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Luke 6:43-45 tree produce fruit according to…Today we are talking about the fruit that is produced as a result of the transplanted heart that we talked about last week. Often when we speak about fruit, we think of the actions and behaviour that flow from our heart change, but there is another fruit that I want to talk about today, and that is the fruit of our lips.There are two similar passages in the Gospels.In Matthew 7:15-20, the fruit discussion follows a warning about false prophets who come among the followers of Jesus15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.The other passage from Luke, it follows a passage about logs and specks in our own eyes and precedes the one about building our house on the rock, without mention of the sheep in wolves clothing that come among us. It is a warning about the fruit that we produce, how we measure up.It is this Lukan passage we are focusing on today.Luke 6:43?‘No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit;?44?for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush.?45?The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.You have heard the saying that we are what we eat. But it is also true that we are what we say. Our words reveal our heart. The things we say, and how we say them expose and unveil the condition and attitudes of our heart. It is out of the overflow of the heart that the mouth speaks. James reminds us that it is the tongue that sets the body on fire. James 3:3?If we put?bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well.?4?Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.?5?So also the tongue is a small member, yet?it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!?6?And?the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members,?staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life,?and set on fire by hell.?7?For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind,8?but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil,?full of deadly poison.?9?With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people?who are made in the likeness of God.?10?From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.?11?Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water??12?Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.It is not what goes into a man that makes him unclean, but what comes out of him.If we want to think about whether our heart has been transplanted, we need to listen to what we say. Jesus pointed out that a man’s words will eventually tell what kind of man he is. Just as people know the kind of tree by the fruit it bears, so people know from what a person says whether he is righteous or not.Luke 6:43. For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.Orchardists say that you don’t necessarily get better fruit from bigger or more beautiful trees. Lots of trees may be beautiful to look at, but they don’t necessarily produce the best fruit. A tree with lush foliage is putting all its energy into leaves and not fruit. In the same way, a person who looks flash and behaves like they are spiritually rich, may in fact be the worst trees to gather fruit from. It is not how you appear, or how you act, or how you dress that matters according to this scripture. What matters is your heart and this is revealed by the fruit you produce.When Christians become good trees, they naturally begin to produce good fruit. This is the truth of Luke 6:43.The next verse Luke 6:44 contains another truth about fruit production.Luke 6:44. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush..The type of plant you are determines the type of fruit you produce. Figs grow on fig trees, and grapes grow on grapevines, but neither can be picked from thorns or bramble bushes. Those only produce thistles and briars. The fruit they do produce is hardly worth the effort. Thorns and brambles, thistles and briars, do produce fruit, but not a fruit that anybody would want to eat. It is undesirable, even painful and irritating fruit. People with that fruit are like hedgehogs, they have a lot of really good points, but you don’t want to get near them. Eventually, you get jabbed.The Lukan passage asks us to us judge ourselves in the first instance. Have you ever considered whether you are a hedgehog? Do people always seem to get into arguments with you? Do people seem to avoid you and say as little as possible when you are around? Maybe it’s the way we speak the truth, or how we interject the truth that we perceive. We don’t always have to speak bluntly. Have you noticed how people who say, “Let me speak bluntly” never speak bluntly? Frequently, their words are quite sharp. So watch your words. Don’t be sharp or blunt. Don’t’ be a thorn or a thistle. We’d all rather have a grape than a thorn. We all prefer figs to thistles. The words that come out of our mouth reveal what kind of tree we are. This is what Jesus reveals in the first part of Luke 6:45. All people bear fruit, and the fruit they bear reveals their heart.Proverbs 15:4 “A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.”Luke 6:45. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil.The fruit of our lives is the fruit of our lips. “the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these things defile a man” (Matt 15:18) because it is “out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander” (Matt 15:19).And the last part of verse 45 could not be more clear.Luke 6:45b. