Well, I have to tell you I'm thrilled on just many levels to
be here tonight. I'm thrilled to be back with you
here to worship, and I'm thrilled for the reason that
we're back here with you to worship.
I was asked when weight and Taylor were engaged, was I
excited for the wedding and I said, well, I'm a little I don't
know so much about the wedding but I am ecstatic for the
marriage. So I am thrilled, I'm excited
for the congregation here that Wade's here among you and that
way we tailor plan to be here. So thank you for who you are and
what you are now to him and to us.
And it's amazing how much shorter the road between Oakdale
and Bakersfield has gotten for the branch family.
For a little while this evening, I'd like to draw your attention
to the Book of Mark. I hope that you can see it well,
and of what's going to be up here is primarily going to be
the scriptures that we read and we consider in this subject.
The question, am I fruitful know?
This question comes up in my mind.
For a lot of reasons but specifically you'll see after we
finish our reading for Mark chapter 4, we're going to read
verses 3 through 9 and then verses 13 through 20.
In Mark 4 and 3, says listen. Behold A sower went out to sow
and it happened. As he sowed that some seed fell
by the wayside and the birds of the air came and devoured.
It some fell on Stony ground where it did not have much Earth
and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of
Earth. But when the sun was up, and
it's was scorched and because it had no root it withered away and
some seed fell among thorns and the Thorns grew up and choked it
and it yielded no crop, but other seeds.
It fell on good ground and yielded.
A crop that spring up increased and produced some thirtyfold,
some sixty, and some an hundred and he said to them, he who has
ears to hear. Let Him hear.
We go on down to verse 13 and he said to them as he tries to
explain his, do you not understand this Parable?
How then, will you understand all the Parables?
How are you going to stand anything the sower?
He said the sower sows. The word And these are the ones
by the wayside where the word is sown.
When they hear Satan, comes immediately and takes away.
The word that was sown in their hearts.
These likewise are the ones on Stony ground who when they hear
the word, immediately receive it with gladness.
And they have no root in himself.
And so indoor only for a time and afterward when tribulation
or persecution arises for the words sake.
Immediately, they stumble for, I leave this slide in because
we're not going to spend a ton of time on this.
Terrible, i-i'm trust, and I'm talking to a Wednesday night
crowd. This is not new for you, you've
heard this if you haven't, then we can talk about this.
Maybe more later, you can study in depth, but most of you, I
believe have read this. We recognize when he talks about
this, the seed that's been sown in the Wayside that Satan
immediately and you've done it, you've talked to people when the
minute you talk to him, you think it's getting through but
it's like immediately it's it's gone.
He said Satan takes that away. He says, there are ones in Stony
ground, they hear it. They say, they're happy to hear
it. They seem glad about it, but
they have no root and so they don't stay for very long.
And they're gone. They, we've hardly gotten to
know them and they're not here anymore.
He says, now, these are the ones sown among Thorns.
They're the ones who hear the word and the cares of this world
that a seat fulness of riches, the desires for other things.
Enter, again choke the word and it becomes unfruitful These
people take it further. But life gets in the way.
There's a tendency we can have, I might say a little time out on
myself already to blame our self when other people get caught up
in life, and they don't hang onto it.
Like they did it first and we say, what do we do wrong.
Jesus, is he talks to his disciple?
Says it could be the soil. That was planted.
We plant. We water.
God gives the increase. He said sometimes it's it's
everything else. It's the noise around that take
people away, note to self to the Wednesday night crowd.
We're not immune from this either.
Are we? The noise around us, can begin
to take away the joy we have, but these are the ones on good
ground, those who hear the word accept it, and bear fruit.
Some thirtyfold, some sixty and some 100 in Luke's account.
He says, now the ones that fell among Thorns of those who, when
they heard and go out and are choked with cares, riches, and
pleasures of life and bring no fruit to maturity, but the ones
that fell on good. Ground are those who having
heard the word with a noble and good heart?
Keep it and bear fruit with Shoots.
