For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light for the fruit of the light results in all goodness, righteousness, and truth discerning what is pleasing to the Lord. Don’t participate in the fruitless works of darkness, but instead expose them.      Ephesians 5:8-10 HCSB

We spend our lives here on earth as sinners. Sounds kind of hopeless, doesn’t it? But we have hope in Jesus Christ. He came to save us from our sins. We can accept Him and trust in Him and surrender to Him and be moved from the darkness into the light.

Once we surrender our lives to Him, we are no longer in darkness but in the light of the Lord. Paul encourages the Ephesians to walk as children of the light. He speaks of the fruit of the light resulting in all goodness. As we have gone through this past week, we have discussed the fruit of the Spirit.

When we are in darkness, we may believe that our anger will produce good results. We may believe that pride produces good results, but they don’t. This type of behavior produces no fruit. It causes us to be fruitless.

We began this week by talking about using the right ingredients to achieve the desired results. As time draws near, we must choose where we want to spend eternity while it’s still up to us. There will come a time when we face judgment and God will decide our final destination.

But for now, He gives us a choice. The Bible tells us in Galatians 6:7 not to be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, he will also reap. In Urban slang that may be translated to, “You get it how you live.”

How we live our lives here will determine where we go. It will determine if we spend eternity in heaven or hell. It will determine if we get a reward or punishment.

As Christians, we must avoid the fruitless works of darkness. We must avoid the desires of the flesh. We are called to love others. We are called to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. We must be a beacon of light to those who are lost.

We will either be fruitful or fruitless. We will either show others what it looks like to walk in the Spirit or what it looks like to gratify the desires of the flesh.

We can’t exhibit fruit if we are fruitless. Imagine going to a farmer’s market for some sweet, juicy fruits and seeing empty baskets on the tables. You can’t get fruit from an empty basket or a dead tree or vine.

That’s kind of what it’s like when we profess to be a Christian but have no fruit. It’s like going to church but worrying, being angry, and just plain grumpy and mean. It just doesn’t make sense.

If we walk by the Spirit, we will not satisfy the desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). If we walk by the Spirit and don’t satisfy the desires of the flesh, we will produce fruit. The world will recognize us by our fruit (Matthew 7:16).

Most importantly, we will be rewarded with eternal life in heaven with our Lord and Savior.

Your fruit is always on display, be sure your basket is not empty.

Have a great day!