[I’ll give you a moment to digest this image I posted. It’s a ‘re-make/update’ of one a friend of mine had done years ago and it turned out to be easier and quicker to use myself as the ‘subject’ so I created my own graphic.]. You’re going to want to read this one all the way through today.

I began this week talking about ‘miracle births. Might be worth your time to go review the past two days if you missed those. 

 Now you may know this - - or not…but we were born into this world with a defective nature. A nature that made us incapable of living out the life God intended for us to live. We were originally made in His likeness and image and character (Gen 1:26). 

 But sin happened… and changed all that. So we ended up manifesting the likeness and character of the one who tempted Adam and Eve to begin with… which was how sin entered the world and then was passed down to us today. (Romans 5:12) 

 Scripture is pretty clear as well that we are not ‘all God’s children’. In fact, John writes how you can clearly tell who are the children of God and children of the devil. (1 John 3:10). Might check out John 8:42-47 as well. 

 That phrase, “Who’s your daddy?” takes on a whole new meaning as well, does it not? 

 Have we not all spent time looking at a new baby or child or grandchild and trying to assess who they look like and resemble? Is it their Mom? Dad? Grandparent? We all do it. Sometimes the resemblances are uncanny. I’ve always marveled over the wonders of DNA. 

 So when we all inherited a corrupt and sinful nature, we did not resemble our Father who created us. He is Holy and Good and Loving and Righteous. No matter how hard you try to see it, we just didn’t take after Him. We didn’t have His DNA. We were born of ‘corruptible seed’ as Peter wrote. We resembled our ‘other father’, Satan. We all were born with sinful and selfish hearts. Both Jeremiah and Jesus used the word ‘wicked’ and ‘evil’. (Jer 17:9; Mark 7:23) 

 Ephesians 2 said we were ‘sons of disobedience when we formerly walked according to the prince of the air, the spirit who now works in them’. Paul was writing to ‘followers’ of Jesus and made it clear that followers of Jesus ‘formerly walked’ this way. Which implies they don’t walk that way anymore. 

 God grew weary with our sinful ways and tried to work with us through covenants but we continued to turn to our own ways. God finally set laws down that would have consequences if anyone broke them. He even simplified His law and basically summed it up by saying- You are either going to love me with all your heart, soul and minds and love your neighbor as yourself, or you will be destroyed. (Acts 3:22-23) 

 I know…sounds so serious and dramatic. But scripture supports this throughout. And it’s not like God is sitting up there wanting to destroy anyone. Sin does that. Selfish choices do that. And to just put it out there which I can continue to support with plenty of bible…Satan is the one who is the ‘destroyer’ who comes to ‘steal, kill, and destroy’. (John 10:10). 

And where he sees sin…it is an open door which gives him access to come in and devour. (Matt 12:43) Oh…remember the curse that was put on the serpent back in Genesis 3? He was going to crawl on his belly all the days of his life and eat ‘dust’ for food. 

 Guess what man’s flesh is made of? Dust. (why not allow the Spirit to connect some dots here for you) 

 So we understand from study of scripture, that God does have a Law that He wants to be followed and obeyed just like Jesus did. We are to walk in love. Love is the fulfillment of the law. 

 That’s not complicated, is it? 

 Well…actually, there is a ‘catch’. Being a ‘good ole boy’ is not the same as ‘loving others as Christ loved us’. Having a charming personality is not the same as ‘being like Jesus’. You see, God’s love is the standard…not ours. (John 13:34) 

 A quick review of 1 Cor 13 will give you a good idea of what His love looks like. In fact, Paul elaborates in that chapter that you can busy yourself with many good and noble acts of service and spiritual activity…but if you don’t possess this ‘God kind of love’, your works and acts of service profit you nothing. Which might explain the response that man in Matt 7:21-23 received on his judgment day. 

Here’s the other thing…no matter how hard you try to ‘achieve’ or ‘practice’ this ‘God kind of love’, you will fail every time. Reason being…you can’t truly love others from the heart when you have a defective heart filled with sin and all kinds of evil wickedness. (Mark 7:21-23). It’s impossible. You need God’s nature…IN you. Peter eludes to that in 2 Peter 1:4. 

 Which is why we needed God to intervene. And …He did. Merry Christmas. 

He sent His Son to redeem us and give us a new heart/nature. Oh…and I should mention that you need to ‘born again’ Yep…can’t be the recipient of the gift unless you are. (John 3:3) 

 Yeah, …and one other thing. There is this ‘issue’ that needs to be dealt with. It’s your ‘old man’. As attached as we are to him, he’s gonna have to go. Maybe I should be more direct…he’s gonna have to die…as in be put to death. Not in a cage, not on a leash, not dialed down some…but put to death. Keeping him around is not an option. 

 Unless you have bought in to another gospel that allows you to let him tag along in your walk which would then be nothing more than a form of godliness. Paul even made it clear that IF you belong to Christ…you have done just that…you have crucified (as in past tense) the old man/nature with its passions and desires. At least that is what it states in Galatians 5:24. 

 Has God said? (said the serpent in Gen 3) Um…well…yes…actually He did. 

 But again, this is not something He expects you to do on your own. Because you can’t. It’s only by His grace can this happen. And may I say again, this is more than ‘poetic language’? So, you want to know that that ‘old man’ looks like? 

 May I refer you back to my image/graphic I posted?

Now here is where it gets…interestingly serious. Remember when John the Baptist appeared on the scene? Matt 3…he addressed the religious establishment of that day with this chilling warning: “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance. Even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees… And every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Matt 3:7) 

 This whole thing about ‘fruit’ was the way that Jesus made it clear how you would know a tree by and in effect…those who were abiding in Him. Not exactly rocket science now, is it? 

 Jesus used similar imagery when addressing religious crowds as HIs cousin John did: “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? - - -For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. - - - A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. (Matt 12:33-35) 

 If you want to know what is really in a person’s heart, just listen to what comes out of their mouths. (or perhaps their Facebook posts?) I wonder if this was what Paul was hinting at when he admonishes us to ‘Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? (2 Cor 13:5) 

 Again, Jesus makes the case that “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” (Matt 7:17-21) 

And while the church world draws up swords and doctrines debating over who is saved and who isn’t; or when will the rapture occur and who will go when it does…” Jesus just says to ‘abide in Him.’ 

 That really sounds like a good, safe, and sound place to be. Abiding in Him. With Him. Because truth be told, abiding in Him is where the ‘good fruit’ comes from. 

 Listen to what Jesus stated in John 15:4: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. You may want to come back tomorrow. 

 Having a better idea how this good fruit gets produced would be important given what we read today about what happens to trees that have bad fruit. 

 And we are not talking about apples and oranges and figs when we speak of ‘fruit’. Go take one more look at my graphic…and I’ll see you with another one tomorrow…Lord willing. ;-)