Bearing Fruit
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When we look( Suk saa) at the (Khaam Saun) teachings of Jesus. One thing that Jesus taught about often was about ( Kaan Ked Pon) bearing fruit. Jesus tells his hearers( Thuk Khon thii maa fang) that they shall bear fruit in their lives if they believe in his teachings and do them. He says that a good tree will ( Ton dii yom kerd pon dii) bear good fruit . There was once Jesus went to the ( Ton Ma dua) fig tree looking for figs (phon Ma dua) but when he looked at the tree, there was no fruit. Then Jesus (Saab) cursed the fig tree and the next day the fig tree (Haew hang L33w Tay) died. Those who do not bear fruit in their lives will be cut off. As we read about all these passages in the Bible, we see that ( Kan kerd pon) bearing fruit is something very important Jesus.
But what does it mean to bear fruit. If I ask you if you would like to bear fruit this new year, I think many of us will say that we want to bear fruit in our lives. But how does bearing fruit look like in our lives? We might want to bear fruit by forgiving the people in our lives, doing better at work, having better relationships at home and at work, or spending more time with our Children and ( Hay chi wit khaw terp too) helping them grow in their lives better or serving more at Church. All these things are very good things in our lives. And these are things that should happen when we bear fruit. But the question is when do these things happen in our lives? Does it happen by us training ourselves to just focus on those things. Like if I want to forgive, do i just keep telling myself that I need to forgive? Do you think that will work? When I want to have a better relationship with my wife, does ti help to just keep trying to be nice to my wife? Does it work? Many times, it help for a while, but the change is not real. After a while, out true nature takes control of our lives again and life is the same again. There is no real change. The truth is we cannot change our lives. Correct? We cannot change our ( (Tamachat baap) true nature. Who can? Only God can change our heats.
Many times, the issues that we face are issues that has got to do with the nature of our hearts. For many people, they struggle with needing to control their own lives and for others, they struggle to forgive people. So the root issue( (raat khong pan haa) is not about control or about unforgiveness. But the real issue is that we have not put our hope and trust in our God whom we say we trust and we obey.
So if we are going to ( Yak hay pen) have a year that is fruitful, we need to get to the real issues that we need to deal with.
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Let us look at this verse together. What do we need for us to bear fruit?
We need to abide (Khao sanit) in Jesus
In this verse it says that we need to abide in Jesus for us to be able to bear fruit. What does abide mean? Abide means to put our hope in or to ( may poi muu) hold on to. So it means that if we are to bear fruit in our lives, we need to put our hope in Christ.
My wife and I have recently taken up a (Knan adirek) new hobby. We loves to plant (Klabong Phet) succulents. We love to go to look at succulents on our days off. Sometimes when we go to the shop and we see one that we really like, we will buy it and bring it home. Many times, after a few days, the plant looks like it is not well. It looks like it is drying up. So we try to (rot naam) add more water. But it did not help. It started to die even more. We were very shocked, why did the plant die when we gave it more water. Maybe we did not add enough water. So we added some more. Then it died. When we went to read up, we learned that this happens when the soil is not good and the water in the soil cannot drain out and because there is too much water, the roots start to rot and the plant cannot get any water even when we add more water. The more water we add the faster it died. Another reason is because is there are parasites that are eating up the roots of the plant and killing the plant form the roots up.
When we bought the plant, it looks very good on the top above ground. But the true health of the plant is in the condition of its roots. When we look at our lives, I think it is also the same. I think what we put our hope in determines the health of our lives in the long run. It’s like our roots in our lives. It matters what we put our roots into. If the soil in our lives is not good or there are parasites that are clinging on to our roots and killing us, then we will not be able to grow well. What are the things that are bad for our lives?
One of it is sin. Sin is when we take ourselves out of God’s will. Sin is when we do not allow God to lead us in our lives. We do not pray and ask God for direction in our lives. Sin is when we focus on something other than God to give us hope for our future. If we do not have enough in our lives, do we pray and wait for God to lead the way. Do we really take time to pray and ask God and hear from God for what he wants us to do in our lives? or do we keep telling God what we want him to do in our lives.
If we put our hope in money and things and relationships, we will be very disappointed. These things can be parasites in our lives that kill us from the inside out. In the previous verse, it says that Jesus is the (tao ang woon) vine, we are the (Kha Naang) branches. If we abide ( Khao sanit)in him, we will bear fruit.
42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
In , Jesus showed us what it meant to abide in God. Jesus wanted to do God’s will more than he wanted ( Tam cay pra ong) to do his own thing. Jesus shows us the way to life here. When Jesus submitted his life to God. Jesus saved us all from our sins. Because he obeyed God. And Jesus didn’t stay dead. Jesus was given eternal life. Real life. Because he obeyed God. And because Jesus showed us the way. Jesus asks us to follow him and trust in him just as he trust his father.
We are coming back to basics because the basics are important.
