Are We Connected To Christ In A Way To Produce Fruit?

Good Morning Friends,

Today’s devotional is about a theology of place and purpose. It is about having the right kind of seed, sowing the seed with love, and preparing the soil for planting and helping the seed to grow. But it is also about having a heart that grows in Kingdom soil. It is a message for church transplants and for gardeners in God’s community. It is a witness that in God’s creation, He has designed our efforts and His grace to team up so we might rejoice in a harvest ofproductive organic plants redeemed for a purpose. We are to be good stewards of the lives we have been given. So, Are We Connected To Christ In A Way To Produce Fruit?

Scripture: Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever!

2 Peter 3:18 (NIV)

And so, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready, for you are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations? For when one says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not merely human? What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labor of each. For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.

1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (NRSV)

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.

John 15:1-8 (NRSV)

Then certain individuals came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to discuss this question with the apostles and the elders. So they were sent on their way by the church, and as they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, they reported the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the believers. When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them. But some believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and said, “It is necessary for them to be circumcised and ordered to keep the law of Moses.” The apostles and the elders met together to consider this matter.

Acts 15:1-6 (NRSV)

Message: The covenant of the law was finished on the cross. All the regulations were set aside and replaced with a covenant of love that was even extended to the Gentiles. It was planned that way from the beginning. Yes, God has always loved the entire world… Still, we do like the idea of regulations and the false comfort is sometimes brings to believe we are better than someone else. Peter and the other apostles may not have been Pharisees, but they had a similar position regarding Gentiles. Just after Jesus’ resurrection, while Jesus is still meeting with them in his post-resurrection appearances, they think that he came only for the Jewish people. Even at Pentecost, Peter and the others preached to the “men of Israel.” It would take a vision and the experience of seeing Gentiles be baptized with the Holy Spirit before Peter and the early church leaders would awaken to the idea that “God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.” To leaders of the early church considering Gentiles to be included in the Messiah’s work, was unknown territory even though God is referenced as a God to the nations even in Deuteronomy. The only logical way for many of them to grasp such a premise is that Gentiles needed to come under the covenant that had been given to Israel. Then, in that context, they could be included in the Messiah’s redemption. That is what circumcision is about. It is the sign of inclusion in the covenant, which involves keeping the laws of that covenant. It is logical thinking. Why suppose Gentiles could slip into God’s kingdom by the back door? But God had a bigger plan. God realized we might be inclined to try and keep all kinds of rituals and laws that have nothing to do with what God wants from us. God realized it was unreasonable, for example, to require a 30-year-old male to be circumcised. Nevertheless, we are to be as vine and branches that is very Jewish. Gentiles did not replace the Jews. The Jews were separated for a time for a purpose. But eventually we all need to be connected for a full harvest to come in. The purpose behind it all is for us to experience the joy of being connected to Christ, the root of Jesse and yes to our Jewish theological roots so we might produce fruit of the Spirit.

And So, we are still in the Easter Season, but we are also in the planting of gardens season as well and in this tending, it is helpful for us to be reminded of our graft onto a Hebrew mindset. But let us be honest, most of us as Gentiles want the harvest now, without thinking about the full harvest. But we are required to wait. We have to wait for God to act.  We want credit for the harvest but face the reality that the credit belongs to God and to His glory.  We are to discover that by His grace we are tools for the Kingdom. We are to discover that we need to become useful members of God’s gardening team.  When a person hears and understands the Word, the seed is planted in the heart. What happens after that depends on the nature of the soil…. the nature of our hearts. We must make ourselves ready as part of a team demonstrating that our hearts are not hard, our hearts are not shallow, our hearts are not crowded with sin. Then God can use our spiritual gifts and our changed hearts on His team to multiply the efforts. As churches and church members we are to work the soil until the full harvest comes in…until Jesus returns. Friends, Jesus made a decisive intervention for the Father into Human history so we might overcome our fear and learn to love in a way that frees us from the bondage of sin and our lack of producing fruit for the Kingdom. If we truly want Jesus to return, we need to be reaching out to both Jews and Gentiles. Fruit bearing is a byproduct of abiding in Christ, the key to a harvest for both Jew and Gentile.

Pray that we are faithful in sharing the Word of God with others and nurturing and encouraging with others to help them grow in the faith. Pray that we realize that scripture was not given to us primarily for knowledge, but ultimately and foremost to change our lives. Pray that we demonstrate the Spirit of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance as fruits of this reality. Pray that we are patient during the long stretches of darkness and silence that separates planting and reaping. Pray that during the waiting we cultivate and weed and nurture and plant and transplant. Pray we are patient doing our part as we wait on God to bring the increase, to bring the transformation, to bring back the harmony even in the hope of His return. Pray we look beyond denominationalism. Pray we collaborate and network. Pray we plant more seeds. Pray we focus on kingdom ministries that contribute to a revival, that are relevant because they push past fear and in love share the good news. Pray we see the church beyond the role of a preaching pastor. Pray we be a cultural garden of productive plants. Pray our market and marketing be a ministry that honors God’s design. Pray we realize the idolatry of the wrong kind of gardens. Pray we realize that we cannot out give or out produce God. Pray we understand the purpose of God answering the prayers we pray. Pray we follow the example of Christ. Pray we abide in the Word. Pray we abide in love. Pray we abide in the abundant joy of Jesus. Pray we are connected to a productive purpose that honors God. Pray we honor God, by trusting the promise, by believing what Jesus says and receiving what Christ freely and mercifully offers. Pray we are connected to what really matters…love.

Blessings,

John Lawson