’s my prayer that as God works to produce His fruit in our lives, others would taste and see that the Lord is good.
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