Clinging to a Counterfeit Cross

So then, to preach a gospel with the thought that the production of righteous fruit is of secondary importance or optional can be likened to a farmer sowing wheat seed with the thought that producing grain is of secondary importance or optional. Both are equally absurd in that it would contradict the universally recognized purpose of sowing seed. Justification, forgiveness, reconciliation, redemption, etc. are all elements within the seed, but the primary purpose for which it is sown is to bear the fruit of righteousness. To teach that any one of the first three soils in the parable are saved contradicts and perverts the objective of sowing seed, subverting the teaching of the parable, the power of its message, and, indeed, the gospel itself. Is it any wonder then that such teaching would result in producing a multitude of “worthless” plants within the professing church? It is even as Jeremiah spoke of the false teachers in his day; “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless. They speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the Lord” (Jer. 23:16, NKJV).

This principle of the necessity of bearing fruit is a constant theme throughout the teachings of Christ. We read in the parable of the barren fig tree in Luke 13:6-9;

A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’

Although this parable primarily speaks in reference to Israel the principle set forth is universal; a fruit tree that remains barren is worthless in that it has not fulfilled the intended purpose for its existence. Israel, as depicted by the fig tree, was planted to “bear fruit to God” (Matt. 21:43) and having failed in their purpose, if they did not repent, would be cut down and destroyed. Jesus illustrates this fruit bearing principle again in the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matt. 13:24-30). In His explanation He says,

The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. – Matthew 13:37-43

Again, the good seed is sown, but here the seed “are the sons of the kingdom” v. 38. But there are also tares, the sons of the evil one, sown among the wheat. The tares are next to impossible to discern from the wheat until the grain appears on the wheat. Alford Edersheim writes;

According to the common view, these Tares represent what is botanically known as the ‘bearded Darnel’ (Lolium temulentum), a poisonous rye-grass, very common in the East, ‘entirely like wheat until the ear appears,’ or else (according to some), the ‘creeping wheat’ or ‘couch-grass’ (Triticum repens), of which the roots creep underground and become intertwined with those of the wheat. But the Parable gains in meaning if we bear in mind that, according to ancient Jewish (and, indeed, modern Eastern) ideas, the Tares were not of different seed, but only a degenerate kind of wheat. Whether in legend or symbol, Rabbinism has it that even the ground had been guilty of fornication before the judgment of the Flood, so that when wheat was sown tares sprang up. The Jewish hearers of Jesus would, therefore, think of these tares as degenerate kind of wheat, originally sprung at the time of the Flood, through the corruptness of the earth, but now, alas! so common in their fields; wholly undistinguishable from the wheat, till the fruit appeared: noxious, poisonous, and requiring to be separated from the wheat, if the latter was not to become useless.²

So then, unlike wheat, the tares bring no good fruit to maturity even as it is said of the seed sown among thorns. It is also of vital significance to understand that the tares, as representative of the unregenerate living side by side with the regenerate, do not depict those who are living outwardly sinful lives, but rather even as Judas, a tare among the disciples, they would appear outwardly to be faithful followers of Christ. When Jesus spoke of the one who would betray Him the disciples had no suspicion whatsoever that it was Judas He was speaking of; “And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, ‘Is it I, Lord?’” (Matt. 26:22). In other words, there were no discernible outward signs of unfaithfulness or sinful behavior that would single Judas out as the probable offender. This is distinct from outwardly sinful acts which require church discipline and possibly excommunication, for it speaks of the imperceptible and hidden things of the heart which only God can know and will not be fully revealed until the judgment, “Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart” (1 Cor. 4:5). The tares represent those who appear to be “good” outwardly while having none of the good fruit bearing traits which God always produces in the renewed and regenerate heart. They are inward hypocrites, even as Jesus says of the Pharisees, “So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessnes” (Matt. 23:28). The Pulpit Commentary states,

Note the important difference between the tares and the thorns. The wheat and the tares grow together till the harvest; then the tares are easily separated and burnt. The perfected wheat is as easily separated and garnered. But the thorns choke the wheat, and there is never any real gathering at all. Wheat that does not reach maturity is worth nothing as wheat. It cannot be put into the garner. Hence the keeping down of the thorns is every whit as important as the pushing forward of the wheat. If the negative conditions are neglected, the positive conditions are nullified.³

