28/08/2020
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"You will KNOW THEM By their FRUIT wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them ,Not every one that saith unto Me ,LORD,LORD ,shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven" ( Matthew 7:20-21) NASB
Jesus Christ explains in other passages and also right in the immediate context of our text what He means by " FRUITS " that has not stopped people from interpreting " FRUITS" in imaginative ways . We need to point out from context precisely what Christ meant by " FRUITS ".
The fruits of a tree indicates what sort is and names , in other words ; Trees are called by their " FRUITS",
The (HB) word for "TREE" either " EITZ" or " ILAN" which indicates the strength and durability of a tree .in a sense , " HE THAT DOETH THE WILL OF THE FATHER", His fruits are evident in his doings .
Teachers believed that what Christ meant by " FRUITS " is character, and in a sense, means more than one thing . Fruit as character, what kind of personality, what attitudes ,motive , thinking and perspective towards life ? ,what kind of actions ,lifestyle's and kind of patterns? then, We all need discernible hearts to pass a proficiency test as a mind readers but these criteria are specific and objective. It should be evident trying to judge someone's character can lead to judgmentalism and witch-hunt mentality .
Similarly , becoming judgmental in trying to determine whether someone is producing the fruits of the Spirit in ( Galatians 5:22) since none of us is perfectly displays this Fruits ,such " FRUIT-OF-THE-SPIRIT - INSPECTION " can become a serious issues as believers .
In context ,from verse (1) of Chpt. (7), it is absurd to suggests that Christ would turn around to endorse us to judge .
But this warning is to make us proactive and defeating the enemy by seeking the will of God and not allow anyone to deter us from our Divine paths ...but carefully observe people we interact with and the kind of fruits they bare ." IN THIS THE FATHER IS GLORIFIED".
BLESSED LORD, Help us today not to be caught up in elaborate or eloquent words that people use ,but look deeper than the outward appearance,and not ignore the fruit people bare . in Jesus Name !.
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