Real Fruit vs. Artificial Fruit

One of the hallmarks of the fruit of the Spirit is that it is hard to recognize. Not to outsiders, but to the one who is bearing it. It becomes such a natural outpouring of abiding in Christ that we do not know that we are even doing it. It is not a struggle and demands no recognition – in fact, true fruit is born without thought or care. It just grows. It’s organic. You want proof? How about this description of the final judgment from the Gospel of Matthew:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’” (Matthew 25:31-40 ESV)

Jesus explains that those who bear fruit in this life do not recognize it. This is not false humility among the sheep, but true wonder as to what their King is talking about. “Jesus, we don’t remember doing all of those things. Are you sure it was us?” These people have no awareness that they did anything extraordinary. They had no intention of gaining reward for their actions. They were not counting on their righteous conduct to make them righteous – they were living out the righteousness of Christ effortlessly. Kindness, compassion, love, joy, peace all flow naturally from a heart that abides in Christ’s righteousness alone and is satisfied by his atonement; a heart that never seeks to atone itself to God or neighbor.

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:41-46 ESV)

On the other side are the ‘doers’. They have misinterpreted the scripture in such a way that they believe their works are purchasing rewards. There is nothing natural in the way they approach ministry to others – it is a constant fight against their humanity. They have worn themselves slick trying to keep commandments and stay between the lines, forcing themselves to love those they truly cannot stand for the sake of God. “Jesus, we were endlessly and tirelessly ministering for you. We worked ourselves to the bone to do what you have told us to do. Is this the thanks we get?” The doers are ultimately destined for the eternal punishment they work so hard to avoid.

Jesus did not say these things to frighten us. This is not tough love. He is not trying to ‘scare us straight’. On the contrary, he is describing us. He says that the one who trusts in him will bring forth fruit that glorifies the Father and is an expression of the fact that he is eternally secure. The one who works as for wages, trusting in his own righteousness, can find no security in grace. When we recognize these words as descriptive rather than as commandments (prescriptive) it should lead us to give up our trying and seek to enter into his rest so that these works become the natural produce of our security in Christ.

Which one of these describes you? You can invest your whole life in good works and yet never inherit eternal life. You can pour yourself into missions and give all that you have and offer your body up to the flames and never hear “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Or you can rest in the righteousness that Christ has already provided and just let life happen. At the judgment, you will get the glorious surprise of thanks for the things you did that you never thought twice about – many of which you will have undoubtedly forgotten. Simply stop focusing on what will happen in that day and let God love you today, as you are. When you have that security, fruit will come effortlessly.

God Bless