Growth & Fruit

In Matthew 16:18 Jesus said that He would build His church. But that doesn’t mean we sit back and watch.

When God delivered the people of Israel from Egypt He used Moses. God used David to kill the giant. He used Elijah to call fire down from heaven to consume the sacrifice. He used Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. He used John the Baptist to announce the coming of the Messiah. It seems that God nearly always works through faithful people to accomplish his plans and purposes.

Throughout history God has worked through men and women to build His church. That means we have a part in what God is doing, and that our skill, or lack of skill, will determine how much God uses us to build.

In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-9) Jesus said some seed yielded a hundredfold, while other yielded sixty, and other only thirty. My prayer is that I will be one of those who yields a hundredfold.

So what do we need to do in order to be that good seed which yields a hundredfold?

First, we need to stop asking what we need to do in order to grow and reproduce. That’s the wrong question. The question we must be asking ourselves is, what is preventing me from growing and reproducing?

As we saw yesterday, growth and reproduction are natural. If growth and reproduction are not a part of our spiritual life then we need to look what is lacking or what is attacking. What nutrients are missing so that our roots are weak and we are malnourished? Or, what enemy is attacking us and destroying the reproduction process?