How Are We To Feel Spiritually About Eating The Fruit Of Another’s Labors?

 Good Morning Friends,

In Greek mythology the pomegranate symbolizes death and the underworld, but in Scripture it is a sign of God’s abundance—one of the seven fruits of the Promised Land. Its hundreds of seeds make it a natural symbol of fruitfulness, blessing, and the visible life of God’s people. Botticelli’s Madonna of the Pomegranate shows Christ holding the opened fruit, a reminder that the life He gives is meant to be shared, not hidden. As we contemplate this image, we may be wondering what it means spiritually to eat the fruit of another’s labor and so we ask: How Are We To Feel Spiritually About Eating The Fruit of Another’s Labors? 

Scripture (Summarized)

Acts 9:1–20 Saul, violently persecuting Christians, is stopped by a blinding encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. God sends Ananias—fearful but obedient—to lay hands on Saul. Saul’s sight is restored, he is filled with the Spirit, baptized, and immediately begins proclaiming Jesus.

Exodus 16:11–14 In the wilderness, God hears Israel’s complaints and provides quail at night and manna in the morning—daily bread revealing His faithful provision.

John 6:52–59 Jesus teaches that true life comes only by “eating His flesh and drinking His blood”—a metaphor for deep, personal belief and participation in His saving work.

Psalm 117:1–2 A call for all nations to praise the Lord for His steadfast love and enduring faithfulness.

Deuteronomy 8:8 The Promised Land is described as rich with wheat, barley, figs, olives, honey—and pomegranates.

Message: Ananias in Acts 9 is not the same man who deceived God in Acts 5, yet both stories raise the same question: What do we take, and what do we give? Scripture pushes us to examine the fruit of our labor—what we cling to, and what we release.

Labor is often hard, and we naturally want to enjoy its results. But spiritually, labor means something deeper: what our lives produce before God. The manna in Exodus and Jesus’ teaching in John show us that the real “fruit” we need is not our own achievement but Christ Himself. Paul’s conversion illustrates this—he stops eating for three days, then receives sight, baptism, and spiritual strength from God, not from his own work.

Just as we don’t literally eat money or diplomas, the “fruit” of our labor is meant to be used, shared, and given away. But the fruit of Christ—His body and blood—is meant to be consumed, believed, and trusted. Eating is believing. Drinking is believing. The Eucharist is the reminder that our salvation rests not on the work of our hands but on the work of His.

The pomegranate—with its many seeds—becomes a symbol of the church: a people whose stories, like Paul’s, are transformed by grace and multiplied by the Spirit. Our lives are meant to bear fruit that reflects Christ, not ourselves.

 And So, in the end, we all become stories. May ours be stories shaped by the fruit of Christ’s labor, not merely our own.

Pray we delight more in Christ’s fruit than in the fruit of our own works. Pray we labor with God in ways that glorify Him and bless others. Pray we recognize true food and true drink in Jesus. Pray our words become seeds of hope that God brings to fruit. Pray we become agents of grace—receiving and offering it freely. Pray we marvel at Christ’s mystery and remember Him in all our labors of love. Pray our stories reflect the Eucharist, the Spirit’s work, and the fruit of faith.

Blessings, 

John Lawson