In middle school and high school, I helped with the music during various Vacation Bible Schools. One summer I helped teach a song that taught the fruits of the spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, and kindness. Goodness and self control. Faithfulness and gentleness.” And then, the song continued: “My fruit is gonna grow. Lord because I know you love me, it’s like I’ve got strong roots. Like an orange, banana, or apple tree, I’m gonna grow good fruit.”
When we abide in Christ, that’s what happens: we grow and bear good fruit. Last week, I mentioned that being connected to Christ leads to a fruitful life and one of generosity. We talked a little about the importance of being rooted in God’s love, and loving God with our entire being. We grow in Christ because it is only through Christ that we bear good fruit. As David Lose noted one year, “Branches don’t do that well when separated from the vine. At best they, like cut flowers, have a burst of color and bloom but then fade and wither.” Instead, we have the promise that “Jesus is with [us], for [us], abiding in [us], and will not let [us] go.” When we abide in Christ as he abides in us, we abide in his Love, and therefore love one another. That love bears the fruit of generosity as we trust in Jesus and realize the abundance that we have. We lose our fears and the desire to do everything possible to hold on to what we have. We’re more willing to take a risk and look outside of ourselves.
When we’re generous and go outside of ourselves, we can be generous with our time and listen to others. We can be generous with our space and freely provide places for community groups to meet: the boy scouts and cub scouts have been meeting here for years if not decades. We provide a place for those battling addiction to come together and support each other in sobriety through AA-style meetings and support. And a month or two ago, a girl-scout troop started meeting here once a week as well. I’ve seen your generosity with these groups: the loyalty and connection to the Boy Scouts as some remember their days in the troop; making sure to open the building and even provide home-baked treats in support of those who are working to stay sober. Your tithes and offerings help us continue to pay for this building which provides a place, not only for community groups to meet and support one another, but also for the meals that we have, like our annual Christmas dinner. We provided a safe, fun Trunk or Treat last Saturday: it being earlier in the day and in the season worked really well for some parents so that the kids could participate before life got busy and before it got dark.
When we abide in Christ, we can bear the good fruit of generosity. We can find ways to reach outside of ourselves in ways that support the community. By listening, we can learn what our neighbors need. We can build relationships with our neighbors as well as other churches and organizations who are also reaching out to make the world a better place. Being rooted in Christ so that we trust in God and love God with our entire being means that there is a trust in God that things will work out. When we can see the abundance of God, when we can see God is at work in our lives and trust God’s hand, we are more able to trust that things will be ok. And when we can trust that God is at work and things will be ok, we can let go of a fear that there’s not enough and instead give freely, realizing the bounty around us and just how much we have.
Through Christ, “[we share a] deep interconnection–part of one vine. We are to love one another because what affects one, affects us all. The fruit that ‘lasts’ is the fruit that is shared and multiplied in community.”
This is the fruit that comes with abiding in Christ. With generosity, we can have a generous spirit that allows us to listen and take into consideration what others need. Being connected to Christ leads to a fruitful life and one of generosity. Let’s live out our faith with generosity and love, continuing to share the love of Christ as we share our blessings. Thanks be to God. Amen.
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