“Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Therefore by their fruits you will know them” (Mat 7:17-20)
Nowadays the term Christian has lost clarity of meaning. No wonder our world is confused and our witness is weak! According to Jesus, every child of God bears good fruit–without exception. This business of sinful saints, corrupt clergy and immoral believers is anomalous. Beloved, as reborn people, there are things we cannot manifest even if we wanted to, just as every tree cannot produce fruits alien to its nature. The devil has deceived us to accommodate bad fruits under the guise of false humility. For instance, although it’s normal for unsaved folks to sin, gossip and lie here and there, it’s abnormal for true believers! I know this is radical, but that’s exactly our Lord’s point. How do we expect the church to transform our crooked world if we are exactly like it? Instead, each of us must develop a strong intolerance to sin in all its guises (see 1 Jo 1:9). We can’t doubt the radical nature of our Lord’s warning here: “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Mat 7:19). As people of faith, we must bear matching fruit.
Pastor Josh