The Fig Tree With No Fruit

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Our Father, forgive me for my lack of fruit-bearing. Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me. Change what needs to be changed, prune what needs to be pruned. Bring forth fruit in my life, as only You can do. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#disciple #JesusChrist #Bible #vineyard #bearingfruit #fruitoftheSpirit #createinmeacleanheart

Christ and the U. S. Constitution

But if that slave says in his heart, 'My master will be a long time in coming,' and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers. And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few." Luke 12: 45-48 NASB

We began our study of this portion of Scripture with the unfaithful servant . Yesterday, we looked at being salt and light. If you missed one of them, I hope you'll follow the link (it opens in a new tab) and get caught up.

Today, I am, in a way, writing about the slave who knew his master's will but did not do it. That slave will be in big trouble and will regret his decision.

Most of my employees over the years have understood what I expected and have worked hard to do it. I've had very few who failed to do their work, but there have been one or two. I didn't beat them, but I did have a process to fire them if, after a conference, they didn't do their duty. 

As an employee, we know that our employer expects certain things of us. Those duties are usually described in our job description. Most of the time, we expect certain things of our employer (like being paid in a timely manner and in the amount agreed upon, health insurance, benefits). Those benefits are described in a contract. That contract is a legally binding agreement between employer and employee.

As a U.S. citizen, we have a similar document that describes what we can expect. It's called a constitution. The dictionary defines the constitution as "the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation, state, corporation, or the like is governed." In the United States, our constitution was drafted by the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and went into law on March 4, 1789. There's a plethora of laws to accompany it, but the constitution gives us certain rights that we can count on.

I've just read our Constitution again, and I recommend you do, too. Here's the link to a PDF of the Constitution. It's not my first time to read this document. As an elected official, I've read it many times. It's one of the documents under which I work. There's a few statements in there that always surprise me, though.

~"Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy;" (italics are mine)

~ The Oath of Office for President does not contain the term "so help me God". The oath reads: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

~ "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States." (This means our elected officials can follow any religious faith they desire, or none if they want. That right is  guaranteed them by the Constitution.)

The only mention of "God" in the Constitution and its amendments is used in the term "the year of our Lord". 

The first amendment guarantees us the freedom of religion, speech, and press. Here's what it says:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;"

This means that the exercise of the Christian faith cannot be prohibited, but neither can the exercise of Islam, Hindu, or any other religion. All faiths are equally protected. There is not a protection for one faith to kill people of a different faith (as in Isis beheadings) but neither is there a protection for people of one faith to persecute people of another faith. (bomb mosques, etc). All faiths are welcome to get along side by side. (I am not saying all religions are truth. That's an issue for a different document.)

I realize that's quite a bit of detail about a document that is more than 200 years old, but it is the document under which we, in this country, live and have our rights. It's important to know what our rights are, but it is equally important to know what our rights are not. 

It was in the Declaration of Independence that our forefathers mentioned their faith, but that is not law. It does give us a picture of their ideology, but again, it's not law.

As Christians, we, too, have fundamental principles that govern how we act. It is my opinion that Jesus summed those up in these words:

"'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." Matthew 22: 37-39 NASB

According to Jesus, all the laws of God depend on these words. 

The basis of our faith, then, is love. Love of God. Love of our fellow man.

Why does all this matter? Why have I written all this legalese today? 

As Americans, we are bound by the law of the land and it's important to know the laws under which we function. It's equally important to know what freedoms our Constitution guarantees and what it does not.

As disciples of Christ, we are also bound by the law of Christ, and that law begins and ends with love. 

Space does not permit a study of all the promises or rights of divine citizenry that God has given us. The Bible is filled with promises, but those are for another day.

This is a complex issue that cannot be completed addressed in a single blog post. I've addressed only a few key points. 

For today, let's evaluate our citizenship. As citizens of this country, we have rights and responsibilities. We have the right to insist that the law be followed and that our rights be protected. It's not just important that we know our rights so that we know what rights should be ensured, it's our responsibility.

The problem we sometimes have is that we get our rights as citizens of the US confused with our rights as citizens of the Kingdom of God. The two are not synonymous. 

