A Fruitful Life

A Fruitful Life

By Apostle Felix

5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6  If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7  If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

John 15: 5 – 8

God wants our lives to be fruitful. This is because our being fruitful glorifies the Lord. The word, fruitful comes from a Hebrew word, Parah, which means to bring forth fruit. It is the ability to bear fruit. Parah suggests to cause something to be, to make something to multiply and increase. God made man and blessed him to be fruitful. Therefore, fruitfulness is God’s design and not man’s. It is God’s original intent for man to be fruitful. So then, when you are bearing fruit in your life, that glorifies God. The inability to bear fruit was regarded as a shame in the ancient times. It was associated with barrenness.

25  She said with joy, “See how kind it is of God to gaze upon me and take away the disgrace of my barrenness!” 

Luke 1: 25

Barrenness was such a disgrace to women in ancient times. Honestly, there is no pride in it and it should not be tolerated. The Bible is very clear and explicit about God’s intentions for man. It is fruitfulness. Now, it is important to evaluate the kind of fruitfulness we have to seek after. In order to understand the kind of fruitfulness, we have to go to Genesis and examine what Adam and Eve lost. They lost God. God is the source of our fruitfulness. Even in his fallen state man was able to establish kingdoms and civilizations. Cain’s descendants went ahead and established cities and economic systems, even way before Seth’s descendants. Cain is known to be a bad boy, and Seth a good boy. But Cain was more affluent and influential than Seth. In earthly terms, Cain was more fruitful than Seth.

17  And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch. 

Genesis 4: 17

The fruit that God desires for us to bear is the fruit of righteousness. It is given to us by the Holy Spirit in Christ. It is the fruit that comes as the result of abiding in Christ Jesus and His Word. This fruit is superior to any other fruit. The fruit of success, the fruit of the womb, and any material fruit can be achieved without been planted in Christ. Girls do get pregnant every day. Men and women succeed without ever confessed Jesus as Lord. But the fruit of righteousness  cannot be attained any other way. It has to be in Christ.

11  And you will be filled completely with the fruits of righteousness that are found in Jesus, the Anointed One—bringing great praise and glory to God! 

Philippians 1: 11

Adam and Eve lost the very foundation of their existence. They lost God’s abode. They were meant to dwell in God and His Word in order to bear the fruit of God that would have been able to sustain all other fruits. The fruit of success without the fruit of righteousness may draw man into wilderness, a place of dryness, darkness and empty of joy and peace. This is the reason why Jesus admonished his disciples to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

33  “So above all, constantly chase after the realm of God’s kingdom and the righteousness that proceeds from him. Then all these less important things will be given to you abundantly. 

Matthew 6: 33

Seek what matters most by abiding in His Word and the finished work of Christ and then all the less important things will be given to you. It is not the preaching about things that bring the things. No, it is the preaching of Christ and His finished work and that will in turn bring all things. Preaching about things only activates greediness and lust for things in people’s lives. They may experience some form of success, but the success may draw them into vanity.