HCC Monthly Harvest Seed
John 15:8 - By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
Psalm 92:12-14 - The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree, He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing,
It is important that we differentiate between producing fruit and bearing fruit. You see, God calls us to bear fruit not to produce fruit.
Producing – The result of our effort, work and artificial stimulation.
Bearing – The result of relationship and abiding in the vine.
Producing happens unnaturally and bearing happens naturally simply because we are abiding in the vine. Fruit is the outward evidence of an internal relationship. Fruit bearing is not about techniques, amounts and effort…
The yield of the harvest is all about yielding to His influence and allowing His life to flow through ours. The Bible says that out of our very belly, or the core of our being, would flow rivers of living water. God is looking for this kind of breakthrough understanding in our lives. It transforms everything.
The goal of our growth process as Christians is to bear fruit.
God is not as interested in what we do for Him as He is in our lives bearing spiritual fruit. Matthew 3:8 - Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance.
Colossians 1:10 (AMP) - that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord [displaying admirable character, moral courage, and personal integrity], to [fully] please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing in the knowledge of God [with deeper faith, clearer insight and fervent love for His precepts];
A true Christian will live in a way naturally that bears fruit worthy of the repentance and the salvation they have received.
Fruit is our moral character, deeds and actions, our behavior, courage and a deep faith that grows with our knowledge of God. It is not just about the work we do but how we go about doing everything we do. For a long time, the church has put such an emphasis on doing and production that it wore people out. Now the pendulum has swung in the other direction and we tell people that a lack of fruit in their life is not a big deal. Just say you are a Christian - but there is no evidence of spiritual growth or fruit.
God expects fruit bearing. Just as any good parent expects their children to grow up and be moral, loving, caring people who actually do something worth-while with their life. This is not undue pressure it is the result of being a grown-up person and growing up should be a natural progression especially for a Christian who is abiding in Christ and for those filled with the Holy Spirit.
The secret to fruit bearing is to understand how the kingdom of God works. We spend a great deal of time talking about ‘Mustard Seed’ faith. All we need is the faith the size of a mustard seed.
Sometimes we spend so much time on the size of the seed that we miss the entire point being- the POTENTIAL in the seed.
The mustard seed is a small seed but out of it comes one of the largest yields. Small faith is the starting point, but that seed is going to grow into greater faith. While that seed is small it produces not just a bush but a tree. That tree produces more fruit and more seed and out of that seed comes more trees and more fruit and more seed.
The beauty of remaining and abiding in Christ is that our life and the lives of those we touch and reach with the gospel naturally have a perpetual harvest. Out of our abiding in Christ comes a constant, consistent flow of life and blessing. We don’t have to force it, produce it or “make it happen”. Fruit is the natural output of a life found in Christ.
God is doing a special work here at HCC. I am excited at what He will do in us and through us throughout the rest of the year.