(For this sermon, a very large bowl of fruit was placed front and center on the stage. Large enough that it was noticed immediately when people came in for worship. It was utilized as an ’active’ prop during the message.)
The words of John 16 should be familiar to you by now. Jesus is sharing with his disciples, possibly on the very night he was to be betrayed, and He begins to teach them about the Holy Spirit. Let’s look at these words together one more time. John 16. (Read John 16:1-14)
On the basis of those words, we have been exploring this “advantage” of the Holy Spirit. We have looked at who the Holy Spirit is. What the Holy Spirit does, some of His activities throughout the Word of God, and all history. We have looked at the spiritual birthday gifts which the Holy Spirit blesses us with for the common good of the body of Christ.
And today, we want to look at one more advantage in the life of the believer brought about by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. As you might have guessed from this visually tempting display, a very fruitful advantage.
Turn with me, and let’s look at the words that Paul writes in Galatians 5. Galatians 5:16 (read through verse 23). The famous passage on “the fruit of the Spirit.” The fruitful advantage of Jesus living, dying, rising again, ascending to heaven, and sending us His Holy Spirit to dwell with us and in us. The fruit of the Spirit.
I personally, really enjoy eating fruit. And the older I get, the more I learn about the advantages of including a healthy portion of fruit in my diet. For example, did you know that one cup of strawberries gives you 140% of your daily recommended vitamin C. Strawberries. That beats broccoli and spinach. (Eat a strawberry). And tastes a whole lot better. Not to mention strawberries are a huge source of fiber. Yes, I have reached the age where I have to actually worry about such things as fiber.
How about an apple? An apple a day keeps the doctor away, right? (Take a bite of an apple) A medium apple is about 70 calories, and contains no fat, no sodium, and no cholesterol. All while giving you 20% of your daily recommended fiber intake. (Take another bite) Sure beats Metamucil. Right?
Or how about one of my favorites. The banana. (Begin eating a banana, and eat throughout section on bananas) You know, research has shown that two bananas provide enough energy for a 90 minute strenuous workout session. Just two bananas. When you compare the banana to the apple. The banana has four times the protein, and five times the vitamin A and iron.
But did you know that a banana does not grow on a tree. In fact, it is an herb. Rather than growing on trees, it is actually a fruit-bearing flower stalk that is tightly wrapped in leaves. In fact, you can eat the bloom, the flower, but then you would obviously not get any bananas.
The banana is actually a cousin to the spice, ginger. Listen to some of these things the banana helps with:
Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.
Just think about it. Have you ever seen a depressed monkey? Of course not.
Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.
Speaking of strokes: According to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%! Anybody want one now?
Constipation: Including bananas in the diet can help. . .never mind.
Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.
Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over- chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.
Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.
Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.
Smoking & Tobacco Use: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, and B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.
Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.
And if that doesn’t do it for you, how about this. Want a quick shine on our shoes? Take the INSIDE of the banana skin, and rub directly on the shoe. Then polish with a dry cloth.
Bananas, an amazing fruit. . .or herb. Now, I can bet that you know more about bananas than you did before, or at the very least more than you thought you would learn during an Easter service. Right? So let me ask you, are you ready to go raise some bananas?
Because, and stay with me, this is where it all gets tied back together, this is how I think we have traditionally studied the fruit of the Spirit. Sermon series. Bible studies. Sunday School lessons on the fruit of the Spirit do what? They examine the fruit.
So one week they will look at love. The next week joy. The following week peace. The fruit of the spirit. Good. . .even great qualities to have in your life. So we study the qualities.
We pick up the fruit, and we examine it. We look at its appearance. We explore the meat. We taste it. We note its color. We really begin to understand what the fruit is. Just like we can really know what a banana, or an apple, or a strawberry is. But studying the fruit, does not tell you how to produce it.
i.e. Bad water out of the sink. Do you study the faucet or where the water is coming from?
i.e. Planting a garden. So you study the vegetables, or the soil, fertilizer, sunlight, etc.?
i.e. Studying the fruits of the Spirit, versus studying the Spirit that produces the fruit.
Knowing what a fruit of the spirit is can no more make you that fruit than knowing what an apple is can make me an apple. You have to know what produces the fruit.
