“Wow, Grandpa, look at that tomato plant. It’s a big one!” Justin pointed excitedly to a rather unusual tomato plant in the back of the garden.
Grandpa didn’t look so impressed. “It’s a big one, all right,” he replied. “But do you see any tomatoes?”
Justin skipped over to the plant and began inspecting it more carefully. To his surprise, he hardly saw any tomatoes—only an abundance leaves.
“Why aren’t there any tomatoes, Grandpa?”
Grandpa shook his head. “That plant has been so focused on foliage it’s forgotten what really matters. Come here, Justin. See this plant over here? Now this one is bearing fruit.”
Justin followed his grandfather over to the other corner of the garden where there was a tomato plant. At first glance, the plant was unimpressive. It only had a few leaves, and they weren’t perfectly green and luscious like the other plant’s. But it had many clumps of bright red tomatoes ready for picking. This plant was bearing fruit.
“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.” John 15:16 (KJV)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV)
“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:5 (KJV)
