By Their Fruits You Will Know Them (2 Kgs 22:8-13;23:1-3/Ps.119/Matt.7:15-20)


The warning that Jesus gave His disciples in the gospel reading of today, that, they should beware of false prophets, is because sometimes people are not what and who they claim to be. Such persons come to you in sheep clothings but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. To 'Beware' means to be careful in accepting and believing anything people say. You must test all spirits and make sure they are who they are of God before you will believe.

Jesus further makes it easier for us to understand who we are dealing with by telling us that we shall know people by the fruits they bear. Anyone who is born of God is expected to bear good fruits, but anyone who has sold his or her soul to the devil will definitely bear bad fruits. Therefore, since a sound tree cannot bear evil fruit nor a bad tree bear good fruit, we must choose where we want to belong. As true believers we must be ready to bear good fruits in words and in deeds so that people will see the face of Jesus Christ through us. We must shine out as the light of the world and we must be ready to teach others the right way. Being patient with people, leading them to pray, making them to trust in God and helping those in need are part of the Good fruits we must bear. We must work for peace among those who are having misunderstanding and we must make sacrifices for the sake of Christ and for the good of others.

To bear good fruits entails being like Jesus Christ at all times and in all places. We must run away from evil discussions. We must not keep evil companies and we must detest anything that will lead us into sin. We must not condone cheating and injustice. We must be charitable to the poor and the needy and the desire to live a holy life shall be paramount in our thoughts and consciousness all the time.

If we declare to belong to Christ, then, people should see the good fruits we bear and they will believe in Christ as well. We have no other choice,  but to bear good fruits since we are in Christ, otherwise we will be deceiving ourselves and others who may be looking up to us. Any tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. We must not wait to be thrown into the fire, before we will begin to bear good fruits. Opportunities to bear good fruits are everywhere around us and we must take hold of it in order to please God and to lead people in the right way. Do not be confused or be lead astray, because you will know the good ones by their fruits and also the bad ones by their fruits. You will also be known by the fruits you bear, therefore, bear good fruits always so that you will glorify God through your words and actions.

Let Us Pray: Heavenly Father help me to bear good fruits always so that through me many people will come to believe in you. Help me to love am authentic life devoid of falsehood, pretence and deception. Amen.

Popular posts from this blog

Day 33 Of Lent: Suffering For a Just Cause(Jeremiah. 20:10-13/John 10:31-42)

Image
The story of Jeremiah and Jesus in the first reading and gospel reading of this morning respectively, shows that when one is on the right track trying to do God's will that the person can pass through some moments of adversity. The Christian life is one that has a lot of crucibles that we must pass through before we reach our goal. Anyone who accepts the Christian faith and believes that it will be a cosy and smooth ride all the way must be making a big mistake. Living out our Christian lives in an authentic manner entails walking through the narrow and rough part of life and we can only survive it if we walk along with Jesus Christ who knows all the bad spots and how to avoid them. Jesus will tell his disciples that whoever will follow Him must carry a cross and the person must be ready to deny himself or herself in order to be able to follow Him welll. When one faces persecutions, trials, mob action, detraction and even being falsely accused like they did to Jesus and Jer...
Read more

Come Let Us Return To The Lord (Hosea 6:1-3)

Image
There is a time for everything on the face of the earth (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8) In the life of the Church there are various seasons and by tomorrow we shall begin the season of lent. This is the forty days ( not including sundays) of fasting, prayers and penitence before Easter. It is influenced among other things by the forty day fasting tradition, an ascetical one based on imitation of Jesus' life who was led into the desert by the Spirit immediately after His baptism at the Jordan. In the life of the Church the lenten season which begins tomorrow is a time for Catholics and Christians to return to the Lord. Sometimes in life we are driven very far away from the presence of the Lord by our sensual passions or excessive quest to acquire and possess material things. In the course of this pursuit of ephemeral things, we tend to fluctuate or backslide in our faith, spirituality, prayer life, holy living and when it reaches to the extreme our hearts get cold that we no longer go...
Read more

Seeking The Lord With All My Heart (JEREMIAH 29:11-14)

The lord's declaration to me this day is that He has a plan for me, a plan to prosper me and not to harm me, a plan to give me hope and a future. This is the reason I have to seek the Lord with all my heart. God is Spirit and it is only those who seek Him with all their heart that will find Him. He listens and answers when we call upon Him and pray to Him, because we seek Him with all our heart. I seek the Lord, because He is the true source of my happiness and joy. I seek the Lord, because He thinks and works for my good at all times. I seek the Lord, because my future is guaranteed and secured with Him. I seek the Lord, because my help comes from Him and He gives me victory over my troubles and enemies. I seek the Lord, because He is Truth and does not lie and He keeps His words always. I seek the Lord, because He is good and He heals all my infirmity both spiritual and physical. The reasons why I seek the Lord is many and uncountable and if you are sincere to yours...
Read more