Now, I threw this one in here because it's such a parallel
teaching, but I really liked what he talks about the fruit.
We're going to have to be patient.
I'm not very patient. That's why I like to have some
radishes in my garden. They don't take long.
They remind me that it's going to be worth it.
Everything else we're doing for the beets and for the turnips
for the tomatoes. he says we have to understand that even
when it's in good ground, You hear the word with a noble
heart, you know, they're going to bear fruit to, but we're
going to have to be patient to see that happen now, why did we
even read through this? Because the question is, am I
fruitful? And I read through this parable
and I'm not so much interested this evening and US breaking
down this Parable. Is I imagine Torsten Askin.
Okay, now having heard this Parable, am I the one that's
fruitful. And I want you to ask yourself.
Am I fruitful based on what we've just read?
I want us as we come out here to see the urgency that's
associated with. Being fruitful, it's not just
kind of a question. We ask ourself and then we just
say, well yeah, I'll think about it more Sunday, I got things to
do Thursday for. We have a wedding I need to
understand this is an urgent question, even amongst the
amidst the wedding. John chapter 15 and verse 5.
Jesus said, I am the vine. You are the branches, he who
abides in me and I in him Bears, much fruit for without me you
can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me,
he is cast out as a branch and is withered and they gather them
and throw them into the fire and they are burned.
If you abide in me my words abide in you, you will ask what
you desire and it should be done for you by this, my father is
glorified that you bear much fruit.
So you will be my disciples if I understand what Jesus saying, if
you're my disciple, you're going to bear fruit.
And if you don't you're gonna be like a branch.
That's no good and they just they trim them they wither and
then they just burn them if that's not enough to give us it.
Romans chapter 6 verse 20 says, for when you were slaves of sin,
you were free in regard to righteousness in Singing in
anything to do with righteousness.
What fruit did you have? Then in the things, which you
are now ashamed? For the end of those things, is
death. I don't know, everybody story
here. I know a lot of you were raised
in a home brought to this building and your whole life.
Essentially you've been brought up in the Lord's church and you
obeyed the gospel. Some in this audience.
So I'm gather I would gather that's not your story.
But you know, one thing everyone of us have in common in our
story, no matter what our raisin was like and whether or not we
grew up listening to sermons like this or not is we've got a
dark place that there are things.
We hope nobody else finds out and we hope that the people who
do know or willing to forgive us. and we are so grateful, that
God is Because we're ashamed of those things.
There's no good fruit. There's no fruit in that, not
good fruit. The hang of those things is
death, that's why we're here. But now having been set, free
from sin and having become slaves of God, you have your
fruit to Holiness and the end everlasting life.
We don't have to look down that dark path.
We can look to something. That's wonderful for the wages
of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal
life in Christ. Jesus, our lord, that's a gift.
We're here. That's why we're on them was
denied. That's why you do what you do.
That's why you live the way you live.
But what about Disfrute. Matthew chapter 7 and verse 19
says every tree that does not bear.
Good, fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire therefore
by their fruits, you will know them.
So here's the answer to the question.
Am I fruitful? Yes, I am.
Fruitful But now I got another question.
Is it good? Or is it bad?
Because what I learned from the passages, we just studied is
everybody is fruitful everybody bears fruit?
But some fruit it in fit for eating.
Some fruit is not fit for God. So my question becomes.
What does it mean to Bear? Good fruit.
That's really the answer that I need tonight is that mean I have
to convert somebody? That's lost.
Does it mean that it's how many people I baptized or LED to to
have the preacher baptized or how many people that I helped
restore or maybe its children? Because we know Proverbs 1 27
and verse 3 refers to children as the fruit of the womb, What
is it mean to Bear? Good fruit.
I want to spend the rest of the time we have tonight to see what
the Bible says, because I got to admit.
When I started this sermon, it's I didn't reach the conclusion
that I thought I was going to. And you know what?
I don't know about you when you study things in the Bible, when
you sit down and people say, how do you come up with service?
