John 15:8 KJV — “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.”
From the above opening text, the Lord Jesus Christ tells us that God the Father is glorified when we, his children, bear much fruit…
What that scripture tells us is that it is God’s earnest desire that we, his children, bear fruit– not just fruit, but much fruit.
Then secondly, from the Lord’s statement in that scripture, we can also deduce that fruit bearing as believers is primarily the responsibility of believers, not solely the responsibility of God. Because he says the Father is glorified when we bear much fruit. He doesn’t say, the Father is glorified when God bears much fruit in us. Even though the believer still depends on the help of God to bear these fruit.
Which means it is God’s utmost desire for his children to bear much fruit, but however, fruit bearing is principally a function of the believers choice and commitment.
Hence, if a believer is not bearing much fruit as the Lord desires, it is actually the believer’s fault, not God’s. Because God’s side is always constant. He remains ever faithful to help the believer bear fruit as the believer plays his or her part.
With the above truth scripturally established, the question that quickly comes to mind is…
How Do I Bear Fruit?
When the Lord tells us to bear fruit, what does he actually mean?
Listed below are the scriptural meaning of what the Lord means by fruit bearing for his believers.
(1) Fruit of the Spirit: Galatians 5:22-23 — “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
When the Lord talks of his children bearing much fruit, he is primarily talking about the fruit of our Christian deeds or actions or lifestyles. Which the Apostle Paul, by the Spirit, calls the fruit of the Spirit. As believers in Christ Jesus, the Lord desires us to bear and grow much more in the fruit of the Spirit.
And to bear fruit of the Spirit, you must consciously commit yourself to walking or submitting yourself to the leading of the Holy Spirit. And also commit yourself to consistently studying, meditating, practicing or obeying the word of God in the scripture —Matthew 13:23.
Then you must also commit yourself to a lifestyle of prayers.
(2) Fruit of Souls: John 15:16–” Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.“
From the above text, the Lord says he has chosen and ordained us to go and bring forth fruit and ensure that our fruits remain. Which talks about soul winning and discipleship. So soul winning for Jesus and disciplining them to abide in Christ Jesus, is the second aspect of fruit bearing…
And to win Souls for Jesus, you have to consistently commit yourself to preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ and his kingdom to as many people as possible you can gain access to, through as many media as possible.
Then apart from that, you can also be reaching out to souls of men by partnering financially with God’s kingdom advancement projects and visions.
So when the Lord says we should bear much fruit, he means we should bear much fruit of the Spirit and also win as much souls as possible for him and do our very best to see them established in the faith.
The Blessedness of Christian Fruitfulness
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit…Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”–John 15: 1-2, 16
From the above scripture, the Lord says he is the true vine and the Father is the husbandman. And that every branch in him(which are believers) that doesn’t bear fruit are discarded. While the branches that bear fruit he purges or sanctifies so they can bear more fruit. So a fruit bearing believer enjoys divine sanctification and special care from God.
Then in the second part of the above quoted scripture, the Lord Jesus says he has chosen us and ordained us to go and bring forth fruit. And that as we bear fruit and ensure they remain, we shall ask whatever we desire and the Father may give them to us. Which clearly means that fruit bearing–both fruit of the spirit and fruit of souls, facilitates answers to our prayers and other eternal blessings.
So in summary, the more spiritually fruitful we are as believers, the more physically fruitful we become.
Now fruit bearing in the Kingdom of God begins with being born again, through faith in Christ Jesus. So if you are yet to receive the Lord Jesus into your life as your Lord and Saviour, click on this link here to do so now! Don’t put it off till later; just go ahead and give your life to Christ now!
If you do have any comment or question, you can drop them with the comment box below.
