Bearing Fruit

My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold,
And my yield better than choicest silver.
Proverbs 8:19

We've been talking about bearing fruit in class the past two Sundays, and as I was reading in The Cost of Discipleship last night, I came across the following passage that I think you will find helpful.

In the world there are "the works of the flesh," in the Church, "the fruit of the Spirit" (Gal. 5:19; Eph. 5:9). What does fruit mean in this context? There are many works of the flesh, but only one fruit of the Spirit. Works are done by human hands, fruit thrusts upward and grows all unbeknown to the tree which bears it. Works are dead, fruit is alive, and bears the seed which will bring forth more fruit. Works can subsist on their own, fruit cannot exist apart from the tree. Fruit is always the miraculous, the created; it is never the result of willing, but always a growth. The fruit of the Spirit is a gift of God, and only he can produce it. They who bear it know as little about it as the tree knows of its fruit. They know only the power of him on whom their life depends. There is no room for boasting here, but only for an ever more intimate union with him. The saints are unconscious of the fruit they bear.

Thank you for your kind comments and emails regarding my last post. I will continue blogging. My prayer is that what I produce here will be fruit rather than works of the flesh. I love you all!