Fruit Inspectors!

June 1, 2023

Fruit Inspectors!

I sat in the living room of Jean’s humble home as we visited about the twists and turns of life, the power of love, and the things of faith.  She loved Jesus and had served Jesus faithfully all of her life.  Jean possessed a special blend of a humble heart and gentle spirit as well as strong conviction and courage to speak.

I remember one visit in particular.  We were talking about how Christ-followers can sometimes be very judgmental.  The conversation probed important questions…

“What is the difference between ‘discerning’ and ‘judging?’” 

“How do we hold one another accountable for sin if we do not make some kind of judgement?”

“When Jesus said, ‘…you will know them by their fruits’ what did He mean?”

I have never forgotten what Jean said that afternoon; “Doug, we are not called to judge; we are called to be fruit inspectors.”  In the middle of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:16) Jesus says; “You will know them by their fruits.”

We are fruit inspectors!  The kind of fruit that is being produced in the life of a Christ-follower reveals what is in their heart and the depth of their relationship with Jesus.  We do not need to judge those things but we can observe those things. 

There is no better evidence of what lies in the human heart than to listen to what comes out of a person’s mouth.  The mouth reveals the overflow of the heart. 

Most people will immediately think about cursing or abusive words or degrading comments.  But, the words we say in our prayers and in our worship also reveal what lies deep in our heart.  Our prayers and our worship can become extraordinarily self-centered and self-serving as well as condemnatory and disparaging.

We are fruit inspectors!  We listen to what people say.  We also watch what people do.  Our actions also reveal what lies deep in our heart.  Our hands reveal the overflow of our heart.

The first ideas that come to mind are violent acts, physical abuse, or some other form of cruelty.  But, there are actions that are much more subtle that can cause more damage.  There is exploitation, manipulation, and perversion as well as dishonesty, gossip, and resentment.

We are fruit inspectors!  In Isaiah 3:8 we hear; “Jerusalem and Judah, you rebelled against your glorious Lord— your words and your actions, made you stumble and fall.”  The result of “bad fruit” is always the same; it makes us stumble in our relationships with one another and fall away from the Lord.

We can hear these things.  We can see these things.  We can experience these things.  We are fruit inspectors looking for the good fruit. 

In Galatians 5:22-23, the Apostle Paul describes the good fruit.  Paul calls it the fruit of the Spirit.  Paul writes; “…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

These are the things for which we look in the lives of those who say they love and obey Jesus.  These are also the very things for which other people are looking in our walk with Jesus.  I don’t have to judge, but I can observe if the Holy Spirit is at work producing good fruit in a person’s life.

Paul ends this section of his letter by saying (Galatians 5:26); “But don’t be conceited or make others jealous by claiming to be better than they are.”  We have no right to claim that we are better than someone else; that is judging!  However, we can look for the fruit of the Holy Spirit being produced in their life and in our own life.

I imagine you know someone who is struggling with being judgmental of others or criticizing others or second guessing the motives of others.  Take a moment to sit with them over a cup of coffee this week.  Encourage them to grow a different perspective; to be a fruit inspector looking for the good work of the Holy Spirit in their life!

Let’s not forget that “fruit inspection” begins with looking at their own heart!  When they do, the Lord will grow delight in their heart.

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug