Living Fruit or Corrupted Fruit... Which One Are We?

I am not writing this so that we can be fruit inspectors of others, but so that we can fruit inspectors of ourselves. Yes the Word of God says we shall know them by their fruits, but that does not mean we go out looking for people to pick apart. I want everyone to understand that most of the time when I write I am not writing to any particular person or group because most of the time I am writing about what God has shown Dan about DAN! I use third party examples only as examples to explain certain points and nothing more is intended and no actual person or group was used in this writing…

Living Fruit or Corrupted Fruit, Which Type Of Fruit Do We Have In Us?

2 Corinthians 13:5

“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves”

Matthew 7:16-20

“You shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree brings forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree brings forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit and neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that brings not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them”

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23), but did you know there are 4 types of fruit Believers can actually have?

Fruit #1 – Healthy Fresh Fruit

The fruit that we all should strive for is the REAL fruit of a Christian and people who have this fruit are constantly being purged and cleaned by the vinedresser. We are told by Jesus this in John 15:1-8 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman (a person who cultivates and prunes grapevines). Every branch in me that bears not fruit he takes away and every branch that bears fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me; he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples”. Now if you happen to go to one of those “prosperity” churches they always seem to want to key in on abiding in Jesus so that we can “ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you”, but that is not the most important part of this passage because the actual importance of this passage is to bear fruit and that is only achieved by ABIDING in Jesus and being CLEANED by his Word (not by devotionals, books, sermons, meetings, DVD’s or by the writings of a dead person). The Greek word for abide here is the word “meno” which means to remain, tarry, to not depart, to be held continually and in reference to time it means to survive and endure so abiding in the vine has NOTHING to do with phony religious activities like going to a building on Sunday, attending meeting after meeting throughout the week, or hanging around our “christian” friends. Oh no, it is MUCH more intense than that!! In the book of Psalms we read that we are to “Be still, and know that I (HE IS) am God” (Psalm 46:10) and in Isaiah this “But they that WAIT upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31) so abiding is actually talked about a lot in the Word of God. I will always be the first to admit that I don’t always abide in the vine every day as I should so as I said in the introduction; when I am writing this I am also writing to myself! If we want to continually produce healthy fruit then we must be continually be abiding, remaining, and tarrying in the vine (Jesus) so that we can be purged and cleaned on a regular daily basis.

Real fruit in the natural realm is important to life because it contains the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that our bodies need to grow, heal, and survive and healthy fruit gives us all that; well if we are willing to eat it. So if that is the natural benefit of fruit, what is the spiritual benefit? It does the same thing for us, but it also allows us to give spiritually based nutrients to other people that God sends our way on a daily basis. If we are abiding (remaining, tarrying, not departing) in the vine (Jesus) then and ONLY THEN are we receiving what we need for daily living and receiving what we need to have on hand for those that God sends our way and that’s amazing! 2 Peter 1:3-4 says this “According as his divine power hath given unto us ALL things that pertain unto life and GODLINESS, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” so being “partakers of HIS divine nature” comes to us via the vine (JESUS) and if we are abiding in the vine (JESUS) then we have ALL things that pertain to life and godliness; isn’t that amazing!! However, the most painful part of growing healthy fruit is the purging but if we are not allowing ourselves to be purged and cleaned as we should then we will be “cast forth as a branch that is withered” and we will be “cast into the fire and burned”.

If we are not producing “healthy fruit” then what kind of fruit are we producing? The process of the downward spiral of our spiritual fruit is much the same as the spiraling down of natural fruit. First it rots, then it becomes poison, and finally it becomes hard.

