Dying to Bear Fruit

There are certain Scriptural principles that we must contemplate deeply to really have a good understanding of them. It is not so much that they are difficult to understand. It is that they are so full of meaning that it takes time to allow all of the meaning to get through to our minds and hearts. In fact, some of them are paradoxes. They seem to contain opposing truths, but the opposites produce a greater truth.

Jesus gave us one such spiritual principle as He was teaching those who were seeking Him. (John 12:24) He told them that it was very true that unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. However, if it dies, it bears much fruit. How can that be? We have to consider what happens to that grain of wheat to see why this is true.

A grain of wheat is a seed. A seed has the potential to bear fruit of its own kind. However, if it just remains a seed, it can't produce fruit. It has to be transformed into a wheat plant to bear fruit. That transformation only happens when the seed is buried and it dies. From the death of the seed springs a plant with the power to reproduce itself many times. 

That is what must happen to us if we are to bear fruit for the kingdom of God. We must die to the old and become a new creation in Christ. The old person we were before our salvation must die, if not we will have not spiritual ability to bear good fruit for the Lord. However, when we die to self and trust Jesus to save us, we are made new. Then, we have the Spirit in us, and we can bear much fruit for the Lord.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read John 13-15.