How to be a Fruit-Bearing Christian- The Sower and the Seed: Part 1
How to be a Fruit-Bearing Christian • Sermon • Submitted • 34:30
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· 715 viewsJesus explains to His disciples how to be a fruit-bearing disciple through the parable of the sower and the seed.
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This morning I want to ask a very important question that will be the framework for a series of sermons in the coming weeks. This question, I believe, may be the most important question that you ask yourself as a believer. There is nothing else under heaven that I feel requires a believer’s attention more that this question.
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
Now, why do I believe that this is such an important question?
What is the most important goal of being a Christian? What ought to drive us when we wake up in the morning? What is God’s highest goal for his children? What is God’s grace, at work in His children, through the Holy Spirit, trying to accomplish above all in our lives?
My wife and I are watching a documentary series on the life of the Puritans. And the one statement, the one sentence that encapsulates the Puritans- their life, their teaching, their doctrine- is this, “All of life to the glory of God.”
So, if I were to ask a Puritan- say a man like John Owen- if I were to ask him, “what is the most important goal of being a Christian? What ought to drive us when we wake up in the morning? What is God’s highest goal for his children?” He might answer this way, “All of life to the glory of God.” And to that answer I would say, “AMEN!”
Wait a minute pastor- you just said the most important question under heaven this morning for a believer to consider is, “How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?”. You didn’t say anything about glorifying God! So which is it? Bearing fruit or glorifying God? And the answer is YES- BOTH! Because you cannot separate the one from the other.
8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
By THIS is my Father glorified! What is the THIS? That you bear much fruit! There is so much richness here in these 18 words of this English translation! By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
What do these words mean? They mean- we ought to be primarily and totally and completely living all of life to the glory of God. That should be our greatest treasure, it should be the very first fruits of the overflow of our hearts, it should be what we find the most joy and the most satisfaction and the most life in- bringing glory to God! But- you cannot glorify God apart from fruit-bearing!
By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit! It is by fruit-bearing that the Father receives from us, his children- the glory that He rightfully deserves. No fruit-bearing, no glory! Or at the very least significantly diminished glory.
BUT- if we are fruit-bearing Christians we will glorify the Father! We will also prove to ourselves and the world that we are genuine disciples of Jesus Christ- and if genuine disciples- then genuine children of God! So fruit-bearing is chalk full of eternal ramifications- it really really matters. If you bear fruit- you will glorify the Father- this has eternal ramifications doesn’t it? If you bear fruit- you will prove to be genuine disciples of Jesus- this has eternal ramifications doesn’t it?
So, I restate my initial extremest statement- There is nothing else under heaven that I feel requires a believer’s attention more that this question.
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
To answer this question this morning we are going to turn to Luke 8:1-18.
Here Jesus shows us by means of a parable- four very important truths that will help ensure that we become fruit-bearing people.
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
I. You must be utterly certain that the seed of the Word has been planted in your heart (vv. 9-12)
I. You must be utterly certain that the seed of the Word has been planted in your heart (vv. 9-12)
9 And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant,
10 he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’
10ὁ δὲ εἶπεν·
And He said,
Ὑμῖν δέδοται γνῶναι τὰ μυστήρια τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ,
To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God,
τοῖς δὲ λοιποῖς ἐν παραβολαῖς,
but for the others (they are) in parables,
ἵνα βλέποντες μὴ βλέπωσιν καὶ ἀκούοντες μὴ συνιῶσιν.
So that seeing they may not see and hearing they may not hear.
15 For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’
14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
15 For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints,
16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,
18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might
11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.
11Ἔστιν δὲ αὕτη ἡ παραβολή· Ὁ σπόρος ἐστὶν ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ.
Now the parable is this; The seed is the Word of God.
12οἱ δὲ παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν εἰσιν οἱ ἀκούσαντες,
And the ones according to the path are the ones have heard,
εἶτα ἔρχεται ὁ διάβολος
then the devil comes
καὶ αἴρει τὸν λόγον ἀπὸ τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν,
and takes away the word from their heart,
ἵνα μὴ πιστεύσαντες σωθῶσιν.
So that they may not believe and be saved.
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—
40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life.
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
II. You must allow the seed of the Word to grow deep roots in your heart (v. 13)
II. You must allow the seed of the Word to grow deep roots in your heart (v. 13)
13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away.