Generally, sermons to come up for me, just reading but
occasionally, it will be a question that I want to find out
what the Bible says. And I I usually go in with a
preconceived idea, kind of think, I know what I'm for, I'm
coming but I'm going to I hope I'll let the word ring it out
with a word. Let it in places that I didn't
expect it to tonight because I want to know what else the Bible
says about being fruitful first of all, we're going to go to
Romans chapter 15 for her. Please knows from Macedonia.
Macedonia. And a Ki to make a certain
contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem,
it please them indeed. And they are their debtors for
at the Gentiles, have been partakers of the Our spiritual
things, their duty is also a minister to them and material
things. Therefore, when I have performed
this and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of
you to Spain, but I know that when I come to you, I shall come
in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.
Did you realize that your contribution is a fruit?
You know, we don't talk a lot about contribution and if you're
a visitor here tonight or maybe you're new to the church here
since I don't know everybody's face.
Don't remember exactly. Maybe somebody's here.
There's not going to be a contribution.
That's not why I'm about to say this.
There's no love offering that's going to happen tonight.
In fact I am confident that at this congregation.
It's done one time and is most likely done with the morning
service on Sundays, first day of the week.
Because that's the New Testament pattern for it.
But as you prepare your heart and purpose and in your heart,
what you're going to do this next Lord's day, I want you to
consider the fact that your contribution is referred to in
the scriptures as a fruit. Are you proud of your fruit?
Do you consider yourself fruitful in that light?
Now I want us to understand for this fruit to be good.
It has to be from cheerfulness in 2nd Corinthians chapter 9 and
verse 7. God loves a cheerful Giver.
He doesn't want you. Do it grudgingly or out of
necessity. He loves a cheerful Giver.
We also understand from that, What Paul told the Corinthians
in First Corinthians 13 and 3, he says, you could give all your
goods to be everything you have to the poor, but it's with it.
If it's without love, it's worthless, you've become like a
sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal, just a noise spiritually
speaking. You know what, we also
understand from what Paul told the Corinthians and the Second
Corinthian letter. He says, I want you to consider
what you give. What'd you get?
I want you to consider this in light of God, I want you to be a
cheerful. Great Giver.
I don't want you to grudgingly or of necessity.
I don't want you to trust me in this that if you don't see if
you don't, so what's right? That?
God cannot bound to you. Now, I'm not going to preach a
Prosperity Doctrine. That's not my point, but here's
my point, our contribution, what we give, and I'm guessing here.
If you're a Wednesday night crowd your, some of the main
givers First of all, I want you to know that's fruit because we
can get really depressed about how many people, we've converted
about somebody. We're trying to get back to the
church. That's just not answering our
calls anymore. That's even maybe asked us to
stop reaching out. They just want to be left alone
and we can beat ourselves up over to that and think I'm not
fruitful I want you to know is if you give to the Lord, The
Lord says that's fruit as long as it's cheerful and it's with
love. What else does the word say
about fruit? We have an altar, Hebrews
chapter 13 and verse 10 says, we have an altar, from which those
who serve the Tabernacle have, no right to eat for the bodies
of those animals. Whose blood is brought into the
sanctuary by the high priest for sin are burned outside the camp.
Therefore, Jesus also that he might sanctify the people with
his own blood suffered outside the gate, do you think?
It was an accident that Jesus was crucified outside the city.
He had to fulfill the shadow of things from the Old Law, all
those carcasses, everything they got carried out because it was
to be outside the camp Jesus, took that upon himself that
shame, that's why he was outside the gate that Hebrew writer
says, therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp bearing,
his reproach, we're going everywhere.
We're not in this sterile environment, with what we have.
We're willing to follow him out there for here.
We have no continuing City but we seek The one that come we
don't Center our religion in Jerusalem or any other place
anymore. It's not geographically Bound.
In fact, it is bound to Jesus Christ.
We're seeking City that had come yet therefore by him.
Let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God.
