What Fruit Are We Bearing?

I want to invite you to open your Bible to the book of John, chapter 15, and reflect on the Lord’s church’s need to bear, to produce and bear much fruit. The challenge for these times is to be a church that presents a credible, delightful alternative, not only to the eyes but also to the spiritual palate of the world, so that people may see that Jesus Christ truly is the solution. The church has the privilege of being able to preach the life-giving gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are going to read a few verses from John chapter 15. It says the following, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit:

“…I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he will take away, and every one that bears fruit he will prune so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me…”

Verse 5: “…I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, and I in him, bears much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and will wither; they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they burn. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you desire, and it will be done for you…”

Thank you, Lord, for your word. Thank you for the opportunity, Lord, to be exposed, Lord, to a reflection, to counsel from you. Let your word, Lord, bring into our lives, Lord, what our spiritual life needs for timely nourishment, in the name of Jesus. Amen. Amen.

There is an urgent need for the church in general, for the Lord’s church in this time, to try to discern what we are producing or what we are showing the world. Many times, the word of the Lord gradually turns into a kind of religious dogma, and we are exposed, in one way or another, to the routine of religiosity merely leaving us believing that we are doing things right.

This passage has been important in my life over the past few weeks, and the Lord has ministered to me and challenged me to reflect and to look at my life in relation to what he desires. He is the Lord, and we must remain attached, tied, clinging to him; it is the only way we will meet the standard he is asking of us.

Notice that in this chapter 15, through verse 17, the word “remain” is mentioned 10 times—10 times. So it seems the term is no small matter as far as the Lord is concerned. Each one of us must understand that if we remain in the Lord, if we remain in his word, if we remain in his will and carry it out, the results we obtain will be the ones God wants us to have. There is no other way.

And it is interesting because this portion of Scripture can lend itself to many things, but most essentially, Christ presents himself as one of the alternatives—and as the best alternative—for the man and woman who believe and have accepted the Lord. Many cling to the concept of religiosity. He says, “I am the vine.” He declares himself; he tells you what he is. He says that there are other things you can grab onto or cling to, and there are also other ways in which you can bear fruit. Some cling to education; some cling to constant work; some cling to philosophy; some cling to different schools of thought, to different central trunks or trees in their lives. Christ presents himself as the special place, as the right place, for the man and woman of God to produce what God is asking of us.

Some of us cling to religion. Many years ago, when I was starting out in ministry, I was a young man—not that I am not young now, but I am less young than I was before. I would go preach in our countries; it was very traditional to go out handing out tracts and preaching in the streets. Some would stand on street corners and shout, and some of us would go from house to house. I came across someone who told me, “I am… I am not going to accept that from you, because I am Roman Catholic and apostolic.” He was clinging to that concept of faith. For him, that was his way of interpreting his relationship with God. Surely he bore some fruit, but was it the fruit God expected from him?

When many of us devote time to education and set aside our spiritual vitality—that connection with the Lord through his power, through our relationship in prayer and fasting, through our daily intercession and our relationship with our brothers and sisters—and devote ourselves to seeking other arguments to which we can remain attached in order to have our fruit. When you study for a profession, the fruits you will usually or normally obtain would be fruits of knowledge and financial fruits, because afterward you will probably have a good job.

How much time did you spend detached from the Lord because you were devoting yourself to this? The Lord is saying that he is the right way for us to obtain the right results, pleasing fruits, not only in our spiritual lives but also in our personal lives. When we are workers, when we are parents, when we marry, when we form a family, no matter what surrounds us, if we are attached to the true vine, to that central trunk, to that central body which is him, then the fruit we bear wherever we are planted will be pleasing. We will be the best husband; we will be the best wife; we will be the best parents; we will be the best children; we will be the best neighbors; we will be the best workers; we will be the best bosses; we will be the best entrepreneurs, because we are attached to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ. Everything begins there.

Many are mistaken about where they will place their trust and what they will hold on to. Today I tell you: hold on to the Lord; graft yourself into the Lord. Let that central trunk, that true vine, bring into you the life you need as the branch that will bear the fruit God expects from you.

In Psalm chapter 1, there is a very interesting text: fruit is produced when there is abundant water, the right water. Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the wicked, nor stood in the path of sinners, nor sat in the seat of scoffers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates, rests, prays, and thinks day and night. He will be like a tree planted beside streams of water, which bears its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not fall, and everything he does…”

So there is the answer. Where are you receiving the strength, the water, that will ensure that your fruit is the right fruit?

There are some interesting details we can see. Even in the book of Matthew, chapter 3, it tells us about fruit, that we must be people worthy of the fruit of repentance. And that brings an entire line of thought about how we should present ourselves. How many of you like eating fruit? Some of us replaced fruit for a while with fried chicken and hamburgers. The fruit or vegetable we had was that pickle beside the hamburger. That was all the vegetables and fruit some of us ate.

Fruit is healthy. There are different kinds of fruit. In our cultures, in Latin American culture, and in Central American and Caribbean culture, there are even fruits that do not grow in Latin America or South America; the same fruits that grow in the Caribbean do not grow there. And every fruit has elements that benefit our bodies, whether you eat an apple, an orange, a banana, grapes, blueberries, or mangoes. Fruit brings certain elements into our bodies that give us energy. There are fruits that provide energy.

