The Fruit of the
Spirit: Reaping the Harvest
We began this exploration of the
Fruit of the Spirit with the mention of the Parable of the Sower and the Seed.
In Matthew 13, Jesus told this parable:
Matthew 13: 3-8 “Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some
seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on
stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang
up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were
scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among
thorns, and thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground
and yielded a crop; some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Later, when Jesus was alone with
His disciples, He explained to them what the parable meant.
Matthew 13: 19-23 “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does
not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in
his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the
seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it
with joy: yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when
tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.
Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the
cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he
becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears
the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces some a
hundredfold, some sixty some thirty.
The sower (planter) is someone who
shares God’s word. The types of ground represent our hearts. So some of us have
the kind of hearts that the word simply
“falls by the wayside.” Some of us have the kind of hearts that even though
we’ve accepted God’s word, any hint of ridicule for being a believer will cause
us to stumble. The next kind of heart is the kind that let the cares of this
world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and becomes unfruitful.
Notice that it’s not riches that are bad, it’s putting concern about our money
problems and how to solve them ahead of God’s word. The last type of ground is
the heart that hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and
produces! This fruit is the Fruit of the
Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Notice that some produce a
hundredfold crop, some sixty, some thirty. Could this mean that different
people, even though all believers, receive and demonstrate the fruit in various
degrees? The good news is that we all produce a crop, and we produce
exponentially!
Jesus taught about fruit
extensively in John 15, referring to Himself as the “true vine” and referring
to us as “the branches.” He refers to God the Father as the “vinedresser,” the
one who takes care of the whole thing.
Notice that all the talk of vines and branches and fruit all lead to His
commandment that we love one another. Also note that twice in this short
passage, Jesus connects this idea of branches and fruit to asking and receiving.
John 15:1-17 “I am the true vine, and My father is the vinedresser.
Every branch in Me that does not
bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it
may bear more fruit.
You are already clean because of
the word which I have spoken to you.
Abide in Me, and I in you. As
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither
can you, unless you abide in Me.
I am the vine, you are the
branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me
you can do nothing.
If you abide in Me and My words
abide in you, you will ask what you desire and it shall be done for you.
By this my father is glorified,
that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples…
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
Greater love has no one than
this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends…
You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you
should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, and whatever you
ask the Father in My name He may give you.
These things I command you, that
you love one another.
The fruit of the Spirit is given to
us by the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, the Presence of God in
our lives. Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit in John 14:16-17 and John 15:26
as the Helper, The Comforter, and the Spirit of truth. In John 16:13, Jesus said the Holy Spirit will guide us into all
truth. Chapters 15, 16, and 17 are all Jesus’ words right before entering the Garden of Gethsemane
1 Corinthians 10:5 “But with most of them God was not well pleased, for
their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.”
Hebrews 3:17 “Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not
with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness?
They had a visible representation
of God with them day and night. We, on the other hand, walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). The Holy Spirit
is with us and in us, guiding us into all truth, teaching us all things,
helping us to remember all Jesus’ words and giving us His fruit: love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and
self-control. These are the evidences by which outsiders see that we indeed
have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ and have received the presence of the Holy
Spirit. Matthew 7:20 says “Therefore by
their fruits you will know them.”