That is the fruit of our lips giving, thanks to his name, but
do not forget to do good and to share for, with such sacrifices.
God is well, pleased, when you sing praises tonight, According
to Ephesians 5:19. I hope you presented to God a
heart Melody. I love sitting around Rochelle
when she sings. She's sick right now and she
couldn't sing tonight. That's the exception.
Not the rule. I know Christians who the rule
is, they don't sing. God wants the fruit of your
lips. You're like, oh, but I can't
seem like this person or that person.
That's the beauty of Ephesians chapter 5, not 19.
The melody is made in the heart to the Lord.
You know, people that use this verse and they'll go to it.
And so, you know, that's the Greek word there solow.
And that's just to pluck as a stringed instrument, and that's
their justification for for using instrumental worship.
If you go into that, what's plucked there, it's the heart,
it's not the strings of an instrument, it's the strings of
your heart and praise God tonight that he didn't say, we
had to sing a Melody out of our vocal cords because some of some
people just can't do it. And all of us at one point or
another because of some problem whether it's laryngitis or
sickness couldn't do it. Thank God.
He doesn't say we have to be able to play a melody on a
stringed instrument. There's a few in this audience
that maybe can do that, but I can't.
In fact, even if I thought I wanted and God said, that's what
you have to do. How long would it take me to get
to the point that I could play an instrument to make a Melody
if I couldn't sing? But it was possible to somehow
learn. How long would it take to learn
to sing? How long does it take for you to
learn to put your heart into something?
Miniature committed your hearts. In its engaged, God has asked us
to present something, the fruit of our lips from a pure and
sincere heart that the minute a person believes, they're able to
accomplished any other interpretation on that that
somebody wants to put on the theological world, makes it
impossible for somebody to immediately upon their
conversion. Be able to fulfill It's a
wonderful thing. I don't have to be able to carry
a tone, I don't have to be able to read music.
I can immediately began to sing or give praises to God, and he
can accept it. The fruit of your lips, your
praise to God, is fruit or you fruitful.
If it's your habit that you don't sing that, you don't speak
up. With your voice to God.
I hope it'll become that habit, that's fruit that God wants
from. You Galatians chapter 5 22.
You had to know we were going to get here eventually, but the
fruit of the spirit is love. Joy.
Peace, we like those first three at least.
I do. Even if Joy, you know, I don't
know if it's that giddy thing. It's really a calm Assurance.
Peace, it seems when you really look through it.
But when we get to long-suffering Do you realize if
you're going through something and you're wondering if it's
really worth it, you hanging on when it your suffering is fruit.
Are you fruitful? We've all gone through times.
We suffered. We've all gone through times.
We wondered if what's worth it. When we hang on and we suffer
long, that's fruit of the spirit.
Kindness, Being kind to people goodness faithfulness gentleness
self-control. I mean we could spend just a
week talking about all those if we want to break them down and
yet you can sit there and read them and it's just as plain as
the Hannaford your face. This is fruit when we have love
joy, peace. We're willing to suffer.
Long will be kind of people. We want to be good.
Will be faithful faithful from God's perspective, not just that
we're doing things. We think are good, but that
we're looking to the word of God, and we're faithful to it.
And we're gentle and we'll have self-control against such.
There is no law. Nothing is against this and
those who are Christ's have crucified, the flesh with its
passions and desires. We're going to turn away from
sin and turn to the fruit of the spirit.
If we live in the spirit, let us walk in the spirit.
Let us not become conceited. Provoking one.
Another envying, one another, and then he continues in chapter
six. Remember, this is just the
letter chapters and verses. And I want to keep going to see
where this leaves Brethren. If a man is overtaking and any
trespass, you who are spiritual restore, such an one in the
spirit of gentleness, this gentleness, he's talking about
here. He says that applies to how we
restore people, who have sinned. Be careful of with the way we
truth. Considering yourself lest your
also tempted for some of us, maybe it'd be better if we said
consider and how we want our kids treated.
