June 30 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Think of an orchard or vineyard. The owner arrives to look for fruit, because that's the main interest of the fruit farmer. Lots of fruit makes the owner happy; it says that he is a good farmer. When there is no fruit, the owner trims back the branches with a pruning knife. If there is still no fruit, he cuts branches off.

Being fruit is, of course, a figure of speech when applied to people. Just as a fruit farmer works on his trees, God, the Owner of the orchard, works on people. God's aim is to harvest as much fruit as possible. He uses the knife only to get a richer yield. Only if no fruit appears after all this work does God cut the branch away. To be cut off means that God no longer tolerates you as someone who belongs to the people of God.

We cannot bear fruit unless we belong to Jesus. "Apart from me you can do nothing." Only when God's grace is known to us and God's Spirit is in us can we do works that God approves. These works are the fruits that please the Father.

We bear fruit when we suffer without growing bitter, when we do good deeds without taking credit, when we obey even if it is costly, when we confess Jesus even if it makes us unpopular, when we follow Christ even when he leads us where we do not choose to go.

Bearing fruit is impossible for those who are outside of Christ. But it is nothing spectacular for those who have received new life from Jesus. When a Christian fails to bear fruit, something has gone wrong, and it's time for serious self-examination.

God does not work in vain. When God has sent this powerful grace that changes our lives, God will also reap the fruits he has caused to grow.

An old catechism says that it is impossible for those who are implanted into Christ by a true faith not to bring forth fruits of thankfulness.

REFLECTIONS

When God looks at you, what fruit does he see?

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.