Some of us would rather open a Red Bull instead of eating the right fruit. There are fruits that cleanse our stomachs, `our digestion; there are other fruits that provide the elasticity our muscles need. Those who practice weightlifting have to eat plenty of bananas to sustain the muscle. You have to eat bananas when you lift weights so that you do not get cramps and your muscles do not tighten up, and over time you will come to understand. Fruit provides elements our bodies need. I am neither a doctor nor a farmer, and I do not like picking fruit from trees; I prefer buying it at the supermarket. That is the full extent of the farming I do. I go to the supermarket and start picking out apples.

Some people like the countryside; others look at it from a scientific perspective, but it provides those necessary elements for our bodies. You know what? I love this image of fruit because it is so delightful. When you see them—large fruits, delicious, juicy fruits—you can tell whether a fruit is good just by looking at it. A fruit looks good when you touch it.

Many of us are called—the Lord’s church is called—to be a branch, a limb that bears pleasing fruit so that the world, so that people, may see that being attached to Jesus Christ is the right way to present oneself.

You know that there are some interpretations of Galatians chapter 5, verse 22, but I simply see it this way: everyone who bears pleasing fruit from the Lord must have the following elements so that the world may see who we are, what we are producing, and what the Lord is producing through us.

Galatians chapter 5, verse 22, speaks of the elements contained in the fruit of the Spirit. It says:

“…But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control…”

You know, the fruit that you and I must bear while attached to the vine called Jesus Christ must have those elements. If the fruit we are bearing has those elements, then the person who eats that fruit will receive health, will receive life, will receive energy, and will receive the spiritual proteins and vitamins they need—but only as long as we are bearing the right fruit with the right elements.

There are some who, in their understanding, try to separate the nine fruits of Galatians 5:22. I do not know; I have not studied theology that deeply. It is not that I am uninterested, but my impression is that we cannot have only eight elements; there are nine. We can have joy and peace, but we cannot fail to have love. We cannot fail to have patience. We cannot fail to be kind. We cannot fail to have self-control. The fruit we are bearing must be composed of these spiritual elements, which will bring spiritual healing to the person who tastes it through us.

The fruit of repentance is called to be like this; it is called to contain these elements that allow others to witness the power of God through us. What we can show the world is not only our way of believing; rather, what we believe is producing something that others can taste.

You are called not only to bear fruit, but to bear much fruit. In these verses, the Lord invites us to depend on him. Verse 5 says:

“…I am the true vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me—and then he adds—and I in him…”

There is participation in this process. It is not only a matter of believing, of being attached to the vine that is Jesus Christ; we must also have the conviction that, in this relationship, in this union with him, he is also flowing through us into this branch that is growing out. “Whoever remains in me, and I in him”—there is a concept of dependence on God; we depend on God. If God does not deposit his power and grace within us, then we should be concerned, because something is happening that is keeping it from flowing. It says:

“…He bears much fruit—look at the last part—because apart from me we can do nothing; we can produce nothing…”

We are incapable of bearing good fruit on our own. He must supply us with that element of life through his Holy Spirit, flowing through this entire structure, so that we can bear fruit. It says that the one who is not bearing the right fruit, or who bears no fruit, will be cut off. But he will cut others too. Do you know why? So that they may bear more fruit. This dynamic is interesting because, even while you are bearing fruit, weariness may come upon you and routine may set in. The Lord will make sure to cut away what is not bringing life so that you can have a more prolonged life.

Let us accept the Lord’s recommendation. Let us accept the Lord’s challenge. What fruit are we bearing? Is it pleasing? Are people eating that fruit through us, through our testimony? The apostle Paul speaks of the fruit of righteousness, of grace. We bear fruit to glorify the Lord. This is the church’s challenge, always, every day—not only when you come to the service, but every day.

For those who come to church, that is the time when they drive better on the street, because they are coming to church; they cannot sin by saying anything. It is the time when we have the fewest bad thoughts, when we suddenly do not speak so harshly. But the Lord wants us to bear fruit constantly.

And if something is happening, I remember a prophetic word in the book of Isaiah. One of the prophets says that he would pour rain upon the parched ground, and the dry land would become green again and bear fruit. If we are not bearing fruit, let us allow the Holy Spirit to come and bring upon us that rain which will enable us to be grafted back into the true vine, which is Jesus.

Close your eyes. Lord, we thank you because this is a time when your church, Lord, is being challenged to truly show who you are. And you are raising up a church that is showing your power not only through its testimonies, but, as a result of its testimonies, Lord, you are performing signs, bringing healing, and working wonders and miracles in a time when it seems as though God were far away.

Lord, we are your church, and allow us to remain attached to you, not to become detached; do not let us dry up, Lord, but cut away all those structures that are bringing dryness and death, a lack of life within us, so that, as a result of that cutting, we may bear the fruit you are asking of us: fruit that is pleasing, fruit that honors your name, fruit that brings life, that brings health, that brings the spiritual elements people need to have today.

Thank you, Lord, in the name of Jesus. Amen. Amen.