Lesson: bear fruit

John 15:1-8

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

NIV

John 15:16-17

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.”

Must bear fruit! 

Know someone is a disciple by their fruit! 

Gardner: Jesus father – God

Vine: Jesus

Branches: disciples

Fruit: ?Not defined?

If I help someone become a disciple, are they fruit or are they branches? Branches!!!

So what is fruit?

Offspring:

Genesis 1:28

And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” 

pârâh, paw-raw’; a primitive root; to bear fruit (literally or figuratively):—bear, bring forth (fruit), (be, cause to be, make) fruitful, grow, increase.

Acts 2:30

“Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, [a]according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,” NKJV

Fruit: καρπός

fruit: of trees, Mt 12:33 21:19, Mk 11:14, Lk 6:44 13:6-7; of vines, Mt 21:34, Mk 12:2, Lk 20:10, I Co 9:7; of fields, Mk 4:29, Lk 12:17, II Ti 2:6, Ja 5:7; βλαστάνειν, Ja 5:18; ποιεῖν (cf. Heb. פְּרִי עָשָׂה), Mt 3:10 7:17-19 13:26, Lk 3:9 6:43 8:8 13:9, Re 22:2; διδόναι, Mt 13:8, Mk 4:7-8; φέρειν, Mt 7:18, Jo 12:24 15:2, 4-5 15:8, 16; ἀποδιδόναι, Mt 21:41, Re 22:2; ὁ κ. τ. κοιλίας (בֶּטֶן פְּרִי, De 28:4), Lk 1:42; τ. ὀσφύος (Ge 30:2, al.), Ac 2:30.

Metaph.,

(a) of works, deeds: Mt 3:8 7:16, 20 21:43, Lk 3:8, Jo 15:3, 16; τ. πνεύματος, Ga 5:22; τ. φωτός, Eph 5:9; τ. δικαιοσύνης, Phl 1:11; σφραγίζεσθαι τὸν κ. (Deiss., BS, 238 f.), Ro 15:28; κ. ἀγαθοί, Ja 3:17;

(b) of advantage, profit: Phl 1:22 4:17; ἔχειν, Ro 1:13 6:21-22. συνάγειν, Jo 4:36; κ. τ. δικαιοσύνης, He 12:11, Ja 3:18; of praise, καρπὸν χειλέων (Ho 14:2, al.; cf. He 13:15.†

fruit (as plucked), literally or figuratively fruit.

Philippians 1:9-11

“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”

NKJV

Hebrews 12:11

“Now no [e]chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” NKJV

James 3:18

“Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

NKJV 

Mark 3:7-10

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” NIV

Ephesians 5:8-11

“8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” NIV 

Hosea 14:2

“Take words with you
    and return to the Lord.
Say to him:
    “Forgive all our sins
and receive us graciously,
    that we may offer the fruit of our lips.”

NIV

Same as Hebrews 13:15 

“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.” NIV

• Not harvest of bible talk members

Romans 6:22-23

“But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit [g]to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the [h]gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

NKJV

Galatians 5:22-23

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

• decision, emotion, character/practice

Matthew 7:15-20

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.” NIV

John 12:24

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” KJB

Jesus must enter the earth like wheat and die in order for more fruit! Jesus is the seed!

Are we ever the seed that dies to produce fruit?

• The word became flesh! (John 1)
• The word is scattered and planted! (Matthew 13)
• As one man plants and one waters, God makes it grow! (1 Corinthians 3)
• It’s all about God, Christ in us! He is the one that is bearing much fruit in this world!
• The fruit we bear is righteousness unto holiness! 

Jesus and the Word is one: faith comes from the word (Romans 10:17) but obedience (type of fruit) comes from faith:

Romans 1:4-5

“and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power[a] by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from[b] faith for his name’s sake.” NIV