Fruit makes a difference

Acts 2

I am sure that this is a very familiar passage for you so I am choosing today to not dwell on the obvious parts of this passage but instead on a couple of things almost hidden.

This small band of 120 faithful to Jesus, where in the hub of all the activity, a great festival was taking place and God showed up in the middle of it all. Think for a moment being in Dallas on February 6th in a small backroom of a hotel when God shows up. In that moment, a boldness overcomes you and you go right to the stadium as people are being seated for the Super Bowl, grab the microphone and begin to preach. Basically that is what Peter did on this day in Acts 2. Can you imagine doing that? In Peter’s case it was not his zeal that sent him to preach but a push from the Holy Spirit, the response was overwhelming 3000 people repented, were baptized in water and the Holy Spirit that day.

One of the key blessings of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is the fruit of the Spirit being activated in powerful ways in our lives. Like anything else in our spiritual maturity we have to allow Him to have His way in our lives. The first disciples did seem to struggle with that as much as we do today.

There is almost a side mention here in verse 47 that I don’t want us to miss. They had “favor with all people”. You know the list of the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, meekness, kindness, faithfulness, and self-control. Some of these come easy others not so, but the fruit gave them favor with “all people”. The outsiders saw their love for one another, their care and compassion, the way they were always together celebrating each other and the Lord. They saw the way the walked humbly and were always open to learn from their leaders. It was the true fruit of the Holy Spirit being active. The world back-bites, gossips, gets easily offended, lies and so on but these people were living a different way and because of this many were saved. Notice it doesn’t say they preached the Gospel. They were living the Gospel, people saw it and wanted it. Our challenge is to live in such a way that when people see us, we have already preached to them without words. We have lived the Gospel before them. Our fruit is good fruit. The love, joy, peace, and all the other fruit is alive in us.

I know many struggle with the “daily-ness” of life. It is not always easy to live a “Christ-like” life. If you are filled with the Holy Spirit you do not need to work it out as much as allow Him to work through you. Trees don’t work hard to produce fruit it is a natural outcome of who they are. Allow the Lord to bear fruit in your life, fruit that everyone can see. This way you be always sharing your faith with others. Jesus put it this way in Matthew 5

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Tomorrow – Acts 3