Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
Many years ago, Andrew and my family wanted me to spend some money on some fruit trees. I thought it would be nice to have because all you have to do is pick them when they are ripe. We saved up for a month or two, and then I finally ordered them. One day they finally arrived on a truck and Andrew planted them diligently behind our garden. Each year when we checked on their progress, nothing seemed to be happening. I kept asking Andrew how long it was going to take until the trees produced something that we could eat. He just simply looked at me and shrugged his shoulders. The years continued to pass by with nothing on the branches, and I finally told Andrew that you might as well cut them down and plant something else there.
This reminds me of the Christian life.
What do you do with trees that don’t not produce fruit? They’re really just a waste of space. Might as well use them for firewood, and cut them down.
Luke 13:1-9 There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
Repentance is required in order to inherit eternal life. As we spoke about recently it begins with confession. To get to the point of admitting faults, we must possess contrition. Genuine repentance is defined in the dictionary as having sincere regret and remorse for something wrong that you have done. Some people demand change before forgiveness will be granted by them, but that’s because they are not of God. That would be attempting to earn the gift of God’s mercy by your own works, rather than through the goodness of God’s grace. We learn this by studying Matthew 18, when a servant was forgiven of a massive debt upon his confession. We learn the exact same thing in the parable of the prodigal son when his father didn’t demand that he make reparations for what he had done, but completely forgave him upon his confession.
Forgiveness is something that you cannot earn from someone. Forgiveness is something that is freely given to you by someone. Do they deserve it? Of course not, but neither do you! Those who are bitter enough to reject forgiving others will not be forgiven by God. As I’ve said many times, that would be a territory that I wouldn’t never want to venture into with God. Scripture clearly teaches us that when we get forgiven for our sins, we are not supposed to receive God’s grace in vain. He completely and freely pardons us from all of our past misdeeds, but one must remember to never receive the grace of God in vain. When you get forgiven God, He wants to see a change eventually happen in our lives. He’s waiting to see results and the fruits of repentance.
Once the free gift of God’s grace is granted to us, we need to begin the process of change. We need to convert to His will rather than our own. We don’t want to continue repenting from dead works over and over again. We don’t want to have to keep apologizing for things that we haven’t mastered yet, but eventually attain the level of perfection that God wants to see in our lives. God grants us grace when we need it, but it’s given so that we can become an overcomer. It is granted so that we can go and sin no more. This is the high calling of God, the plateau that we much finally reach if Eternal life is our goal. God is very merciful, long suffering, patiently waiting for the new creature to appear.
Repentance is about bringing forth good fruits, the fruits of goodness, righteousness and Truth, rather than the works of sin, darkness, and evil. Grace must never be received in vain, but used to produced fruits that are worthy of repentance.
Matthew 3:7-10 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
If the precious grace of Christ, doesn’t result in eventual freedom from sinful living, then like a fruitless tree, they will be cut down themselves. The Apostle Paul received God’s grace, and look at the major changes that happened in his life. A man who was trying to stop the things of Christ, began to preach the things of Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:9-10 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
Pauls life is an example of genuine repentance towards God. He quickly recognized when people within the church we’re not repenting, because his own life had undergone that process. He understood what Godly sorrow was, and the results that it produced, because he possessed it. There was no fooling Paul, because he had been there.
2 Corinthians 7:8-10 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season. Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
True repentance will generate the fruit of righteousness.
Romans 6:19-22 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.
For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
Ephesians 5:9 For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth.
Some people in the church won’t repent. They will refuse to convert and bring forth the fruits of obedience towards Christ, which is the reason why He shed His blood for us on the cross. Through their disobedience, they only prove that they are unworthy of eternal life, and were created to be taken and destroyed
2 Peter 2:12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;
Jude 1:12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;
As the Lord Jesus taught, repent or perish. The axe is sitting by the root of the trees, and if fruits of repentance don’t appear in people’s lives,… God is going to pick it up, and…….
……Cut them Down
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
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