13οἱ δὲ ἐπὶ τῆς πέτρας
And the ones upon the bedrock
οἳ ὅταν ἀκούσωσιν μετὰ χαρᾶς δέχονται τὸν λόγον,
(they are) the ones which whenever they might hear they accept the word with joy,
καὶ οὗτοι ῥίζαν οὐκ ἔχουσιν,
but these ones have no root,
οἳ πρὸς καιρὸν πιστεύουσιν
they believe for a while
καὶ ἐν καιρῷ πειρασμοῦ ἀφίστανται.
and in time of testing they fall away (go away, withdraw, conceived of physically distancing oneself from something)
This is not rocket science is it? Just think about how simple an illustration Jesus is using so that we can understand...
If you want a plant to grow- and not just grow but actually produce fruit- first make sure you actually plant the seed in the soil! Then, the first step is to ensure the plant has a healthy root system. Makes sense right?
Martyn Loyd-Jones: bean farmer who always won the competition- the secret is people never plan the seeds deep enough to encourage strong roots- if you want a healthy produce you must have deep roots.
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
Deep Roots Story out of John G. Paton- pg. 118-120
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it?
31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth,
32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
Disciple-making- like a mustard seed- it starts small and it takes a long time to grow the roots- but it will lead to bearing fruit! Follow one!
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
III. You must remove all the thorns of this life that are choking the seed of the Word in your heart (v. 14)
III. You must remove all the thorns of this life that are choking the seed of the Word in your heart (v. 14)
14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
Again the simplicity of this illustration is mind blowing- plant the seed, grow the roots, get rid of the weeds. Isn’t that the most simple, yet most profound thing ever?
14τὸ δὲ εἰς τὰς ἀκάνθας πεσόν,
And as for what fell into the thorns,
οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ἀκούσαντες,
they are the ones hearing,
καὶ ὑπὸ μεριμνῶν
and under (the control of)/by the anxieties- worries, cares- idiomatic sayings- “to be killed by one’s mind” or “to be pained by one’s thinking.”
31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
καὶ πλούτου
and the riches- (an abundance of possessions exceeding the norm of a particular society, and abundance of many earthly goods)
16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully,
17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’
18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’
20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’
21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
καὶ ἡδονῶν
and pleasures (ἡδονή- we get our English word “hedonism” from this Greek word- experiencing pleasure for any reason, delight, enjoyment)
3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.
14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
τοῦ βίου
of daily life (life and activity associated w. it)
πορευόμενοι
as they go about their way, as they travel form one place to another, as they change their location
συμπνίγονται
they are (constantly being) chocked (oppressed or overwhelmed)
καὶ οὐ τελεσφοροῦσιν.
and they do not produce completely mature fruit (to produce ripe fruit, to bear mature fruit)
John Paton- pg 220.
Application? What thorns do you need to remove from your life?
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
IV. You must hold fast the seed of the Word deep in your heart and you must patiently put it into practice (vv. 15-18)
IV. You must hold fast the seed of the Word deep in your heart and you must patiently put it into practice (vv. 15-18)
15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
15τὸ δὲ ἐν τῇ καλῇ γῇ,
And as for that in the good earth
οὗτοί εἰσιν οἵτινες
they are those who
ἐν καρδίᾳ
in heart
καλῇ καὶ ἀγαθῇ
the good and the just (our natural hearts are desperately sick)
ἀκούσαντες τὸν λόγον
hearing the word
κατέχουσιν
They hold it fast (to adhere firmly to convictions or beliefs, to retain them faithfully)
καὶ καρποφοροῦσιν
And they bear fruit
ἐν ὑπομονῇ.
In steadfast endurance (capacity to bear up under difficult circumstances)
Hold it fast!- not just glace at it for 5 minutes- this is the word of life and light! Why do we devote so little energy to it?
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts,
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror.
24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
31 but so that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded Me. Get up, let us go from here.
With Patience!
9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
John Paton- 222, 190, 223
16 “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.
What does that verse sound like?
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Not the same application here in this text.
17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
17οὐ γάρ ἐστιν κρυπτὸν ὃ οὐ φανερὸν γενήσεται
For nothing is hidden that will not become open to view
οὐδὲ ἀπόκρυφον ὃ οὐ μὴ γνωσθῇ καὶ εἰς φανερὸν ἔλθῃ.
Nor is anything secret (hidden) that will NOT NOT become known (experientially) and come to light (evident, clearly revealed to the mind or the senses)
8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
What is being hidden from people in this context?
10 he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’
Christ is the one being hidden! Even the disciples had to ask because they could not see- and Jesus often talked about things that remained hidden from the 12- like his Crucifixion and resurrection. Because at that time Jesus did not fully reveal himself. But the promise is
17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
What is now hidden (Jesus’ fully glory) will be made manifest. What is now secret (all of the wonders of Christ) will be made known (in a personal experiential manner) and they will come to light.
