March 21, 2021
“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. (Luke 6:43-45 NIV)
I have heard it said before that we are what we eat. This is to say, that literally my body is affected by the quality, quantity, and nature of the food that I eat. The same thing is true about the health of our souls. Several years ago, the Lord woke me up early one morning and told me, “meet with me daily, give ear and listen to me and eat of the richest of fare that your soul might live” which is from Isaiah 55:1-3.
In a very real way, I will eventually speak to (feed) other people what I have been listening to (eating) and treasuring up in my heart. This is because my mouth speaks what my heart is full of (Luke 6:45). Jesus said that the words that he speaks are spirit and life (John 6:63). All spoken words are spirit but not all words produce life. The power of death and life is in the tongue (Proverbs 18:21).
Everything God does is by his speaking forth what he desires to be. He calls into existence that which has no existence (Romans 4:17). This was demonstrated when the creation of the entire cosmos began when he said, “Let there be light and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). Jesus is the Word of God (John 1:1-3) and everything that was created was created by and through him, and even now is sustained by the speaking of his powerful word (Hebrews 1:1-3).
Jesus told several parables concerning the nature of things in the created world, to help us understand the nature of things in his eternal kingdom of heaven. This includes the story of a farmer who scattered seeds in the soil. Even though he does not understand how it happens, the farmer watches in faith as the seeds sprout, grow, and produce grain (Mark 4:26-29). Jesus told another story about a farmer who sowed seed that landed on a variety of soils (Luke 8:4-14). In this parable, Jesus said that only the seed that landed on good soil sprouted, grew to maturity, and produced a crop. He went on to say that the good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear his words, retain them, and by persevering produce a crop.
Everything in creation that has the ability reproduce itself, does so in a manner that it produces that which is like itself, kind after kind. If you plant apple seeds, they will produce apple trees when they sprout and not some other kind of tree. Proverbs 22:8 states, “Whoever sows injustice reaps calamity” and Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived; God cannot be mocked, a man reaps what he sows”.
Jesus told another parable in Matthew 13:24-30 about a man who sowed good seed in his field. After the man went to bed his enemy came and sowed weed seeds in the same field. When the seeds sprouted and began to grow, both the good seed and the weed seeds began to produce plants and eventually more seed of the same kind. Jesus made it clear that his words and our words have the capability to reproduce kind after kind. Every day we will hear or read thousands of words from various sources. The speaker or writer of these words all hope that their words will take root in someone’s heart and produce what they desire.
I said earlier, we are what we eat. I have a choice as to what words I will receive of the many that I will hear or read each day. Receiving them and allowing to take root will result in them reproducing kind after kind. Whatever takes root will eventually come out of my mouth. It is my ongoing prayer that I will have a noble and good heart that receives and treasures what God my Father is speaking each day. I also pray that I will guard my heart above all else because out of it flows everything that I do (Proverbs 4:23). May I not be among those “who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter (Isaiah 5:20).
Blessings,
Kevin