As believers, we have a citizenship in the Kingdom of God. It conveys certain rights and responsibilities. Our job, or responsibility, in this Kingdom is love. When we love God and love our fellow man, we should act in ways that honor our Lord and King. 

Love does not preclude insisting that laws be followed. It does require that we do our insisting in ways that please God. May the fruit of the Spirit be evident, even when we encounter controversy and disagreement.

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

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Our Father, help us to know truth, know our rights and obligations as citizens, and act in ways that bring glory and honor to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

#unfaithfulservant #Christandtheconstitution #consitution #disciple #citizen #love 

Confessing Jesus Before Men: I AM The Vine

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"And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God; but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God. (Luke 12:8-9 NASB)

Confess before men" is a phrase that, in Greek, means to say the same the same things about Jesus that He says about Himself. In this series, we have reviewed the I AM's, including I AM the Bread of Life, I AM the Light of the World, I AM the Door, I AM the Good Shepherd (pasture), I AM the Good Shepherd, I AM the Resurrection and the Life,  I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life (the way), and I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life (truth and life).

It was the last night with His disciples. Jesus had washed their feet and they had celebrated the Passover. Judas had been revealed as a betrayer and had left the group. Only the eleven were left with him and Jesus was giving his final instructions. (Leanna Paraphrase) I'm going away, He told them, and I will prepare a place for you. You will join me eventually, but in the meantime, the Holy Spirit will come and help you. 

There were a few things they needed to remember, Jesus told them. Love one another. Serve others. Don't worry. Bear fruit. 

Bearing fruit was only possible if they remained connected to the vine.

Our "I AM" for today is "I AM the vine."

"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me, you can do nothing." John 15:5 NASB

A branch that is connected to the vine will bear fruit. It's the nature of vines and branches. The point of being a branch is to bear fruit. As believers, we are simply branches on the Vine of Jesus, and our purpose is to bear fruit. We are not called to simply attend services and memorize scripture. If we are to follow Christ, to abide in Him, we are to bear fruit for all the world to see. 

What kind of fruit should we bear? Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Ephesians 5:9 says the "fruit of the Light" is goodness, righteousness, and truth. 

If we are to bear fruit that pleases Christ, we will bear the fruit of the Spirit in such a way that the world can recognize those fruits in us.

We are not called to convict the world of sin. That's the Holy Spirit's job. We are not called to judge the world or to prune unfruitful branches. That's God's job. 

Our job is simply to be a good branch. As good branches, we are to bear fruit, to be so filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control that even the most hardened sinner will recognize something different in us. That is the power of the Spirit at work in us. 

The important part of this branch and vine business, however, is not the branch. It's the vine. No fruit can be produced if the branch is not connected to the vine, for it is the vine that supplies nutrients for life. The survival and health of the branch are completely and utterly dependent upon the vine.

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. (John 15:7-8 NASB)

Two wonderful outcomes result from productive, fruitful lives. First and most important, we glorify God with our lives and prove ourselves as disciples of Christ. The second outcome is answered prayer. "Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done." 

Jesus was not talking to hear himself speak. He spent His last few moments with his disciples communicating urgent information. Part of that urgent information is if we allow the Holy Spirit to produce His fruit in us, we will be rewarded with answered prayer.

In a desperate and degenerate world, there is nothing more needed than believers who are filled with the fruit of the Spirit and the promise of answered prayer. If we want our world, our nation, to change, there is something critical we must do. Abide in Christ and bear much fruit. Only then can we be assured that our prayers for revival will bear fruit.

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Our Father, forgive my poor efforts as a branch. Help me to stay so connected to you that the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in me. Remove everything in me that is displeasing to You. Produce in me the fruit You long to see. In Jesus name, Amen

Cataracts - physical and spiritual

"No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness. Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness. If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be wholly illumined, as when the lamp illumines you with its rays." (Luke 11:33-36 NASB)

We are currently taking a detour through a few eye diseases to help us understand the concept of "clear eye" and to make spiritual applications. We have previously considered Macular Degeneration, Glaucoma, and Detached Retina. You can click on the links to see those. Today, we are exploring Cataracts. 

