My in-laws had a small apple orchard on their farm, but what kind of fruit did it produce? Each year the fruit was examined as it was picked. Year after year the orchard had good fruit.
What kind of fruit is your life producing? The good news is if you don’t like what you find, you can turn to Jesus to transform you. Matthew 7:18A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. 19 So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions. [1]
Contrasting Fruit
Jesus speaks of two contrasting kingdoms. The thief is satan ,the ruler of the dark kingdom differs from Jesus, our Savior and ruler of the Kingdom of Light. John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.[2] The fruit of satan is stealing, killing and destroying. Alternatively, the fruit of Jesus is abundant life. Followers of satan produce his kind of fruit and followers of Jesus produce His kind of fruit.
In our story, Stephen, full of God’s grace, power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, spoke truth to the religious leaders. Stephen highlighted the fruit of their rebellion against God, but these leaders didn’t like what they heard.
- Acts 8:9These patriarchs (sons of Jacob) were jealous of their brother Joseph, and they sold him to be a slave in Egypt. But God was with him 10 and rescued him from all his troubles.[3]
- Acts 8:39But our ancestors refused to listen to Moses. They rejected him and wanted to return to Egypt.[4]
- Acts 8:51You stubborn people! You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That’s what your ancestors did, and so do you! 52 Name one prophet your ancestors didn’t persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered. 53 You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.[5]
Actions Show our Relationship with God
Stephen makes it obvious the fruit of rebellion through the years is not of God because it was all about death and destruction. Then he bluntly compares the current leaders’ actions to the actions of their ancestors. The fruit of their actions don’t reflect a relationship with God.
When we begin our relationship with God, He sets us on a new path of Godly fruit and hope. This is a path of life that transforms us in the present and leads to heaven itself. Thus, the hope we have in Jesus as our Savior leads us to grow in the fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! [6]
To hear more about the story of Stephen, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/hope-when-life-is-threatened
[1,3-6] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jn 10:10). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.