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Luke 6:43–45 “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. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

I’ve had a few issues with my garden this spring, but it has started producing. I had my first tomato this week, and several handfuls of strawberries already. We have had plenty of rain so far, but I have an automated watering system on my garden to make sure the plants are kept watered throughout the growing season.

I also have three small peach trees which all have fruit on them already. We’ll see if the birds get them again this year before I do.

You have to know where to find the fruit. I don’t go out to the cedar trees expecting to find peaches. I don’t look for strawberries on my cactus or irises.

Healthy plants that are properly fed and nourished produce good fruit. What comes out of you is what is in you. It won’t come out of you if it is not in you.

A person who had the love of God in his or her heart will let that flow through to others. That will be the kind of fruit he or she bears. When you are fed by God’s Word and sacraments, you have the assurance of forgiveness because of what Jesus has done for you. You know you belong to God and will live with Him forever. You will strive to be the person He has called you to be because you are grateful for the free gift of salvation He has already given to you.

A person who does not have this assurance in his or her life will have no reason to strive to bear good fruit.

What kind of fruit is your life bearing?

In my retirement I have the opportunity to listen to a lot of other preachers, something I didn’t get to do a lot of when I was in the pulpit every Sunday. I would guess you can imagine that preachers listen to other preachers with a critical ear, and I certainly do. But I do so not to be critical of the speaker. Rather I listen so that I can dig deeper into God’s Word myself. I want to see whether or not what they have said lines up with what God has told us in His Word. It causes me to question whether my own understanding of Scripture needs refining.

Let me give you some examples. Recently I heard someone talking about the gifts of the Spirit laid out in Galatians.

Galatians 5:22–23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

He then proceeded to identify this passage as Law, because it shows us how we fall short of God’s desire for us. That made me think “huh?” After all, the passage says “Against such things there is no law.” But he was correct. It was talking about living the new life to which God calls those who have put their faith in Jesus. We strive to live according to God’s Law as a grateful response to knowing we have been saved.

Then there was the pastor talking about “Doubting Thomas” and he wondered whether or not doubt was sin. He said “maybe.” He suggested that doubt comes from questioning your faith. If it causes you to dig deeper into God’s Word for answers, is it sin? I saw his point. But it made me think “Huh?” because a literal translation of the Greek in John 20 has Jesus saying to Thomas “Be not unbelieving but believe.” Perhaps we can think of doubt the same way we think of temptation. Being tempted is not sinful. Giving in to the temptation is.

I tell you this today because I don’t want you to think I have all the answers figured out. That is why I go back to the Bible. Always. “What does the Bible say?” That is my only reliable source of information about God. That is where I find the message of His overwhelming love that led Him to do whatever was necessary to buy me back from sin and death and give me forgiveness. And there is so much more in there for us to study and drink in and apply to our daily living.

When things make me think “huh?” I go back to the source.

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

Genesis 3:1–6 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”  “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman.  “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

Scripture records the entry of sin into the world in just six verses. One tiny act by Eve, eating the fruit they were told not to eat, brought death into this world. They had been warned not to do so

Genesis 2:15–17 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

She repeated that warning to the serpent, but the Devil was cunning and made it seem like a good thing to do. “Don’t worry…you won’t die.” So she ate it. Then she gave some to Adam, who was right there with her, and he ate it. That sin would be passed on to all their descendants

Some try to lay all the guilt at the feet of Eve. We are told that she was deceived by Satan (2 Corinthians 11:3), but she would still be held accountable for her sin. I wonder what was going on in Adam’s mind while all this was going on, since we are told he was there with her. Was he not paying attention? Did he tell her not to do it but she did it anyway? Why did he eat it so readily? Was he afraid of missing out, that she would have something he didn’t have? We do not know what he was thinking, but we do know he readily joined her in her sin.

How many times has peer pressure made you do something you knew you should not do? You are with your friends who convince you to go along with the crowd. It is a powerful influence. Even when you know better, even when you have promised you would never do that, you let yourself be convinced to do something you know is outside of God’s plan for your life. And once you have done it, Satan uses it against you for the rest of your life, reminding you that you are fallen and sinful.

Because death entered this world, Jesus chose to enter the world, too. He would die the death that the sin of Eve and Adam and all of us deserved. He could do that because He lived without sin. And God accepted His payment on our behalf. Our faith in Jesus grabs hold of what He earned. And then He defeated death for us by rising on the third day. We are in the season that reminds us to celebrate His Resurrection, but we do well to celebrate it every day.

Remembering the victory Jesus earned for you will help you resist temptations, including peer pressure.

I heard about a 4-year-old at a wedding ceremony. He was fussin’ and fidgetin’ and just about to explode. A family member thought perhaps she could calm him down if she gave him something to play with. She reached in her purse and handed him the first thing she could find – her rosary. It was the kind that had a crucifix attached to it. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but almost as quickly as he had it in his hands, he stood up on the front pew and swung it over his head like a lasso and shouted, “Hang on Jesus! You’re going for a ride.”

Hang on – you’re going for a ride. You’ve probably heard those words before. They are spoken  in situations where the circumstances can be thrilling: on a roller coaster, on the back of a horse or a motorcycle, maybe in a Jeep going up a mountain trail. But have you ever heard them applied to Jesus? Maybe that little four-year-old was on to something. “Hang on Jesus! You’re going for a ride.”