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.What is the fruit? It is our words, not our works. And it is our own words Christ wants us to listen to mainly.James 1:26 “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” Don’t be a fruit inspector. Don’t go around with your little check list of Christians works which you think are necessary for people to have in order to be a Christian. Works rarely reveal the heart. Words do. A person can be the nicest person in the world, and volunteer for community service, and give away all their money, and faithfully attend church for their whole lives. And how do you know they do all of this? Because they love to tell you about it. If you looked at their actions only, you would have to say that they have a pure heart. But when you listen to their words, it reveals a proud heart.One may have a disciplined body, a disciplined mind, a disciplined will, even disciplined emotions, appetites and habits but a loose tongue betrays a fatal fault in the armour. The character is defective.Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.”Have you ever listened to what comes out of your own mouth? The words when you pray.The words when you talk. The words you speak on the phone. Just listen to yourself sometime. I may be preaching to the choir, and you all have that tongue under control. If so, bear with me. Perhaps I am only speaking to myself because I know there is work to do in my words, and therefore there is work to do in my heart.When you talk to others, do you always try to turn the conversation back to yourself? Stop and ask yourself, “Do I really need to tell this story? Do I really need to make this statement? Why don’t I, instead of sharing my story, ask the other person to share more about theirs?” That shows an interest in them, rather than a proud self-interest.When you talk to others, does your conversation turn to talking negatively about other people, about rulers and those in authority? That reveals a heart filled with gossip and slander – maybe even hate.When you talk to others, do you complain and bemoan all your problems and struggles? Do you talk only of the things you don’t have and the things you wish you could buy? Do you talk about how others have nicer houses, and newer cars, and brand name clothes? Such words reveal a heart that lacks contentment.When you talk to others, do you only talk about earthly things such as your job, your recreational activities, and the local news without ever turning to spiritual matters? These words reveal a heart fixed only on earthly things.When you talk to others, do you talk down to them and make biting remarks to them? Sometimes, this is not so much the words themselves, but in the tone of those words. Such belittling words reveal a heart full of anger and resentment. New Zealanders have this trait called put down humour, and it is not endearing.When you talk to others, does foul language, lewd comments and off-colour jokes ever escape your lips? Do you have a potty mouth? That reveals a heart full of impurity and lust.When you talk to others, is it only about the next toy you want to buy, and the next holiday you want to go on? That reveals a heart full of greed.Do your words ever turn to speaking about God or the Bible or spiritual matters? Or do you only stick to the weather, sports and current events? You don’t need to talk about God and the Bible all the time, but if God and the Word of God never enter your speech, it is certain they do not hold a prominent place in your heart either. Always our speech betrays us.As part of my training for spiritual directing, we had to tape sessions with a directee and then make a written transcript of them. It was an interesting and enlightening exercise in what we actually say compared with what we think we say, of missed cues, of continuing our own agenda, of incomplete sentences. Thankfully none of the list above however. Try it sometime.When you listen to your words to see what is in your heart, it will reveal the condition of your heart, and some of the things you need to fix in order to become a better disciple of Jesus Christ. William Penn, the colonial American puritan writer and leader, whom Pennsylvania is named after, wrote down some Rules of Conversation which make an appropriate conclusion. Avoid company that is not profitable or necessary, and in those occasions, speak little, and last.Silence is wisdom where speaking is folly, and always safe. Some are so foolish as to interrupt and anticipate those that speak instead of hearing and thinking before they answer, which is uncivil, as well as silly.If you think twice before you speak once, you will speak twice the better for it. Better to say nothing than not to the purpose.To speak pertinently, consider both what is fit, and when it is fit, to speak.In all debates, let truth be your aim, not victory or an unjust interest; and endeavour to gain, rather than to expose, your antagonist.What was on the tongue of the psalmist should be on ours too as he wrote,?“I cried to him with my mouth, and high praise was on my tongue”?(Psalm 66:17) so?“my tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long”?(Psalm 71:24).? There is no greater use for the tongue?“because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”?(Rom 10:9).Do you want to get a glimpse of your heart? Listen to the words that proceed from your mouth. ................
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