WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
Gen, 2:9---
And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
Let us pray;
Father, we thank you for your word. We ask Lord that you plant this word within our hearts. Let your servant be hidden behind the Cross of Christ, that Jesus alone will be glorified by your word. Let the Holy Spirit take control of this service and your will be accomplished in all that is said and done. In the precious Name of Jesus we pray,
Amen..
The Bible tells us:
That, the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
The Bible goes on to tell us:
Now the serpent was more subtil (cunning) than any beast of the field whichfield, which Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent. We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, ye shall not surely die
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
Here we can see the perversion of truth both on the part of Eve’s addition of “neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die,” and satan’s own false reasoning of “God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” In the phrase, “ye shall not surely die,” we see satan’s competition, and in his “God doth know” we see his expressing and falsifying God’s knowledge, which is really his word, and thus God’s Word is being condemned.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat
From this we learn that God had given to Adam and Eve, one commandment. That commandment being, that they could eat of every tree of the garden. But of the tree in the midst of the garden (this being the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) they were not to eat thereof or they would surely die. In this we find that God had already given them the knowledge of good and evil. They knew by his commandment that it was good not to eat of the tree, and it was bad (or evil) to break his commandment and eat thereof or they would surely die.
They had a choice to eat of the good fruit, or to eat of the bad fruit.
The devil came to them as an angel of light, through the serpent and persuaded them to eat of the bad fruit.
And the Bible tells us:
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
They had broken God’s commandment and they knew the nakedness of their sin. They sewed fig leaves together and made aprons, trying to cover their sin. How many times do we try to cover our own sin. We think we can do it, by doing good things, going to church without repenting, paying our tithes, giving to charity and so on. But the fact is none of the above will cover our sin. Only the grace of God through the Blood of Jesus can cover our sin.
WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
The devil comes to us daily and entices us.
And offers to us many different kinds of fruit.
To some he offers the fruit of Alcohol.
(One little drink won’t hurt, go ahead it’ll make you feel better after a hard days work.)
(Come on with us to the club tonight. Boy will we have fun.)
To some he offers the fruit of Drugs
(Cocaine, heroin, crack, marijuana, and yes even prescription drugs)
(One little joint of marijuana won’t hurt it’s not habit forming,
why some doctors even give it to their patients for medicinal purposes.)
To some he offers the fruit of tobacco.
(Smoking relaxes you when you’re up tight or stressed out)
(Can’t get cancer from chewing tobacco)
To some he offers the fruit of pornography (thru magazines, movies, and the internet.)
(it doesn’t hurt to look as long as you don’t touch.)
To some he offers the fruit of being abusive (yes some people get a kick out of being abusive, makes them feel like they’re in charge, the authority figure) (when in truth they’re nothing but the devil’s wimp)
To some he offers the fruit of lust
(Premarital sex, unfaithfulness )
(An affair with someone other than your spouse, it won’t hurt as long as no body knows.)
To some he offers the fruit of materialism
(Can’t pay my rent, but I’ve got to have that new car. Can’t buy groceries but I’ve got to have that new wide screen T.V. Can’t buy my kid shoes but I’ve got to have that new VCR so I can watch my rental movies.)
The fruit satan has to offer is all full of lies.
To ALL he offers the fruit of eternal damnation in the fires of hell that will never be quenched.
The Bible tells us the works (or fruits) of the flesh are these: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like.
WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
Quoting from Matt. 7:16-23 (NIV) Jesus tells us:
“By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord,’ did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’’
The Bible tells us that God offers us the fruit of the Spirit.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF LOVE.
Love for God.
Love for our Spouse.
Love for our Children.
Love for our family.
Love for our neighbor.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF JOY.
Joy within us that only comes from God.
Joy unspeakable and full of glory.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF PEACE.
Peace within ourselves.
Peace of God.
Jesus said; “peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.
These three fruits are our character as an inward state.
These are the fruits that are within us.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF LONGSUFFERING.
(PATIENCE)
Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF GENTLENESS.
(KINDNESS)
This is a result of the way you speak and act toward one another.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF GOODNESS.
We should all be full of goodness toward one another.
These three fruits are our character in expression toward our fellow man.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF FAITH.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF MEEKNESS.
Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth
TO ALL HE OFFERS THE FRUIT OF TEMPERANCE.
Which is self control, the ability to hold yourself in and not get caught under the control of other things or sin itself.
These three fruits are our character in expression toward God.
Against such there is no law.
Taken together these fruits of Spirit present a moral portrait of Christ, and may be taken as the apostle paul’s explanation “not I but Christ that liveth within me.
This character is possible because of the believer’s vital union to Christ and is wholly the fruit of the Spirit in those believers who are yielded to Him.