18 Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”
18βλέπετε οὖν πῶς ἀκούετε·
Therefore, take care (Imperative! be on the watch, SEE, watch carefully- be vigilant, be on the lookout, be careful) how (in what way or by what means) you are hearing/listening (hearing with attention)
ὃς ἂν γὰρ ἔχῃ, δοθήσεται αὐτῷ·
for whoever has, more will be given to him;
καὶ ὃς ἂν μὴ ἔχῃ, καὶ ὃ δοκεῖ ἔχειν ἀρθήσεται ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ.
And whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him.
Why should you take care then how you hear? Because, if you hear well- God in His grace is going to give you MORE! More of what? More of Christ! More of His glory and His person and His character and His light and life and grace! Don’t you want more?
But, to the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away! What a warning! What does this mean?
There is no such thing as a stagnant Christian! You are either growing and by God’s grace He is giving you more and more. He is taking your small steps of obedience- as you grow deep roots, and as you pull weeds, and as you hold fast his Word and patiently put it into practice- God by His grace gives you far more abundantly than all that you ask or think! To know Christ and the power of His resurrection and all His glory!
So you are either growing and God is giving you more by His grace. Or, God, in His judgement is talking even what you think you have, away from you.
So you are either growing or you are regressing- there is no such thing as a stagnant Christian. This is why so many people look back at their Christian lives and think- I remember when I was really on fire for the Lord. I wish I was still that way.
The good news is you can! Repent of your sin! Morn over the fact that you have less of Christ’s glory than you once had! Confess and ask forgiveness. Humble yourself under God’s might hand and in due time He will lift you up.
This is the proper idea of what it means to be under grace as a believer. We are under grace- and grace does make demands upon us. There is a human element in all this- there is human responsibility. But, because there is grace- laid side by side with our human responsibility is the sovereign promises and purposes of God.
If you take care how you hear, and if you hear well- then the promise is by grace God will give you more and more. God is not going to do your part for you. But, if you will diligently do your part God in His grace will do more than you can even begin to imagine.
Take for example the parallel account of this parable in Mark.
In Mark 4:10-20 you have the parallel account of the sower and the seed.
Then, in Mark 4:21-25 you have the parallel account of the illustration of a lamp under a basket.
Then in the same context and talking about the same subject you have two further illustrations-
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.
27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.
28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
If you will hear well the seed of the Word, and hold it fast in your heart with endurance this is what it will be like. You must do your part- you must scatter the seed- you must share the gospel and you must teach the Word. But, really that is not all that difficult. That is what many of us in this church are learning to do. We are studying Foundations so we will know the doctrine of Salvation, and we will be able to share this doctrine with others. That is scattering the seed. Really that is not that hard. Anyone can do it. That is our part- that is hearing the Words of Christ and patiently putting them into application.
Now what is God’s part? Where does grace come into all this?
Once we scatter the seed on the ground who does the rest of the work? God does!
27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.
Once the seed is scattered- the sower goes to sleep and goes about his day- and on its own accord the seed sprouts and grows and the sower has no idea how it happens! I just read the other day of a man in Wisconsin that grew a 2015 pound pumpkin and he marveled at how a tiny seed could produce such a massive fruit.
28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
Jesus says the earth produces by itself- first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear, and meanwhile the sower does nothing, he just keeps going to sleep and rising in the morning.
29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
And then once the grain is ripe! Once God has by his grace done the work that we could never do- then he puts in the sickle because the harvest has come.
So we see side by side the human element and the grace of God. We must scatter the seed, but God is the one who does the real miracle! God is one who we trust by faith to do His marvelous work of grace in us and through us to produce fruit!
And Jesus says much the same thing in his next illustration of this idea.
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it?
31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth,
32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
This is the marvelous truth of bearing fruit- it is all because of the grace of God. Yes, we must do our part- but the miracle of bearing fruit- and not just a little fruit, but much fruit- larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air cam make nests in its shade- this miracle is all of God’s grace.
So what does that mean? Well, we do our part and then we by faith in God’s grace trust God to do the rest. We pray for it, we anticipate it, we trust in God to do it.
How do I become a fruit-bearing Christian?
You must be utterly certain that the seed of the Word has been planted in your heart
You must allow the seed of the Word to grow deep roots in your heart
You must remove all the thorns of this life that are choking the seed of the Word in your heart
You must hold fast the seed of the Word deep in your heart and you must patiently put it into practice