This world is such a confusing place at times, trying to determine what is good and what is bad in a world that no longer has rules is not an easy task. Jesus shows us how to do that.
Jesus Christ said, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.” Matthew 12:33
Simple enough, right? Maybe not. In a world that has no understanding of good and bad any longer, a world void of righteousness, love, godly values and morals it has become quite difficult for people to know what is good fruit and what is bad fruit. Even the analogy of good and bad fruit is not something everyone can understand because it is not considered common language any longer.
To me it is simple, if I pick an apple off a tree and it looks good and I bite it only to find a worm in it I have found a good piece of fruit contaminated by an intruder, making the good fruit bad. If I see an apple on the ground that is rotten because it fell from the tree I can clearly see it is bad fruit. But what about the beautiful oriental orange trees? They are perfect in appearance, luscious and alluring and always in abundance in Arizona but just try and eat one! Bad fruit! People who visit Arizona are not always aware of these bitter oranges so when someone doesn’t know about them it’s always fun to allow them a bite. The only way these bad oranges can be used is by putting them through a process of boiling water with salt for a long period then adding sugar whereby at some point one can create an orange marmalade. Fine if you like that stuff!
The point is there is a process to making bad fruit useful and even slightly tasty. There is a process for people as well. Bad people can be made good only by being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ and then the “process” of making the bad person good begins. Immediately we are made a new creation, the old has gone and the new creation has come, 2 Corinthians 5:17. But the fruit or manifestation of the new creation has to come by pruning, watering and nurturing through reading the word which renews the mind, prayer and worship.
A Tree Known by its Fruit
Jesus went on to say, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.” Matt 12:35
One cannot possibly know what good is if they haven’t been trained in righteousness.
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith Gal 3:24 KJV. Even Jesus asked, "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered "No one is good--except God alone." Mark 10:18 NIV.
Good comes from God, Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Ja 1:17 NKJV
If we don’t know God, we don’t know His word, we don’t know Him, we can’t truly know good and bad. God created a plan for mankind that did not involve bad, only good and that was because He desired a family of people to call His own. Man blew it. Now we know good and evil just like Satan told Eve in the Garden we would know.
The flesh, the part of man that is the soulish part where our minds, imagination, feeling, intellect and will is housed, desires the things that are to be untouchable. This is because we are birthed into rebellion the moment we are born. Rebellion says “no” to anything that pertains to godliness and “yes” to everything that pertains to sensuousness. Unfortunately, many are not aware of this concept if we don’t know God for it is God’s creation, His concept of right and wrong, good and evil.
However, when we receive Jesus Christ into our hearts for real, believing in our hearts, confessing with our mouths and repenting from the soulish realm we step into the spiritual realm and begin to live a life of holiness. When we do this, we produce good fruit because we have become “good” in Christ Jesus. God is good and through the Holy Spirit God lives in us, allowing us to do good, to manifest good.
The Bible says, How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? Rom 10:14
We must have preachers of righteousness and not ticklers of ears. Today society is growing darker and darker because of a man fearing, man pleasing spirit. After Apostle Paul described to Timothy the perilous people and times they would be encountering he exhorted him to 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 2 Tim 4:2-5 NKJV
Judge by the Fruit
Jesus also said 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. [Rev 3:15,16] God calls us to be single minded and sold out for Him which will reflect in our works but if we are lukewarm, saying we are a Christian but only in “name only” He will spit us out. Our works are nothing if not for the Kingdom of God.
Jesus said we would know them by their fruit and if a person’s life is manifesting the fruit of Satan’s’ kingdom and not God’s then we are clearly dealing with an unregenerated mind. Which means that person has not denied themselves nor have they picked up their cross and followed Jesus. Follow means to be in the same way, what Jesus is saying when He said “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” Mt 16:24 KJV is come do what I do. He said I will teach you to be fishers of men, do it my way and you will be victorious. Sadly, today many ministers are doing it the world’s way and now we have an extremely gender disoriented, identity confused bunch of people calling themselves “Christians” while they do the work of Satan.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 5 we see Apostle Paul address sexual sin in a manner of which he rebukes the people in the church for not judging appropriately when a parishioner is in sexual sin with his father’s wife. Instead of the church leaders discerning the evil among them and purging the sin out they were too prideful to put this man out. Paul said he was not with them in the natural but in the spirit, he had already judged the man and the situation. They were not mournful over the situation instead they were actually boasting about it. This tells us that the leaders were not in the right righteous mindset either!
Today we see sexual sin rampant in the Church, we see denominations divided almost every month now we see a Methodist church allowing a “non binary” woman ordained as a minister! There is gay marriage and gay priests, pastors, and ministers coming out on the left and the right almost every day. Indeed, the darkness has engulfed the Church. Sadly, many man pleasers keep giving in to trends and culture when the scriptures are clear on ALL sexual sin as well as all other sin. God does not have a gray area on sin, as Believers we are all a royal priesthood (1Pe 2:9), therefore we are all called to holiness. The rules apply to all Christians.
Sin Destroys Relationship
In case you would really question why God would implement rules of righteousness, I will break it down briefly. All sin is destructive but some sins are more destructive than others. Our bodies are the temple of God, the Holy Spirit which is God’s Spirit resides within and we are told to Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. 1 Cor 6:18.
Sexual sin destroys intimacy, relationships, families and lineages
Homosexuality destroys the generational bloodline by cutting it off; a woman and woman or man and man cannot procreate
Adultery destroys marriages and families
Fornication destroys intimacy whereby the “secrecy and excitement of sin” created through “forbidden touch” doesn’t bring the same fulfillment once the couple marries
Ungodly sexual sin often leads to STD’s, sexually transmitted diseases and spiritually transmitted demons!
Pornography leads to ideology of women and sex that can never be filled. Porn opens doors to homosexuality, lesbianism and many other types of ungodly sex acts. Porn is a gateway to all forms of licentiousness, exposure and voyeurism.
If you call yourself a Christian then you must take heed to these words of warning, You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord's table and of the table of demons. [1Co 10:21 NKJV]