He says think about you bear one another's burdens and so fulfill
the law of Christ. If anyone thinks himself to be
something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
What is it that causes people to not treat people with this kind
of love and gentleness? I infer from the reading it's
because he thinks a lot of himself anything I never would
have done that. How could you do that?
If we consider ourselves and we think you know what, maybe I
wouldn't have done that but I've done something just as bad.
I've done things like it, does that change the way that I want
to re ache, he seems to have that tied together, that when we
get to where we have, no patience with other people.
It's because we think so much of our self and he says, that's not
a good point, what is he going to say?
But let each one examine his own work and then he will have
rejoicing himself alone and not in another for each one.
Shall bear his own load. Let him who is taught in the
word share and all good things with him.
Who teaches do not be deceived. God is Not mocked for whatever a
manso's that will he will also reap.
Are you fruitful? Yes, is it good or bad?
He says it's depends on what you so for he sews to his flesh,
will of the flesh. Reap corruption.
He supposed to The Spirit, Well of the spirit reap everlasting
life. I want you to know it's never a
mistake to put the church and spiritual things as a priority.
As parents, you go through all those decisions with your kids.
While I know should we do this? Should we do that?
We'll never make a mistake when we put spiritual things as a
priority when we're in our work, we think live.
I know I'm committed to the church but you know with my
worker with my job or with this client never made a mistake when
you put spiritual things your priority We sow to the flesh
will of the flesh. Reap corruption.
We sow to the spirit, we will have the spirit reap everlasting
life and let us not. Grow weary while doing good,
don't get tired of showing up on Wednesday night, don't get tired
of being the one that answers, the call for brother so-and-so
her sister. So and so You keep doing it.
As long as you can do it until you're that brother so-and-so
her sister so and so that somebody's need to call for help
or get help to, he says, for in due season, we shall reap.
If we do not lose heart, My fruitful.
What am I willing to do? Therefore, as we have
opportunity, let us do good to all especially those who are of
the household of faith, keep doing as good.
That's talking fruit. What else does he say?
In Ephesians chapter 5, beginning in verse 8, he says
for you were once Darkness but now you are light in the Lord.
Walk as children of light for the fruit of the spirit is in
all goodness righteousness and Truth finding out what is
acceptable to the Lord. My fruitful, do I care?
What is good right and truthful according except what's
acceptable to the Lord? That's fruit.
Fruit of the spirit. Sometimes we wonder if it's
worth it to keep trying to strive to know what truth is and
to hold the doctrine in its Purity.
And I want to tell you it is as important.
Now as it has ever been as it was the day it was pinned, it's
just as relevant today. As the day that this was written
by the Apostle Paul to the church in Ephesus.
And may we never ever doubt that.
What acceptable to the Lord is fruit of the spirit and have no
fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather
expose them for. It is shameful to even speak of
those things which are done by them and secret, some things you
can talk about. Said, stay away from that.
Don't have any fellowship with that, but all things that are
exposed are made manifest by the light.
For whatever makes manifest is light.
Therefore he says awake, you who sleep arise from the dead and
Christ will give you light. Why do we have to stay and worry
about what's acceptable to God? Because that's where the light
is. That's where hope is.
That's where everything is. Nobody desires.
To stay in darkness. See, then that you walk
circumspectly. not as fool's but as wise Redeeming the time
because the days are evil Now this wasn't written in the year
2020. He stays have always been this
way. Today, we have to hold to this.
This is bringing fruitful. Back to what Jesus said in.
Luke chapter 13. He says he also spoke this
Parable we started with a parable we're going on with the
parable he spoke this Parable a certain man had a fig tree
planted in his Vineyard. He came seeking fruit on it and
found them he said to the keeper of his Vineyard.
Look for these three years. I have come seeking fruit on
this fig tree and find them cut it down.
Why does it use up the ground? The answered and said to him sir
let it alone this year. Also until I dig around it,
fertilize it and if it bears fruit well but if not after
that, you can cut it down. This is quite this, this purple
to me is just one of those that I love it and I've scares me to
death. How do we know when we're in
that last year? And my fruitful.