And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
Jesus say’s in John 15:4-5,8,16 (NIV) “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing…
This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples…
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last…”
REMEMBER THIS’, YOUR FAMILY WILL EAT OF THE FRUIT THAT YOU EAT THEREOF?
As Eve took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. So it is with your family.
Your spouse, your sons, your daughters, your grandchildren even to the fourth generation.
WHAT TREE IS YOUR FAMILY EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
The choice is ours.
We can choose to follow satan and eat of the fruit that he has to offer and end up spending eternity with him. We choose this by one of three ways.
The first way is by not making any decision.
Being born with a sinful nature means we will live with a sinful nature. Unless we turn away from sin and alter our status, God has no choice but to send us to a sinner’s hell. There is a grace period from the time we are born until the age of accountability; after that we’re without protection from the cancer of sin.
The second way is by rejecting Christ as our savior.
This choice is one that most people choose to make. The rejection of Jesus can come in the form of atheism, the preference of another god, or idolatry—not just the idols mad of stone but idols such as money, people, or a career.
The third way is the one satan prefers the most.
This method involves a person who thinks Jesus is his master, but in reality satan still holds ownership over his soul. This is made so when you do not fully give yourself to Jesus, when you trust in good deeds only to win his favor, or when you presume Christ will overlook your lack of commitment altogether.
Anyone who finds himself in one of these categories must realize what it means to suffer the same fate that satan will face.
*When you die, you will be cast into hell.
*The suffering in hell will last forever.
*The fate of satan is sealed.
*But as long as we are alive, we can make a choice.
WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
MAKE A CHOICE TO FOLLOW JESUS.
To follow Jesus you must do two things.
You must ask Jesus to be your savior.
You accomplish this by asking him to forgive you of your sins. When you ask him to be your savior and forgive you, it must come from the heart. You cannot just say a few words and be on your merry way. At the core of every appeal for forgiveness is remorse. If you have remorse for your sinful state you will receive forgiveness for your sins.
After you have made your commitment to Jesus.
You must then begin to follow him with your actions.
You do this by reading his word and implementing His teachings into your life. If he said, “love your neighbor,” then love your neighbor. If he said, “do not commit adultery,” then do not commit adultery. Follow him and do his word until the day he comes for you in the rapture or until the day you join him in death.
Why will so few people gain salvation.
Jesus foretold that a small number of people would choose to be saved, “strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth; unto life, and few there be that find it”. (Mat 7:14)
The first reason people do not make it to heaven
Is because they put off salvation or neglect it altogether. Too many are more worried with the cares of this life than the one, which will last for all eternity.
The second reason is the rejection of Christ’s gift of eternal life.
People’s pride and unwillingness to face up to their need for a savior holds them back. Some reject salvation because they do not understand how his death 2000 years ago could have an effect on them now. Understanding salvation is not what God wants us to do; accepting that salvation is the response he requires.
The third reason few people make heaven their home.
Is that they trust in a salvation that is not based on the blood of Jesus Christ. Some think, “if I’ve been a good boy or girl all my life, then he’ll let me in.” WRONG!! If anyone could live a good enough life to gain favor from God, they would also be able to clean themselves by rolling in mud.
WHAT TREE ARE YOU EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
THE MOST IMPORTANT CHOICE YOU CAN MAKE, TODAY, IS THE CHOICE TO FOLLOW, JESUS.
WILL YOU MAKE THAT CHOICE TODAY?
ARE YOU READY TO MAKE HEAVEN YOUR FINAL HOME?
OR WILL YOU BE SUFFERING IN HELL WITH SATAN AND HIS FALLEN ANGELS?
WHEN YOU LEAVE HERE TODAY. WHAT TREE WILL YOU BE EATING THE FRUIT THEREOF?
WHAT WILL BE YOUR CHOICE TODAY?
HEAVEN OR HELL?
JESUS OR SATAN?
MAKE THAT CHOICE AND MAKE IT NOW. TIME IS SHORT. WE DON’T KNOW WHEN JESUS WILL COME. IT COULD BE TODAY.
WE DON’T KNOW WHEN OUR LIFE WILL BE CUT SHORT. IT COULD BE TODAY.
IF YOU WILL MAKE THAT CHOICE FOR JESUS TODAY, I ASK YOU TO COME. DON’T PUT OFF YOUR SALVATION.
IF YOU HAVE BEEN TASTING OF THE BAD FRUIT THAT SATAN OFFERS. TODAY IS THE TIME TO REDEDICATE YOUR LIFE TO JESUS. COME AND LAY IT AT THE ALTER, AND LET JESUS GIVE YOU THE GOOD FRUIT WHICH CHANGES YOUR LIFE.
COME!!!!