A cataract is a clouding of the part of the eye known as the lens. Much like the lens in a camera, the lens of our eye focuses light on the retina. If the lens is clouded, the image we see is blurred. The lens is made of protein and water but, as we age, the protein can clump together. The "clump" is known as a cataract and can increase in size over time. Eventually, the "protein clump" (or cataract) can grow large enough that it blurs vision enough to impact our daily activities. When that happens, surgical removal is the only solution.

Risk factors for cataracts include diabetes, smoking, alcohol use, and excessive exposure to sunlight. We can help prevent cataracts with a few simple techniques. Stop drinking alcohol. Stop smoking. Keep blood sugars down. Eat green leafy vegetables. Wear sunglasses and a hat with a wide brim when outside.

How do you know you have a cataract? In addition to blurry vision, colors seem faded, night vision decreases, glare from lights seems too bright. They are diagnosed by an eye professional and treated with surgery when the cataract begins to impair lifestyle.

Cataracts in our eyes are very common as we age, but cataracts in our heart are just as common. We are both flesh and spirit, but when we allow our "flesh" to exert a greater influence on our lives and our choices than the Spirit of God, problems will result. Paul wrote about this in his letter to the Galatians.

For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:17, 19-21 NASB)

I wish I could say that I am perfect, but you know that I am not. Neither you nor I will be perfect until we reach heaven. Until then, we will encounter opportunities to sin every day of our lives. I wish it were not so, but it is. Every single day, we have a chance to choose or reject sin. Some days, I do pretty well. Other days, I choose sin before I realize I'm doing it. There are times, though, when I choose sin because I want to choose it. Perhaps you do that, too. It saddens me that I, who have known so much of God's grace and mercy, can fail Him so miserably. 

When I consider what Christ paid to free me from sin, I am appalled at my own choices, my own behavior. Like the apostle Paul, I want to choose righteousness, holiness every time. Like him, sin and flesh war within me, and, of course, within you. 

When we allow sin to remain in our lives, it acts a little like the protein clumps that form a cataract. It grows inside our hearts like an insidious cancer. Unrepentant anger becomes seething anger, then bitterness, then hatred. That's just one example, but you and I know how tenacious sin can be. It clings. It grows. It clouds our spiritual vision. 

The longer we leave sin unchecked, the worse our spiritual vision grows. Faster than we can believe, the deeds of the flesh begin to look normal to us. Sin becomes more comfortable than righteousness. 

There is only one solution. Surgery. We must allow Christ to remove our sin and cleanse our hearts. I learned this song as a little girl, but it is still true today.

What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

What can make me whole again?  Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

The first step in treatment is diagnosis, so let's allow the Holy Spirit to examine our hearts for hidden, unrepentant sin, then allow Him to cleanse us once again. When He creates in us a clean heart, He also renews a right spirit within us. (Psalm 51:10) If we want clear vision, those things that cloud our vision must go. In their place, however, the Spirit will leave a beautiful gift that makes the "surgery" all the more precious. When our eye is clear, our whole body is full of light, and what a wonderful light it is! 

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

Teach us to pray, part 31: The Kingdom of God in us

And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. 'Give us each day our daily bread. 'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'" (Luke 11:2-4 NASB)

We have been studying the model prayer of Jesus and are dissecting the phrase "Your kingdom come." Today, we begin to examine the Kingdom of God in us. (Jesus spoke so much about this that it may take a few days.)

John the Baptizer proclaimed, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." When Jesus arrived, He brought the Kingdom of God to earth. In Matthew 13, Jesus taught a series of parables to explain the Kingdom of heaven (or Kingdom of God) in us. In the parable of the sower, He described the way the Kingdom of God comes to us. The gospel of Jesus is the "word of the Kingdom". When the sower (those who share the good news of Christ) distributes the Word, it is much like a sower distributing seeds. Some of the seed falls beside the road and is eaten by birds, some falls on rocky soil or in the thorns. Some of the seed, however, falls on good soil and yields a great crop. The Word of the Kingdom comes to us in this same way. Not everyone receives the Word, but, for those who do, it yields an extravagant crop in our lives. 