So it says Greg you didn't even talk at all in this about how
many people are baptized or how many people were converted or
how many people were restored. You know why?
Paul said, I have planted paulus watered.
God gave the increase. I need to stop feeling the
pressure of everybody else's reaction and I need to start
feeling the pressure of what I'm going to do with the truth.
Whether I'm going to sing, praise to God with my lips,
whether I'm going to live the life that is just screams Jesus
to the world around us. If nothing else, we might be
able to be like that wife. That Peter talked about who says
that had the unbelieving husband that he says by your Chase
conduct accompanied by fear. You may without a word win him
over. Now if that works in a marriage
with an unbelieving husband and a believing wife, why can't it
work in any relationship? You keep standing up wherever
you're at wherever you live, whatever you do.
You keep doing what's right follow this pattern.
You keep showing ever people know when you come to church
they know what's your where your priority is And don't fall prey
to that old trick that somehow. Well, you know, I could go to
services but I'm really trying to encourage so.
And so to come back, maybe if I go do this with them, then later
on, they'll be more encouraged to come to church.
I've never seen it work. The only thing I seen it do is
draw a good people that you can rely on to help build the church
up further away from the body. You stand for, what's right?
You stand for what's true? Nothing else.
You don't know if this is the last year or not.
Take advantage. God planted us got allow us to
dig around us and fertilize us when we need to grow and God
Waits patiently. One last season.
I don't know if this is our last year tonight, but I asked you.
What would you do? If you knew this was your last
year, we're starting a new one. What if somehow you just knew
whether it's miraculous that God could tell you or whether it's
the doctors that said, look, here's what it is and we know
nobody's lived more than a year with what you've got.
What would change? Maybe you're here tonight.
You've never obeyed the gospel. Mark, 16 and 16.
Jesus said, you need to believe in him.
Do you believe my God, most likely you do believe in less
than we just made. You come tonight.
Have you repented? What is repentance.
Literally, if I understand this Greek word, it means to think
differently. Change the way you look at
things from a man's perspective to the way God would have us and
what that means is going to be a turn around.
From self-will to what God's will is.
In all the things that people talk about in what it takes to
be a Christian and whether it's a work or whether the faith and
works and all that repentance to me is it's the toughest you're
changing the way. It changed everything.
Jesus said, unless you repay, you'll perish.
In the book of Acts, he says, there was time God winked in
ignorance. But now commands all men
everywhere to repent. He also wants us to confess,
Romans 10, and 10. Are we willing to confess Christ
from this day forward and he wants us to be baptized and
Galatians chapter 3 and verse 27.
It says many of you have been baptized into Christ, have put
on Christ tonight if you haven't put Christ on if you think you
put him on what you have been baptized, it's time to put him
on. Come tonight, being me according
to Ephesians, 4 and 5. There's only one baptism
therefore has to be what we can read in the scriptures.
We know the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts chapter 8, came to a
certain water said, here's what our y-intercept me from being
baptized. You said if you believe you met
at the you get they got down already a chariot.
Both Philip and the eunuch down into the water and he baptized
him, he immersed him. He dipped him according to
Romans chapter 6. He buried him in that water.
That's what we'll do tonight. If you are a Christian perhaps
you fallen away, maybe you realize that You know what?
You're not fruitful. And if this was the last year,
you don't think that would be a good one.
Beauty is you got a chance to change that.
That look as a Christian. As a kingdom of priests.
You can pray to God and he will forgive you and cleanse you of
all unrighteousness. But James 5:16 says affected for
her prayer of a righteous man, availeth much.
I trust, there's righteous people here to pray with you and
for you and maybe you're like Simon in Acts chapter 8.
It says, you know, would you pray these things?
Don't happen to me and you'd like the prayers of the church.
We love to pray with you. We love to play.
Pray for you. We thank you for listening to
our podcast, put on by the Church of Christ at 22:15 plans.
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