Dr. Evans continued his exploration of the benefits emerging from a growing, relational knowledge of God this week by discussing the benefit of “spiritual fruitfulness.” As observed in the produce section of the grocery store, the careful shopper is frequently picking over, turning around, pinching, and tapping on the fruit to determine whether it is ripe and ready to be eaten. In the text for today, the Apostle Paul similarly prayed that the lives of the Colossian believers would be found to “please Him [God] in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10). Dr. Evans reminded us that God, like the discerning shopper in the grocery store, is concerned with the spiritual fruit produced by our own lives. He suggested three crucial gardening tips to assist us in cultivating a life marked by spiritual fruitfulness.
1. A deeper knowledge of God should produce fruitfulness in the life of the believer (Colossians 1:9-10). In the Bible, “fruit” is a term often used to designate the product of one’s life, its impact on others, and its usefulness within the plan of God--what the Apostle Paul labeled as the fruitfulness of “every good work” (Colossians 1:10). Paul connected this fruitfulness of the Colossian believers with being “filled with the knowledge of His [God’s] will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding” (Colossians 1:9). For the past several weeks, Dr. Evans has been challenging us to grow deeper in our knowledge and experience of God, realizing that the production of fruit is a natural result of putting in place these deeper roots of intimacy with God. Fruit is the visible outcome of this internal process of growth in the knowledge of God.
2. Fruit multiplies as we abide in Christ (John 15:1-8). In John 15, we are instructed that Christ is the “true vine,” and, in order to grow fruit, believers must abide in Christ--“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me” (John 15:1, 4). The word “abide” means to remain, hang out with, or loiter. Dr. Evans suggested that a good example of “abiding” would be a young couple who had just fallen in love, spending long hours of “hanging out” together so that, even when they were apart, their thoughts would return constantly to each other. Unfortunately, many believers only desire a visit with Christ on Sundays or Wednesdays with no desire to abide or remain with Him. The Apostle John, however, warned that a branch disconnected from the source of its nutrients in Christ, the “true vine,” would eventually become barren: “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up” (John 15:6). The good news is that if we do abide with Christ, remaining with Him through study of Scripture and prayer, He gives us more and more of His life so that believers can “bear much fruit, showing ourselves to be His disciples” (John 15:8).
3. Fruit multiplies as our branches are pruned (John 15:2). The branches of a grapevine are frequently invaded by the growth of “sucker shoots” which, if left unchecked, will siphon off the flow of nutrients and cause the branch to wither. The “vinedresser” or gardener must cut off these “sucker shoots,” pruning the branch so that it can bear fruit. We find a spiritual parallel in the scriptures: “My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit” (John 15:1-2). Dr. Evans explained that many things in our lives can become “sucker shoots,” things such as sins not confessed, possessions, jobs, unhealthy relationships. The trials and sufferings we experience are often used by the Father--the “vinedresser”--to carry out the sometimes painful work of pruning our branches.
In conclusion, Dr. Evans noted that a woman who is pregnant is willing to endure the sickness and pain of bearing a child because she can see growth of the child in her expanding belly, realizing the ultimate purpose behind her suffering. In the midst of our suffering, we must also remember that the ultimate goal of the Father’s pruning is to allow us to bear fruit-- “…bear fruit … that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you” (John 15:16). As we come to know God more intimately by abiding in Christ and submitting ourselves to the Father’s work of pruning, we, too, will find our branches blossoming, “bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 2:10).