From the glory of heaven into the womb of a virgin named Mary…down the dirt road from Nazareth to Bethlehem in utero…down the birth canal and into a stable, into the arms of Mary and Joseph, to be laid in a cattle trough…down the road to Egypt to escape being murdered by a jealous King Herod. Hang on Jesus, you’re going for a ride!

Back to Bethlehem and Nazareth to be raised…going all around the Sea of Galilee, healing and teaching and loving and serving…up a Mount of Transfiguration where His glory would be seen by Peter, James and John…on to Jerusalem on a donkey, hearing the hosannas of the crowd…to the Upper Room, celebrating Passover with his disciples, one of whom would betray Him…instituting a meal of remembrance and promise…in prayer in a Garden, sweat like drops of blood…and then a kiss of betrayal. Hang on Jesus, you’re going for a ride!

 Led to the Jewish courts, where Peter would deny even knowing him…led before Pilate to be mocked and whipped and ridiculed…led before Herod for more of the same…taken before Pilate again and hearing the shouts “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” and then beaten some more…His disciples all abandoned him. The Savior whose birth had been announced by angels now stands all alone. Hang on Jesus, you’re going for a ride!

 To Calvary, carrying His cross yet bearing my sin, and yours and the sins of all people…on a cross, outside Jerusalem, raised up for all to see…My God, My God, why have you forsaken me! Hang on Jesus! Don’t come down from the cross. Hang on, pay my debt. Hang on for me!

 And then it was finished…lifeless, taken down from the cross…carried by his friends and placed in a tomb that was sealed up for good. But wait…the ride wasn’t over. On that third day, what a ride! Bursting out of the tomb, alive, shining with His glory as God, showing Himself to His disciples…down the road to Emmaus creating burning hearts…through closed doors, to frightened and doubting disciples. He says, “Peace be to you!” After forty days of showing Himself, He goes up the Mount of Ascension, through the clouds to the right hand of the Father. What a Ride! And the disciples were told, “Don’t stand there looking up into the sky. He’ll be back. He’s coming again.” What a ride!

Our ride through this life can be pretty intense. Sometimes it is exhilarating, the next moment terrifying and devastating. Often times the things that get us into the most trouble and that hurt us the most are things that we have done to ourselves by our own choosing. We make bad decisions, going where we should not go and doing what we should not do. Your ride through this life can be very rough. At times, you may feel as though you cannot hold on. Critics will pound on you. Enemies seem to surround and overwhelm you. Life can be brutal. That is when you need to hang on. Hang on to Jesus. Hang on to God’s promises. Hang on to the one who hung onto that cross for you. Jesus has done everything you need to be forgiven and have the confidence of God being on your side, loving you, saving you, and wanting the best for you now and for all eternity.

Hang on to Jesus. As you hold onto Him, remember that He holds on to you. It is not your own determination that will keep you safe. It is Jesus hanging on to you. He said that to His first disciples:

John 10:27-30 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

 Jesus will hang on to you. He went on quite a ride to earn your forgiveness. All the way from “For Unto You is born this day a Savior” to “He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!” and beyond that to “He is coming again!”  This one is the one who wants to go with you on your ride through this life.

“Hang on – You’re going for a ride.” Jesus wants you to know that He went through that ride for you. He will hang on to you and be with you every step of the way in your ride through this life. And what a ride it will be!

My previous devotion was about a child imagining Jesus saying “Ta-Da” when He came out of the tomb. For a long time the notification sound on my phone when I received a text message was the “Ta-Da” sound. You can listen to it here.

Years ago I set my phone to go into “Do not disturb mode” on Sunday mornings from seven a.m. until noon. I usually didn’t have it with me when I led worship and Bible Class, but by setting it to quiet mode I was covered in case I forgot to take it out of my pocket.

After I retired, I left that setting unchanged. For the first several years, we did not attend services at the congregation where I had served so that they could make the transition to a new pastor without our presence. That meant we visited a lot of different congregations for a three year period, including several that were of different denominations. One Sunday we attended a local Bible Church service. It started at 11 a.m. The pastor’s message was at the end of the service, and He was preaching for quite a while. I didn’t know what time it was, but in his message, the pastor had just made a point and paused for dramatic effect. During that few seconds of silence, my phone sounded a very loud “Ta-Da.” It was ten minutes after noon and my phone was no longer in “Do Not Disturb.” The sound was loud enough for everyone to hear, including the pastor. It was as though it was timed to emphasize his point. He quickly said, “Thank you!” which got a few laughs and he continued on with the rest of his message.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could add special effects to our daily lives to highlight and emphasize the things we want others to see? The truth is, you can. Your lives are to be a witness to the Good News of Jesus as Savior. You are to reflect His love to the world around you. You have been led by the Spirit of God to know and believe that Jesus is your Savior, that He did what was needed to rescue you from your sin and give you life instead of death. Your lives should be lived in response to that wonderful news. You add your own little “Ta-das” when you show your faith in action.

1 Peter 2:12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

James 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

Christ is Risen! Alleluia! You have that certainty. Share it with others through your words and actions. Ta-da!