“Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matthew 7:19 HCSB)
This is my first post in exactly one year. I’m not sure why I stopped or why I didn’t start back up again until now, but I’m here. And more importantly, God is here to speak through me (and to me). Now, you may be wondering why I started with such a “negative” verse. I felt the same way when Holy Spirit had me stop and meditate on it. He revealed two things to me: 1) I’m so used to only meditating on scriptures that make me feel good. The ones that encourage me or lift me up. You know, ones like these:
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 NKJV)
“I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;” (Psalms 139:14 NKJV)
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV)
What’s wrong with these scriptures? Absolutely nothing! They are God's truth. The problem lies in the choice we make if we only focus on parts of the Bible that make us feel good or cater to the lifestyle that we want to live. The second thing that came up is that sometimes, I find myself grazing over things that I don't feel apply to me because I've been "saved by grace through faith" (Ephesians 2:8). I'll think to myself: "I'm saved, so there's no way that I'd be cut up and thrown into the fire" (read: there's no way I'm going to hell). So I read verses like this and move on. The truth is that this verse is included in the Bible, so it must have some importance. "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Last time I checked, reproof (an expression of blame or disapproval) doesn't feel good, correction isn't always fun, and training is helpful but can be monotonous and exhausting (think: extreme workout but for righteousness). But it's ultimately to equip us for every good work. We know that God's plans for us are always good, so there's no need to worry. Even if we have to dig deep in some uncomfortable territory. Okay so believe it or not, this is not even today's word. I just wanted to share these reflections first.
Now, about this tree. After reading Matthew 7:19, I just had to stop and reflect. Does that mean if I start producing bad fruit that I am cut down? I mean, it's written out in the Scripture plain and simple: "every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." So I asked God to help me understand how this applies, and this is what He brought to mind:
This so called "death by fire" that a bad fruit tree experiences sounds a lot like the process of being "tried by fire" (reference to the song Refiner by Maverick City Music).
This "death by fire" is reminiscent of Romans 6 where we read that we died to sin and were buried with Christ.
This "death by fire" also makes me think of when Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. (Luke 9:23)
These scriptures reminded me that it's not "anti-God" for us as His children to go through difficult/trying situations. Choosing to follow Jesus daily is not supposed to be easy. Though in Matthew 7:19 Jesus is speaking metaphorically about entrance into the Kingdom (specifically mentioning false prophets), it's important for us to reflect on what His word is saying about who He is. And this tells us that he wants us to be mindful of the type of fruit that we're producing. How do we become or remain as a tree that produces good fruit? It's a reflection of what's in our hearts, what we spend our time focused on. Also, we have clear instruction in Psalm 1:1-3. We are not to follow the advice of the wicked, stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. We must instead delight in the law of the Lord (the whole thing) and meditate on it day and night. It is then that we will be like a tree that is planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit in its season, whose leaf does not wither. And in all we do, we will prosper.
But this is my favorite part: I was reading this Psalm in the Common English Bible, and look at what it says:
The truly happy person
doesn’t follow wicked advice,
doesn’t stand on the road of sinners,
and doesn’t sit with the disrespectful.
Instead of doing those things,
these persons love the Lord’s Instruction,
and they recite God’s Instruction day and night!
They are like a tree replanted by streams of water,
which bears fruit at just the right time
and whose leaves don’t fade.
Whatever they do succeeds.
The word "replanted" jumped out at me because I'd never seen it used before. Normally when I read this verse, I visualize a tree that's already planted and flourishing. But that's not how the tree starts. It made me think of the tree that's chopped up and thrown into the fire. We may experience times when the fruit we're bearing is not evidence of God in our lives. It might be something in the soil or an infestation that's penetrated the previously strong bark. It might have even been a storm that just knocked us down, causing things to change. It doesn't mean that it's over for us. Speaking scientifically, the laws of conservation of mass and energy, say that matter and energy (respectively) are neither created nor destroyed, just transferred. So follow me here: when wood is cut down and burned, what does it turn into? Ash! And do you know what ash can be used for? Fertilizer! And do you know what needs fertilizer? NEW (OR NEWLY PLANTED) TREES! We know from 2 Corinthians 5:17 that "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." The tree that was not producing good fruit is gone because there is redemption in Christ. We have access to His redeeming grace to turn our situations around. God picks us up and replants us. And we are able to grow in Him by doing exactly what the first Psalm tells us to.
(For anyone new here, I like to give HW because I'm a teacher)
Reflection:
Part 1: Can you think of a time when you felt like (or knew that) you weren't producing good fruit? How did God restore you? Take some time to thank Him for what He has done!
Part 2: What specific changes in your life can you make today to remain planted like the tree in Psalm 1:3? It can be anything from choosing to memorize one verse/passage every week to cutting down your social media time. Anything that brings you closer to God.
Thanks for reading and remember that you are GRACED and that God loves you so much 💜