Drinking God's Goodness

"The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire." (Matt 3.10) This is God's pronouncement through John the prophet. But what right does God have to demand fruitfulness of us? How can God look at us, pictured as plants, and demand that we grow fruit? It's like Jesus walking up the fig tree and finding no fruit and cursing it on the spot (Matt 21.18-19). That story has always been a little disturbing. Is it any less disturbing that God threatens to cut us down and burn us if we don't produce good fruit?

Yes, it's disturbing. It's disturbing to say that God has the right to demand of us whatever he will. He is God, we are his creation. "Let us get this one thing straight. God can do anything he damn well pleases, including damn well. And if it pleases him to damn, then it is done, ipso facto, well. God's activity is what it is. There isn't anything else. Without it there would be no being, including human beings presuming to judge the Creator of everything that is." (Virginia Owens)

But I've been noticing lately another reason God has the right to demand fruitfulness of us. And that is this: we've been drinking his goodness our whole lives.

"Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned." - Heb 6.7-8

This is really a remarkable picture for us. There is a field, and there are various plants in this field. The farmer waters the field. The water falls on all the plants equally. The farmer comes to the fully grown plants and finds that some tomato vines have used the water to make tomatos. But lots of other plants have been very happy to drink up the farmer's water, but they have made thorns.

God pours out his grace on both the righteous and unrighteous (Matt 5.45). But not everyone returns to God what his grace deserves. His grace deserves fruit "of repentance" (Matt 3.8), "good" fruit (Matt 7.19), fruit of the kingdom of God (Matt 21.43), fruit that's not like "the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things" (Mk 4.19), fruit that comes from being joined with Jesus (Jn 15.4,5), and fruit that proves you are a disciple of Jesus (Jn 15.8). We must answer the question, "What does this fruit actually look like?" but for right now I just want to say this: whatever it is, you do not want to be found without it. God has commanded us, and that's enough. But we have also, for our whole lives, been drinking in God's sun, God's rain, God's nature, God's able bodies, God's families, God's people, God's words, God's mercy, God's money, God's safety, God's house, God's wife (some of us), God's education, God's food, God's job, God's health, God's music, God's logic, God's language, God's senses, God's pleasures, God's free country, God's gospel. And would he find us happily lapping up his treasures, very sweely enjoying all his good things, and producing no fruit? We have drunk in the rain often falling on us, and I feel for us particularly it has fallen very very often, and what have we done with it? The rain is free - it is grace and grace is not a payment for fruit - but it will serve to further condemn us if we fail to produce it. A free gift cannot create debt, but it does create shame in the one who has wasted it.

So what is coming out of your life? Because God knows what he has put into it.

There is hope because of God's great patience with us. Here's an obscure little parable I love:

"A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?' 'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, find! If not, then cut it down.'" (Lk 13.6-9)

We are "using the soil"; we are "drinking in the rain"; are we using it to grow fruit?

I recommend one of two things: either start producing fruit, or stop drinking God's goodness.

You have one more year.

"Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case" (Heb 6.9)