James 3:3-7: Apples and Berries
Friday, October 14, 2015
My friends, this can’t go on. A spring doesn’t gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it? Apple trees don’t bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don’t bear apples, do they? You’re not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?
James continues to be clear about his meaning . . . with Jesus, pretense is impossible. God sees and understands all. Apples grow on trees. Strawberries grow on vines. We cannot pretend otherwise.
In the Spirit, fruit is borne from the work of the one who seeks union with God, God who makes the impossible possible. When we live in union with God we refrain from gossip and slander, and we also witness to this message by calling others to goodness. Apples grow on trees. Strawberries grow on vines. We cannot pretend otherwise.
Matthew reminds us that: It’s your heart, not the dictionary, that gives meaning to your words. A good person produces good deeds and words season after season. An evil person is a blight on the orchard. Let me tell you something: Every one of these careless words is going to come back to haunt you. (Matthew 12:34) Apples grow on trees. Strawberries grow on vines. We cannot pretend otherwise.
Paul tells the Philippians and us: Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies. (Philippians 4:8). Apples grow on trees. Strawberries grow on vines. We cannot pretend otherwise.
Tomorrow, living well.
Use the scripture links to explore varying versions of these verses and reflect on the choice before us to praise or to curse.
Images from: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=11183 and https://lynnerickardsauthor.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/how-do-fruit-and-vegetables-grow/
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