Read Online
“Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears
bad fruit.” Matthew 7:16–17
“So by their fruits you will know them.” This is how our Gospel
passage for today concludes. It offers us an exceptionally
practical way by which you can discern the working of God in your
own life and in the life of others.
When you look at your own life, what good fruit, born for the
upbuilding of the Kingdom of God, do you see? Some people may find
little to no fruit born, either for good or bad. Such complacency
is, in and of itself, bad fruit. Other people may see an abundance
of fruit, thus producing many consequences in this world. They
influence the lives of many, and their public actions make a true
difference. Sometimes for good...and other times for evil.
When discerning the actions of God in our world, we must first be
very objective. The evil one is always very deceptive and regularly
presents his bad fruit as good. For example, the legalization of
abortion is often presented by many within our world as a “right to
choose” or a “health service.” But the intentional death of any
unborn child is clearly “bad fruit” from a “rotten tree.” There are
even many so-called “humanitarian groups” or very wealthy
“philanthropists” who present their work as “good fruit,” when it
is anything but good. And on the contrary, there are many who work
hard to bring forth a greater respect for life from the moment of
conception to natural death, or strive to uphold the sacredness of
marriage as God designed it, or work to promote the freedom to
worship in accord with the will of God, but are labeled by the
secular world as prejudiced, bigoted, fearmongers and even hateful.
But their work, done very sacrificially, truly does bear good fruit
for the Kingdom of God.
How about your own life? When you examine your actions and the
fruit born of those actions, from where does that fruit originate?
Does it come from a false sense of compassion, a misguided
“charity,” and a fear of being criticized for standing for the
truth? Or does it come from a deep love of God, an awareness of the
truth God has revealed to us, and through a courageous proclamation
of the pure Gospel?
Good fruit, born from the heart of the Father in Heaven, will
always mirror the truths of our faith. A false sense of compassion,
false accusations, persecutions and the like will flow from the
rotten trees in our world. We must work diligently to be those good
trees that bear the good fruit coming from God. This requires a
radical commitment to do what is right in the face of the evil all
around us.
Reflect, today, upon these images Jesus presents. Do you see
clearly both the good and bad fruit around you? Is your life
helping to foster the lies of the evil one or the truth and love of
God? Look at the fruit your life bears, as well as the fruit within
our world, in an objective way, comparing it to the clear and
unambiguous teachings of Jesus. Seek out that good fruit with all
your heart and do all you can to bring it forth, no matter the
cost, and you will not only save your soul, you will also help feed
others with the good fruit of Heaven.
My Lord of all truthfulness, You and You alone define the good
and evil in our world. Your truth reveals the good fruit that is
born to nourish the growth of Your glorious Kingdom. Give me
courage and clarity of mind and heart so that I may continually do
all that You call me to do so as to bring the good fruit of the
Kingdom to all in need. Jesus, I trust in You.
Source of content:
catholic-daily-reflections.com
Copyright 2024 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved.
Used with permission via RSS feed.
Featured images above: Jesus tells the Parable of the Barren
Tree, via flickr
Kommentare (0)
Melde dich an, um einen Kommentar zu schreiben.