Tag: Spiritual fruit

Restoration, Part 5

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(Photo Credit: Nasko Marinov)

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. – Isaiah 1:18

It is amazing that the Lord invites us to reason together with Him. Since God knows everything, and everyone, what a great invitation for us! As mentioned in the verse above, the purpose of reasoning together with the Lord is so that He can wash our sins away and make us clean. What happens after that? He can start making us fruitful again!

Allow God to produce fruit through you. In the natural world, fruit provides nourishment for people. In the Body of Christ, we are to encourage and build each other up (Ephesians 4:12-16), and reach out to people (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).

One thing that happened when I went my own way is that I stopped producing spiritual fruit.  I was not building up my brothers and sisters in the Lord, and I didn’t reach out to people with the Gospel message. I tried to be kind and encouraging to people, and talked about God sometimes. There were also a few times that God used me to encourage some people anyway, in spite of me. Most of the time I was not led by God, though.

But our God is a God who does restore. And he can restore fruitfulness to us. I’m still not perfect, but the Lord produced some new fruit in me after I returned to Him. When we draw close to Jesus again and repent of our own ways, His Holy Spirit produces the fruit that will lead us to being fruitful, for us and for others!

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. – Galatians 5:22-23 (WEB)

Prayer for today: Heavenly Father, I bring myself to you. Help me to be honest with myself and with you, and let us reason together. Wash my sins away. I ask you to restore me to you. Help me to repent and be truly fruitful. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.

Note: Galatians 5:22-23 taken from World English Bible (public domain).

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Restoration, Part 2

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(Photo Credit: Barbara Schneider)

Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.       – Joel 1:5-7

As I mentioned in the previous post, Restoration, Part 1, walking away from the Lord can lead to your life being eaten up. Time is wasted, finances can dry up, friendships might be lost.

This passage talks about a nation coming up against Israel like a lion with teeth (Joel 1:6). This symbolic lion destroys fruitfulness and removes protection (Joel 1:7). But in “real life”, we stop producing spiritual fruit and walk away from the Lord’s protection when we follow our own path.

When I left the church, things seemed fine for a while. My life did not come crashing down around me right away. What happened was I began sowing the wrong “seeds” into my life, and letting the good seed die out. This process took some time, but I eventually began to experience the fruit of sowing to myself. Career, relationships, friendships, and finances all got worse in time.

Don’t be deceived. God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption. But he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. – Galatians 6:7-8 (WEB)

Prayer for today:  Lord Jesus, I need your help. I have sown the wrong seeds into my life, and have neglected planting the good seeds. I ask for your mercy. Help me to weed out the wrong things that are in my mind and heart, and I trust you to protect me. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

 Note: Galatians 6:7-8 taken from World English Bible (public domain).

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