22 June 2016 - not unbearable

[ Today's Readings ]

By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.

In the first place this means that we ourselves ought to bear good fruit. Only then will people be able to see our master in us.

By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (see John 13:55).

Apart from Jesus we can do nothing, but in him, in the power of his Spirit we do bear much fruit (see John 15:5). What is the fruit we bear if not the fruit of the Holy Spirit?

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law (see Galatians 5:22-23).

These fruits help us to discern where God is at work. They help us to discern this in ourselves as we invest time and effort in spiritual growth. Are we becoming more loving, joyful, peaceful, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled, or are we actually becoming more selfish, easily annoyed, and anxious? They help us to discern the same thing in others. The threat of teachers who are wolves in sheep's clothing is real. Even if the message seems to line up with what we know we may have a sense that something is off. At such times we do well to ask about the fruit.

And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light (see Second Corinthians 11:14).

But Satan cannot bear good fruit because he can't bear them. He can't produce them because he can't stand them. So if we find good fruit somewhere we know that God is working in some way, even if it is mysterious and subtle. Even if all involved aren't given over completely to him the fruit evidences a trend in the right direction.

When we discover the amazing goodness and variety of fruit which the LORD wants to give us we may regret that we have not been as open to it as we should have been.

When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,
he tore his garments 

This must of necessity be the case. For we do not love as we ought. We are not the witnesses to the love of God that we ought to be. We are not so united with one another that people know that Jesus was sent by the Father. We don't love well enough to be recognized as his disciples. Let's make a little covenant today to do better. Let's remain united to Jesus and open to the fruit he wants to bear in us.

Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the LORD
that they would follow him
and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees
with their whole hearts and souls,
thus reviving the terms of the covenant
which were written in this book.

We do this not out of obligation but because his ordinances, statutes and decrees simply describe the growing conditions for the fruit we wish to bear. We do this because they are good. They give life.

Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.