Every time the seed falls on good soil, Jesus told the disciples, it yields a crop. In those instances in which the seed did not yield a crop, it was because the seed had fallen on inadequate soil. When the Word of the Kingdom enters my life, it will bear a crop. If I am sitting in a church pew every Sunday but am not being changed by the Word every day of the week, I am not bearing the crop for which Jesus was looking. If my life is not bearing "a crop", is not changed by the Word, I should be very concerned. 

If I am to be bearing a crop, I need to be able to recognize it. Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, described the fruit of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit. The deeds of the flesh, obviously, do not come from God and are not part of the crop resulting from the Word in our lives. These fleshly fruits include immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and similar behavior.(Gal. 5:19-21) If I have these things in my life, they are not pleasing to God, are not evidence of God's work in my life, and they need to go. It's as simple as that. 

When I allow the Word of God to take root in my life, it will begin to blossom into a crop of fruit that is recognizable to those around me. People who knew me before Christ will see a recognizable change in my behavior and in my demeanor. The fruit of the Spirit is the crop for which Christ longs, and includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. This is the fruit for which I should aim. 

My life will always demonstrate that which takes greatest precedence. Either the ways of the flesh will predominate, resulting in the fruit of the flesh, or the ways of God, resulting in fruit of the Spirit. Paul's words are so clear that they bear repeating. 

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh 

with its passions and its desires.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 

Galatians 5:24-25 NASB

If I belong to Christ, then I will crucify my flesh and its passions and desires. I will not snuggle up to the passion of this world. Instead, if I belong to Christ, I will embrace the ways of Christ. If I embrace the ways of Christ, I will live by the Spirit and walk by the Spirit. I will live my life His way. 

This is so simple that I sometimes wonder why I have so much trouble with it. I belong to Christ, so I do things His way, and not my own. (Or that's what I should do!) The Kingdom of God has come to earth (in Christ) and it now dwells in me (by His Spirit). It is my responsibility to demonstrate the Kingdom of God to the world by the life I live. 

What a difference I could make if I actually lived the way I say I believe! What a difference we all could make if we lived the way we say we believe! 

As we approach Holy Week, let us examine our hearts and lives for the fruit we bear. Let's make sure we are sharing the Kingdom of God with our words and our deeds. Let's be sure the world sees the fruit of the Spirit in us.

The God Soil: Part Six (Luke. 8:15)

But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. (Luke 8:15 KJV)

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

The Great Commision of Jesus was His last instruction to the followers before He returned to heaven. Go and make disciples. He expected His disciples to share the Good News throughout the world, teaching others His words, and helping them to become disciples of Jesus themselves. When we think of "bearing fruit", we often assume that refers to making disciples, and it does. 

"Making disciples" is not the only kind of fruit-bearing we need to do, however. Before we head out to make disciples, we need to first be disciples. To understand what the fruit of discipleship entails, we need look no further than Paul's letter to the Galatians. He listed the fruit of the Spirit so that there could be no doubt. 

 love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control

There is a tendency to think that these fruit are like spiritual gifts. We can have one or the other, but certainly not all of them at once. Not so, my friends. The expectation is that the work of the Spirit of God will produce all these characteristics in our lives. In fact, He will continue to work in us until they are present in our lives. 

When the fruit of the Spirit is present in our lives, the evidence of discipleship is there for all to see. How can this amazing  array of characteristics be present in our lives? When the seed of the Word of God is planted in a pure, honest, obedient heart and allowed to grow, it will produce the fruit of the Spirit. 

You may well ask, what if I need more patience? More faithfulness? More self-control? More love? If more fruit is needed, perhaps the starting point should be more seed, more of the Word of God in the form of Bible study. Don't forget, though, that the Seed needs fertile soil, free of impediments, to growth. 

What about our hearts? Are the fruit of the Spirit present in our lives and visible for all to see?  If not, why not?

Today pray that we and loved ones would be so filled with the fruit of the Spirit that all will recognize our Lord from whom they came. 

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Link to last night's post (praying for terrorists) is here: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/07/praying-for-terrorists-nasir-al-wuhayshi.html