So as I studied for this message. As I looked to wrap up this series on the Holy Spirit. I just kept coming back to the same theme I have tried to reiterate over, and over again. We take all kinds of approaches to figure out what it means to live a life of patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness. We offer all kinds of courses and studies on gentleness, self-control. We spend so much time studying the end product, and trying to get to it, that we forget to study the source that produces the end product. . .this huge advantage Jesus left for us. . .the Holy Spirit.
If you want to see the fruit of the spirit come to harvest in your life. If you want people around you to see something different in your life. To see the fruit of walking daily with Christ. To see the tangible evidence of your journey with the Holy Spirit. My contention is that we need to spend less time studying what that looks like, and more time studying what produces it. . .the Holy Spirit.
Let’s look at what the word of God has to say about producing fruit. Let’s see if it examines the fruit, or the production.
Psalm 1 (read through verse 3). Look at what this person does. He delights in the law of the Lord. He meditates on it day and night. He stays planted in the ground, drawing from the streams of water. And what happens. The fruit is yielded in its season.
Doesn’t say he mediates on the fruit. “Gotta make an apple. Gotta make a pear. Gotta spring forth a banana.” No. He delights in the Lord, and in due season, he yields fruit.
Same truth, different Psalm. Psalm 92:12 (read through verse 15). Great verse for all our seniors. Even in old age, they are bearing fruit. Full of sap and green.
If you want to bear the fruit of the Spirit. . .don’t study the fruit. . .
1. Plant Yourself in the Lord
That’s according to the Psalmist. The Old Testament. What about Jesus. What did He have to say about bearing fruit? Luke 6. Luke 6:43 (read through verse 45).
How do you create good fruit? How do you bring forth the fruit of the Spirit in your life? By studying fruit? No. . .Jesus says. . .make the tree good. That is how you get good fruit. If you are a bad tree, you are going to get bad fruit. So fix the tree. Or as Jesus says it, fix your heart.
This is what we call. . .
2. Become More Like Christ
Being filled with the Holy Spirit so that out of the abundance of your heart, overflowing with the Spirit, your mouth speaks. You can’t just be patient. You can’t just be self-controlled. You can’t just wake up and say, “That does it. Today I am going to be gentle.” See gentle, be gentle.
Doesn’t work that way. The fruit flows out of the abundance of your heart. So to bear good fruit, the abundance of your heart has to be filled with good stuff. Namely, the Holy Spirit.
Now. Some of you say, but I’ve tried. I’ve even made progress. But then I fall right back into my old patterns. Jesus speaks to that too. You knew He would. Jump forward to Luke 8. Luke 8:14. Jesus is telling the parable of the sower, explaining what happens to the different points of landing that the seed, the gospel message, lands. Look what he says (read verse 14).
Want to see that fruit truly come forth in your life?
3. Refocus Your Faith
Jesus says that lots of people have fruit that starts to come forth in their life. But then they start to think about all the cares, all the money, all the pleasures, all the things of this life. And those things steal the focus of their faith, and that fruit does not mature.
What I am trying to do is not disappoint you, and make you feel like you got ripped off on Easter Sunday. So I am stretching this one simple truth out, and repeating it over and over again, in hopes that days, weeks, maybe even months from now it will stick in your mind what this fruitful advantage is all about.
It is not about striving to know more. “If I just can figure out how to squeeze in a little more information. A little more good deeds. A little more righteous acts into my life. If I can just do more, then I will be a better person, and the fruit of the spirit will be evident in my life.”
Trust me, if the fruit of the Spirit came by doing. If being all that God desires for us to be, and longs for our lives consisted of doing. . .I would have been a long time ago. But when your focus is solely on doing. When all you are about is doing. Pretty soon, you are just done.
Listen to these words of Galatians one more time (Galatians 5:16 through 23 with highlights).
Don’t stare at the grapes and say, “Why can’t I be more like this grape? I know what it looks like. I know what it tastes like. I know what it feels like. Why can’t I be it?”
If you want to produce fruit in your life, don’t study the fruit, study the producer of fruit. . .the Holy Spirit.
Close your eyes for me a second. I know it feels goofy. Embarrassing. This isn’t some strange prank. You aren’t going to open your eyes, and be the only one left sitting in here. Just close your eyes for a second. And listen carefully for the voice of Jesus. He is alive and well. Resurrected. Ascended to the Father. Desiring to help you take hold of this great advantage for your life. The comforter. The helper. The Holy Spirit.
And he wants to speak to you. Can you hear him? Listen to what He is saying to you this morning. . .(Read/Pray John 15:1-17).
(Closing Prayer)