Fruit #2 – Rotted Fruit

The first step of our fruit deteriorating is when our fruit begins to rot. Rotted fruit isn’t always easy to spot from the outside, but this one thing we know for sure; once someone takes a bite out of it there will be no doubt! Even though it may have some leftover taste of healthy fruit there is no doubt that a piece of rotted fruit is without a doubt ROTTED! This is also true of spiritual fruit because once someone takes a spiritual bite out of us there will be NO doubt that our fruit has rotted. The love we used to have is mainly for those who love us or those we love (biased love), our peace is that used to be there is weak, our joy is very fleeting, and so on and so forth and this is a good sign that our fruit is being to rot or has already rotted. Testing is always the litmus test of spiritual fruit and we will never know what type of fruit we have until distresses, pressures, or when people come our way to test it. Have you ever gone to the store and bought some fruit, but you didn’t eat it right away and after a few days bitten into that fruit and it tasted NASTY? While this is true in the natural realm; it also true in the spiritual realm because many times our fruit has gone from fresh to rotten and we don’t even realize that it has rotted so what can make our spiritual fruit rot? Because we are no longer attacked to the vine! Going back to John 15:2-3 we read “…every branch that bears fruit he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you” so if we are not being purged by Jesus and we are not allowing ourselves to be cleaned by the WORD then our fruit will slowly rot over time. Also, the longer we are detached from the vine the more rotted it becomes until it actually becomes toxic!

I don’t know how many christians I have talked with who are always talking about books, devotionals, other things they are reading, or meetings they are attending but never about what they are learning in the Word of God. We have to understand that those sources are nothing but poor substitutes for God’s Word and a lot of people read them because a book by their favorite author makes them feel good inside, but being purged by the Word of God definitely does not. An old song by a Christian band years ago said it best “Garbage In & Garbage Out” because what we are ingesting into our spirits is what is going to supply nutrients (or garbage) to our spiritual fruit. A good example of this would be someone who mainly eats fast food like Burger King or McDonald’s because even though the food fills them up they are not getting any of the much needed nutrients that their bodies need. Could this be why Jesus said “Now ye are clean through the WORD which I have spoken unto you” and not “go to a building and listen to a sermon on Sunday” or “attend lots of meetings” or “read lots of christian books”? As we constantly bear more fruit the Lord will then continually “purge” us so that we will bear even more fruit and he will ALWAYS use HIS word to accomplish this not some person’s writings or monologue. If we want to understand this is full we have to understand what the word “purge” means in the original text. The word used here for purge is the Greek word “kathairo” which means “cleanse from filth, to cleanse from filthy impurities, and to prune the vine from useless shoots” which means that we are purged and then cleaned so that they we can bear more fruit! He purges us (cleanses from filth, cleanses from filthy impurities, and prunes us from useless shoots) and he does it by his Word and NOT by books, meetings, or sermons and this is why so many people have rotted fruit! I am not saying that God can’t talk to us via a book, meeting, or sermon but he can only do so if that source is actually based on the Word of God and not on someone’s doctrine or personal belief system. Even though God can reach us through those mediums it is still not the perfect way to be cleaned. Hose off your body outside or take a shower in the bathroom… Which one will clean you better? We must allow him to purge us and clean us through his Word because if we don’t our fruit which is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance will begin to rot when we or someone else needs it we will not have it for us to use and we will not have it to share with others who need it. So how can we know if our fruit is rotted? By seeing how it reacts to various tests that come our way…

For example, let’s say the fruit being tested (or being bitten into) is temperance which in the Greek means self-control (one who masters their desires and passions especially his sensual appetites). How could this fruit be tested? One day we go to a store and they is this wiz bang gadget that we just have to have so bad, but in reality we know that we really don’t need it. Do we walk away and exercise our fruit of “temperance” or do we buy it anyway? Also, is this a once in awhile thing or a constant pattern in our life? You see Saints that is the key because we are not perfect robots and we will mess up from time to time because our fruit will get dinged. However, when our fruit is exhibiting the qualities of rotted fruit over and over again then there is a good chance it is not healthy fresh fruit but it has rotted on the vine. Also, do we turn the other cheek when someone hurts us or someone we love? Do we forgive as we were forgiven (casting the offense as far as the east is from the west)? Or do we hold grudges, bitterness, and even distain for that person? If we are doing the last then our fruit of “love” has begun to rot (or worse)!

