WHAT MATTERS MOST
LUKE 3:7-9
LUKE 3:7-9
7 Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, "Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin 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. 9 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."
OBSERVATION:
John the Baptist was a prophet who preceded Jesus. His role was to prepare the people for the coming of Jesus. He was not the founder of the Southern Baptist denomination.
John had a very unique ministry. He would not identify today as being "woke" or politically correct. And he was not about microaggression. He was full-on macro. He was very blunt and had a piercing message.
In our passage today, John welcomed the people who came to hear him by calling them the offspring of snakes. Please don't try this at home.
But John's primary message to these Jews was stop relying on your Jewish heritage. Being a child of Abraham was not enough to make you right with God.
John admonished the people to not just talk about repenting before God. Rather bring forth fruit. Or actually do what repentance requires. Every tree that did not bear good fruit would be cut down.
John's simple message was that being right in God's sight was a matter of how you lived. More than a rich Jewish lineage, your actions were what mattered most.
APPLICATION:
Occasionally I will hear some preacher say they have a John the Baptist type ministry. Usually, that's an excuse to be harsh.
But John's message is still important. It's not going to a church or being raised in a Christian home that makes a person right. Rather it it's making the decision to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior that makes us right in God's sight. We have to act on that promise.
And we don't stop there. The fruit of our lives, what is produced and visible, is still very important. We believe in Jesus and receive salvation. Now we are to show others Jesus in our lives. We are representatives, ambassadors for Him.
Don't spend time worrying about being cut down and thrown in the fire. Our salvation is by God's grace. Now we are free and capable of bearing Christ-like fruit in our lives.
PRAYER:
Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of righteousness that I have through Jesus. Help me to live a fruit bearing life that honors Him and glorifies You!