2. We need to trust that God will not shortchange us when we obey him
I know that many people struggle to commit their lives to God because they are afraid that they will not be happy when they give their lives to God. they cannot do what they want to do.God will not give them what they want. From the years that I have been a Christian, there is one thing that i learned. I learned that I do not know what is best for me. Do you think you know? Actually, I learned that all the things that I want in my life cannot make me truly happy and satisfied. Only God ( Piang phra caw thao nan) can satisfy our lives fully. Do you think that finding a partner and getting married and having children will make you truly happy. Ask those who are married. Are they truly happy because they are married? Many times marriage also causes us trouble. Some think that only if we have alot of money, we will be happy and some think that if we have all the women that we want we will be happy. Well one of the richest man of all time had all these. He had money and he had all the women that he can sleep with all his life. In the end, what was his conclusion?
He said in (Pan ya Can) Ecclesiates that he went in search of pleasure. He did everything a man could do to find pleasure. He had great possessions and houses and animals and slaves and all the women he could have. But in the end he said:
Ecc
11 Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.
1 I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy yourself.” But behold, this also was vanity. 2 I said of laughter, “It is mad,” and of pleasure, “What use is it?” 3 I searched with my heart how to cheer my body with wine—my heart still guiding me with wisdom—and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life. 4 I made great works. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. 5 I made myself gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. 6 I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house. I had also great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem. 8 I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I got singers, both men and women, and many concubines, the delight of the sons of man. 9 So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me. 10 And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil. 11 Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.
He said that nothing was gained. it was all meaningless. It is quite sad if we spent all our strength and all that we have in our lives to try to get something that we think will fulfill our lives and then in the end realise that it was all of no use. I hope that we will be wise in the way we live our lives so that we will put our hope in the right things so that we can build our lives on a hope that is real.
1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
In , it says that God gave Abram a vision and told him that God is his (Loo) shield and God himself is his very great reward. Abraham was a man who obeyed God and trusted in God with his life and God provided for Abraham abundantly. When God called Abraham, Abraham did not know what would happen if he obeyed God’s call. Would he be killed, will he be poor? But he just trusted God and God made him one of the richest persons in his time. God was indeed his shield and his very great reward. God did exactly what he said he would do. He said he would protect Abraham and he would be Abraham’s reward.
In my many years of being a Christian. I have never seen someone who is faithful to God whom God did not take care of. Many times it’s those who insist on their own ways and plans who have a difficult life. (Kit sakru)
29 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
:29-30
In this verse, it says that we ( raw may samat chana pracaw nay Kan hay) can never outgive God. When we are willing to make sacrifices for God, God promises us that his blessings that he will give us will be much more than we have sacrificed. The blessing that comes from God is more lavish than the small blessings that we want for our lives. I can testify about this in my own life. When I decided to give God my future and say to God here is my life. You can do whatever you want with it. Ask me to do anything and I will do it. I have followed Jesus like that for many years in my life and the one who has been blessed is me. I grow as a person, I have better relationships, my mother received Christ, God blessed me with a Beautiful and capable wife and a very cute and smart daughter.
But all these things come from obedience first. Not by telling God that if you give me these things then I will serve you. We need to get the order right. (ram dap kwaan sam khan)
3. We need to change our values
In it says that those who abide in Jesus will bear fruit. Apart from from Jesus, we can do nothing. Without Jesus, our life will not have no value. We will keep trying to give ourselves value but in the end feel worthless. Only( Khee phra yesu Chrit thaw nan)Jesus can give meaning and value to our lives and the things that we do.
This is very different from what we want to do naturally.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
When we are in Christ, something must change in us. Our old life and desires must die so that we can have a new life. If we continue to live the old life without Christ, we will die from the inside out.
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Believe it or not, we are all like plants. We all have roots where we draw our strength, Joy, hope from. This is where we anchor our lives into. This is what gives us life and purpose. Without this, we will all wither and die.
We need to start to pray differently. Instead of just asking things from God. We need to start telling God that we will live our lives for him from now on. We need to ask God to put to death our old selves so that we will begin to live the life that Jesus has prepared for us. If we want this new year to be a fruitful year, we need to abide in Christ. Put our hope in him and be willing to sacrifice for him. This is what it means to abide in Christ. This is what it means to be a new (phu thi thuk sang mai). We need to start living by faith and not by what we see. We need to believe that God is faithful and will provide for us when we decide to obey him. Then we will experience the (Chi wit thi krop boribon) abundant life that the Bible promises us.
We need to cut off the rotting parts of our lives.
Fruit of the spirit.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Trunk
Leaves
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
If we begin to do so,
If we persevere and hold (yeert) on to the promise that God has for us every year that God has given to us, our lives will become like a tree that bears fruit and grows. And when we grow and bear fruit. It is not only us that benefit but all those around us will be blessed too. God wants to bless us so that we can be a blessing to those around us. Are you ready to bear fruit this year?
13 As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
1 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.
58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.
Is 40
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.