43 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
As disciples we have a personal responsibility to inspect what we produce. The fruit of a believer should match the fruit of one rooted and grounded in Christ. Less judging of others and more inspection of our fruit ought to be the goal of a disciple of Christ.
Here's how we inspect our fruit:
1. We must inspect the quality of our fruit - is it good or bad.
2. We must inspect the congruency of our fruit - does our produce match who we say we are.
3. We cannot hesitate to address the status of our roots - what is the state of our hearts.
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July 14, 2023
In Christ, we are blessed by association because having a relationship with Christ is based on the authenticity of our faith. We have a shared identity with the Redeemer, and because of this we are blessed with both eternal provision.
continue readingDon't drown in the shallow-end of believing our own hype and press because your temporary resource supply appears to be limitless.
continue readingThere are 2 critical things we need to do to ensure we are caring for ourselves during this radically challenging season:1. Practice holistic self-care 2. Invest in and care for others
continue readingThe blessing in the text is not regulated to the reality of the hearers' experiences but revealed through relationship with the Teacher; the blessing is in the Person, Jesus. In other words, Jesus is letting these hungry and weeping hearers know that their change is connected to accessing the words He is giving them.
continue readingSermon 1 in this series will tackle the Lucan Beatitudes with the goal of bringing these words of blessing back to earth a bit. I do not know about anyone else, but I desire to know that the blessings of the Lord, the fulfillment of the Lord and the goodness of the Lord are not just regulated to the great by and by, but that as a citizen of the realm of GOD I can access the blessed life even while passing through this rocky world.
continue readingWe are called to move from a premise of revenge to operating as agents of restoration which is difficult and counter to our natural inclinations of paying others back for the wrong they have done toward us.
continue readingThese are the ways I prepare for the floods of life: 1. I have to have a relationship with Jesus that surpasses flattery and is founded on a resilient faith - yes there are many of us who specialize in religious language but do not yield to a redemptive relationship with Jesus.
continue reading"We are Loving, Living and Serving for the Sake of Jesus Christ"
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