Real Fruit

This next Sunday we'll complete a short five week series on "Growing".  I started this four Sundays ago because I had the idea of doing five messages on this theme using a metaphor of the Garden to describe how we can grow.
The outcome of real growth - whether in a garden, or in our own lives - is fruit.  God built into the creation...plants, animals, humans...the ability to grow.  Growth leads to reproduction.  When we are growing we are able to reproduce, and that leads to real fruit.

Many years ago I began to seek Christ in order to follow him and allow his life to define my life.  It led me to lots of realizations - mainly along the line of my own flesh, and the need to deal with that flesh in order to continue to grow.  Because of some habitual behaviors I was stuck...not growing.
I picked up a book - small and short - but packed with insight into why we don't grow.  From the author I went back to the New Testament and saw the words of Jesus.

John 12:23-26 (ESV)
²³  And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
²⁴  Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
²⁵  Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
²⁶  If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Real fruit is not to be confused with religious behavior, or actions.  Real fruit isn't looking good, acting good. Having a head full of knowledge so that I can quote scriptures to give answers isn't fruit either.  That kind of fruit is like the incident in the gospels:

Mark 11:12-22 (ESV)
¹²  On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry.
¹³  And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.
¹⁴  And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
¹⁵  And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.
¹⁶  And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple.
¹⁷  And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.”
¹⁸  And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching.
¹⁹  And when evening came they went out of the city.
²⁰  As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots.
²¹  And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.”
²²  And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God.

Growth comes from real faith...all other kinds of superficial religious actions are irrelevant.  We reproduce the things we incorporate into our own lives.  
Take a good look at actions and attitudes - ask yourself if that is what you want to reproduce?

There's nothing in this that is "have to" in our lives.  We have choices to make, and we have things we can do to see growth occur.
Take a look at someone you respect, and want to emulate.  What do they do in their life to cause you to admire them?

Real fruit is the goal.
Real fruit is possible.
Real fruit is in Jesus' life - seeing it come into our life as we yield ("if it dies") ourselves over and over again.

My friends, grace and peace