An Abundance of Fruit

{Daily Selah}

When my children were small, each fall we would visit an orchard which grew unique varieties of sweet, juicy, delicious apples not found anywhere else. The boys loved running from tree to tree, trying do decide which had the biggest, shiniest apples for them to place in their baskets. The branches were often so heavy with fruit that they sagged just enough for even the smallest hands to reach. 


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An apple grower doesn't want trees that will produce just a handful of tiny, shriveled apples. He wants a tree that will perpetually produce bushels of the largest, sweetest fruit. 

Jesus told us we should also produce an abundance of fruit, saying, Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples (John 15:8).

When we think of the fruit of the Spirit, we usually think of the expanded list He gave the apostle Paul in Galatians 5:22-23. In John 15, Jesus mentions just a few types of fruit that seem to encompass all the rest. Jesus speaks of love, joy, obedience and relationship with Him. Each of those are are areas in which our fruit must continue to grow, for the Father's glory. 

Jesus didn't leave us scratching our heads wondering how to get this fruit.  He reveals its Source in verse 5:

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

An apple that falls from the tree before it is mature will not continue to grow. The fruit God wants us to produce for His glory can only grow as we stay connected to the Vine, our Source of nourishment and strength.  

Let's look at our original text again for just a moment...

Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples (John 15:8).

"... so shall ye be my disciples." Producing fruit for the Father's glory really means becoming more like Jesus, following in His steps and in His ways. 

An abundance of fruit.



Father, thank You for Jesus being our example and the Vine from where we draw our strength and the nourishment we need to produce fruit for Your glory. Help us to stay close to him and to become more like Him. In Jesus' wonderful Name, amen. 



{Daily Selah} is a mini-devotional, a pause to ponder about the Lord and how He wants us to live.