These are questions that only we can answer if we are willing to answer these questions honestly about ourselves (examine yourselves, whether ye are in the faith)! If our fruit has rotted on the vine there is still time to let the vinedresser fix us, but for that to happen we MUST be honest and quit playing games like appearing one way when we are around Believers and then acting like other way when we are alone or when things don’t go our way. If not then our fruit will continue to rot and Jesus clearly stated that “Every branch in me that bears not fruit he takes away; if a man abide not in me (in context this means a person who is not bearing fruit as they should) he will be cast forth as a branch that is withered; and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned”. This passage is clearly talking to followers of Jesus and not the world so if we are not bearing fruit then being thrown into the fire is our future if we are not bearing fruit.

Fruit #3 – Poisoned Fruit

The next stage of deterioration is when fruit moves from the rotting stage to actually becoming poisonous. Poisonous fruit is also hard to spot because many times the fruit looks good, but in reality what is inside will kill you. The stage where fruit goes from rotted to poisonous varies by species of fruit (and may vary from christian to christian) but the important part here is that the fruit may look good and tasty on the outside, but the insides is what is deadly and that is what will kill you and others. If we look at this from the spiritual aspect I am sure can come up with times when we were all “fruity” outwardly to certain people but inside there was a deep poisonous attitude toward that person.

No? Okay. I guess that I am the only one who ever did that…

God tells us in James 3:8-10 that “The tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly POISON. Therewith bless we God even the Father; and therewith curse we men which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceeds blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be” and in Romans 3:11-14 “There is none that understands; there is none that seeks after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulcher and with their tongues they have used deceit; the POISON of asps is under their LIPS whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness…” One sign that a person’s fruit has become poisoned is by listening to what comes out of their mouths. While people can act a certain way around others for awhile and speak certain things for a time; eventually what is in their heart WILL come out of their mouths. Luke 6:45 says this “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” which is a verse most of us have heard for years but isn’t it interesting that the lead in verses to that verse read like this “For a good tree brings not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes”. Can you see the connection? The HEART is where the fruit is and out of the abundance of the HEART is what will come out of our mouths so what our real fruit is will come out of our mouths. I love how our Father always ties everything together so we can have a clear picture of what he is trying to tell to us! While rotten fruit is not good for anyone except in cases of emergency we do know that poisoned fruit has NO USE!

Another sign of our fruit having become poisoned or rotted is that it stinks. Now what does that mean in the spiritual realm? It means that whenever we are around a person with poisoned fruit we know something is not right about them because we can spiritually smell it (aka – discernment). There is a spiritual gift in the Word of God called “discernment” but as Believers we should all have some discernment in us and that discernment is what protects from many things and it what helps us to discern fruit in people around us.

One last major sign of poisoned fruit is that the person with it is always trying to slay someone either by action or by their tongue.

Have you ever known someone who claims to know Jesus who is constantly attacking or bashing someone?

Have you ever know someone who claims to know Jesus who is always gossiping about people?

Have you ever known someone who claims to know Jesus who is always finding ways to hurt or attack people?

If you have then you are looking at a person who has allowed their fruit to become poisoned and it spills out of them into every part of their lives. These people are miserable and they want everyone around them to feel pity for them because their poisoned fruit is spiritually (and sometimes physically) making them sick every day. Even when things happen to them that should make them happy they always find something negative to complain about or they try and get people to pity them (Po Po Me) and this is NOT how we are to be because we are to be the ones who overcome and not the ones being overcome! However, just like real life poisoned fruit the longer it is in us the sicker we will get and eventually it will kill us.

Fruit #4 – Hardened Fruit

Just like rotted and poisoned fruit, hardened fruit is also extremely hard to spot and a good visual of what hardened fruit looks like are those hard plastic fruit baskets that people use to decorate their tables. Yep they look colorful, juicy, sweet, but go ahead and take a bite… It will break your teeth off! So what does a hardened fruit person look like in the real world? Just like “Healthy Fresh Fruit”, but once you bite into them you easily see that they are fake as that plastic bowl of fruit and not only are they fake they are hollow and have nothing inside to offer anyone. So what does a person with hardened fruit look like? Here are a couple of examples…

Example #1 – If you cross or hurt them or even cross or hurt someone they love you will see how quick the “Love of God” that they claim to have disappear. They will attack anyone who does not bow to their wishes, and they will gather others around them who agree with them so that they can validate their feelings and form a coalition to attack that person even more. They are hard, unwilling to listen to anyone, and many say “It’s my life so I will do whatever I want”.

