It used to be a big thing in high schools to pick labels for people that represented who they were or who they might become; Likely to be famous, most likely to invent something, most likely to be president of the United States. These labels were given because of who they were and what their personality reflected. It was characteristics that made the personality who they were.
Characteristics could also be described as fruit. Like a tree that produces apples, we label it as an apple tree. What is produced on the outside has come from the inside and is what labels us.
If a tree does not produce apples would you call it an apple tree?
This thought is the same in our lives, if we want to be labeled a follower of Jesus, we better have some recognizable fruit that reflects that.
Fruit of the Spirit
Galatians 5:22-23
“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
These are the fruits that are produced when you live with Jesus in your life.
I always like to think about fruit like this; what good is it that a tree grows fruit and it just falls to the ground and shrivels up and decays? Fruit was meant to be picked and given out, to provide life to those who need it. Fruit can take someone from sick to healthy, from hungry to satisfied, from weak to strong.
Take Action
Look for these fruits in your life? If you feel like you are a tree with little fruit on it, barely recognizable, work on developing these fruits. The world is hungry and we have what they need, and after experiencing our fruit they will want what we have.
