Bear Fruit Worthy of Repentance [Bible Teaching]

What is the difference between a truly regenerated believer and an unbeliever or false believer? In our day, many false believers have made their way into the assembly of the righteous and increasingly making it difficult for people to tell who a true believer is from a false one.

This write-up seeks to offer an answer.

https://livingourbible.wordpress.com/2022/06/11/fruitful-heart-2/

In Matthew 3:1-12, John the Baptist started preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God (Matthew 3:1) and many people including lay people and the religious leaders came to repentance. That was a great and mighty move of the Spirit of God in the land of Israel preparing His people for the coming of the Lord. But John was not moved by the mere appearance of people. He was rather bent on sharing the gospel with them so that they can truly turn their lives to the Lord.

In Christian circles today, we are much enthused about many people coming to crusades and church programmes instead of ensuring that the gospel of Christ is preached to the core. We love to see numbers without qualitative change in their lives. We love to see thousands show up but never ask if they are getting the message and being discipled.

John was not moved by seeing ‘big men’ and famous people coming to his preaching event but he was committed to preaching true salvation to them. In Matthew 3:8, when he saw the religious leaders coming, he said, “…bear fruits worthy of repentance.” In their book, Root & Fruit: Harmonizing Paul and James on Justification, Steve J. Lawson and Joel Beeke taught that there is the root of repentance and fruit of repentance. If our fruit does not show, our roots will be questionable. We must bear fruit worthy of our calling as believers. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed and new things have come. James put it right in his epistle that faith without works is dead. What we proclaim and affirm must be seen in our lives.

Our calling as believers is to bear fruit. It is to show forth the glory of God in our lives. If we say we are believers, it must show in our conduct. This is the crux of Christianity.

What do you think about bearing fruit? Share your views.