Example #2 – The minute things do not go their way or a problem arises you will quickly see that their spiritual fruit is hard because it is not there for them to draw nutrients from and that it is of no use to anyone around them. However, hardened fruit does have two uses… (1)It can be used as a weapon and (2) it can be used as a decoration so people think that their fruit is real so hardened fruit is nothing more that phony FAKE fruit!

There are many other examples of hardened fruit I could use, but I think you are smart enough to know how each of the Fruits of Spirit would react if that fruit has become hard.  Now to be fair, things happen to all of us and all of us will react badly from time to time. However, hardened fruit like rotted and poisoned fruit reactions are not once in a while but they are the normal reactions for people with these types of fruit (which to us is a good check system for our fruit).

How can fruit become hard? There are actually many ways fruit can be hardened but the two main ways is by the sun and by being detached from the vine for a long period of time.

Remember the parable of the sower and what did Jesus say about what happened when the seed was sown in stony ground? “And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth, but when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away” (Mark 4:5-6). Now the disciples were puzzled about this parable as they were with so many of the parables Jesus told so a little further in the passage he explains it to them and says this “And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground who, when they have heard the word immediately receive it with gladness and has no root in themselves… And so they endure but for a time: afterward when affliction or persecution arises for the word's sake immediately they are offended”. Okay to understand the symbolism that Jesus was using here we put these two sets of verses side by side so we can get a clearer picture…

(1a) And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth

(1b) And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground who, when they have heard the word immediately receive it with gladness and has no root in themselves

(2a) But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it >withered<

(2b) And so they endure but for a time: afterward when affliction or persecution arises for the word's sake immediately they are offended

(2c) If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is >withered< (John 15:6)

Are you seeing the message here? Jesus was saying that the “sun” kills seed but the sun can also kill our fruit, but how does the sun affect fruit? It affects is because of the HEAT that the sun produces. In this passage the sun is represented as affliction (distress/pressure) and persecution. This means that when different things come our way (distresses, the pressures of life, or persecution) and we are not attached to the vine (Jesus) as we should then our fruit will become heated and if heated long for a long enough period of time it can become extremely hard. I lived out West for 17 years in basically a desert and when fruit would sit for long periods of time in the sun it would first began to rot, but afterwards it became hard as a rock. The longer that we stay detached from the vine in the heat of distresses, the pressures of life or even persecution the harder our fruit will become. How can someone use their fruit as a weapon?

Example: This could be a person who loves other people only as long as those people do everything that they want or they always agree with them. The minute the person doesn’t bow to them the way they think they should their fruit then becomes weaponized and they begin to bad mouth them and launch attacks against them. They do this so that they can try and get the offender (in their mind) to change what they are doing and come back into compliance to what they want them to do or say. I know that none of us have ever seen a “christian” like this, but I just wanted to post this so we all would have a point of reference. We have to understand that while hardened fruit does have some of the characteristics of poisoned fruit; the main thing we have to recognize about hardened fruit is that it is fake, hard, and not pliable. So how do we stay pliable? We do this by letting God on a continual basis purge us and clean us with the Word of God!

In closing, if we want to be used by God and we want the “Fruit of the Spirit” to be in our lives abundantly we have to make sure we are attached to the vine which is Jesus. I am not talking some “sinner’s prayer” we prayed 40 years ago because that prayer has no relevance in our daily lives. I know that many people may have gone to churches that preached the OSAS lie, but even the Great Apostle Paul didn’t believe in OSAS because in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 he writes this:

“Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that ye may obtain and every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run not as uncertainly; so fight I not as one that beats the air but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway”.

The Greek word for castaway here is “adokimos” which means “not standing the test, not approved, unfit, spurious (illegitimate birth) or a reprobate (rejected, not enduring proof or trials, abandoned in sin, lost to grace, a person who has entered into apostasy, a person who has been rejected by God and is beyond hope of salvation).

So if we do not want to be cast into the fire then we must be willing to go through the purging and cleaning process. It hurts, and sometimes it hurts bad but when it is done we will be producing even more fruit…

God Bless,

Brother Dan