Bearing Fruit

Today I had the great privilege of teaching the Bible during the Circle of Love daily Bible class. This is a rolling sixty day class so I have some that are in class, some preparing for the final. One of the students asked me “Pastor Tom, what is fruit?” Well he started going into different Bible passages and I had to remind him that the test only covers the books we covered in class so read John 15 and see if you can find the answer. If you are wondering where the answer is, it is in verses 7 & 8:

“If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.” John 15:7, 8, KJV.

The answer is so simple it will escape you if you are not looking for it. In this passage, in this context, fruit that glorifies the Father in Heaven is answered prayer.

• But fruit is soul-winning you say and look to Proverbs 11:30, and you are right in that context it is.
• The fruit is the fruit of the Spirit. And according to Galatians 5 that is correct. 

In the context given here, it does not matter what the prayer is for as long as it glorifies the Father in Heaven. The prayer could be for salvation, healing, deliverance, the fruit of the Spirit. We need to think outside the box we keep trying to put God into. When the unsaved world sees God moving in the lives of believers through answered prayer, His name is glorified. Yes I know I have said that three times but some things need to be repeated. They need to sink in and take hold. It is not what we normally think of as fruit, but if it is what the Bible says, who are we to argue with it? God is best able to determine what will glorify His name.