Reference

Jn. 15:1-6; Lk. 13:6-9; Matt. 3:7-9; Jam. 2:14-24

Following a message about the eternal security of God's children, questions were raised by some in the church family about whether our guaranteed inheritance means that it no longer matters how we live. DO our deeds have any bearing on whether we go to Heaven? This message answers that question by looking at what the New Testament has to say about FRUIT. What we discover is that there are, indeed, "good trees" which are ultimately burned in the fire of God's wrath. But the important distinction this sermon makes is that these trees are not burned because they had bad things growing on them, but because they had no good things, no spiritual fruit, growing on them. Sin, to a born-again Christian, is like a toadstool. While it grows on the tree, it is not the natural fruit that marks that tree's identity. So an apple tree can grow both toadstools and apples at the same time. The point of this message is to encourage Christ-followers to measure whether they are truly God's children, not so much by the bad fruit that still grows on them, but by the GOOD fruit that the Spirit within them now inspires and empowers them to grow!