Jesus once again illustrates this “fruit bearing” principle in John 15:2-8;

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

Jesus says, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away.” The Greek word for “takes away” in this passage is “airw” (airo) and can also mean to “lift up.” In light of this, some have argued that the picture drawn here is that of a vinedresser tenderly lifting up the fruitless branch off the ground in order to help it along in the fruit bearing process. In other words, the fruitless branch is a fruitless Christian which God lovingly “lifts up” that they might eventually bear fruit. However, this would not be an adequate solution to the problem presented in the parable. The cause of the fruitlessness was in that the branch was not abiding in the Vine for Jesus says in v. 5, “He who abides in Me...bears much fruit.” In other words, according to Christ, if it were already abiding it would not be fruitless. A branch not abiding is fruitless because it is not truly attached to the vine. Grafting would be the only process whereby a non-abiding branch might take root and bear fruit (Rom. 11:23). Therefore lifting a non-abiding branch off the ground (a lifting that was generally done to keep the fruit already on a branch from spoiling), would be to no avail. In addition, considering what Christ says of the fruit bearing branch, “Every branch that bears fruit He prunes” stating the purpose “that it may bear more fruit,” one would expect He would have done likewise in v. 2 by saying, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He lifts up,” stating the purpose “that it might bear fruit.” However, when translating the word as “takes away” or “cuts off” the meaning is clear with no need for any added clarification.

Jesus was not suggesting, but commanding that his disciples abide in Him that they might bear fruit to the glory of the Father. He says in v. 14, “You are My friends if you do what I command you.” If they chose not to abide in Christ it would be a severing of their relationship with Him by a willful act of defiance. To refuse to abide would not be a one-time act of disobedience, but an ongoing state of unbelief. A branch does not change its state from day to day; it either abides in the vine or dies. Moreover, what possible reason would the disciples have for not abiding in Him if not for a willful rejection of all that He claimed, did, and taught? It would be similar to what Paul says in Romans 11:19-22,

‘Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.’ That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.

If they refused to abide, would we expect Christ to respond to such unfaithfulness with tender loving care? Paul says “consider the goodness and severity of God.” The goodness of God if they would abide in His goodness by faith or the severity of being “cut off” by abiding in unbelief. It is not left to speculation for we are given numerous examples of Christ’s typical stance towards those who remain fruitless. He says cut down the fruitless fig tree (Matt. 13:7) — Cut down and throw into the fire every fruitless tree (Matt. 3:10) — He sends out His angels to gather up and burn the fruitless tares (Matt. 13:30) — He separates the chaff from the fruitful wheat and burns it with unquenchable fire (Matt. 3:12) — He takes the kingdom away from and destroys the obstinate and fruitless Jews and says He will give it to those who will bear the fruit of it (Matt. 21:43). He says in Luke 12:47, “And that servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating.” Why then in this instance would we think His response to the fruitless branch would be one of tender loving care rather than severity? That the branch would be “cut off” rather than “lifted up” would be in perfect harmony with His general posture toward the unproductive and barren who profess a relationship with God. Christ then eliminates any reasonable doubt as to the ultimate fate of any branch that would remain in a fruitless state in v. 6, “If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.” It is significant that not one of the dozens of established Bible translations has ever translated this word as “lifts up” in this text but rather as “takes away,” “cuts off,” or “removes.” The “Net Bible” translators note;

The Greek verb “airw” can mean “lift up”; as well as “take away,” and it is sometimes argued that here it is a reference to the gardener lifting up (i.e., propping up) a weak branch so that it bears fruit again. In Johannine usage the word occurs in the sense of lift up in John 8:59 and 5:8-12, but in the sense of “remove” it is found in John 11:39, 11:48, 16:22, and 17:15. In context...the meaning “remove” does seem more natural and less forced (particularly in light of v. 6, where worthless branches are described as being “thrown out”; an image that seems incompatible with restoration)...It seems most likely, therefore, that the branches who do not bear fruit and are taken away and burned are false believers, those who profess to belong to Jesus but who in reality do not belong to him. In the Gospel of John, the primary example of this category is Judas. In 1 John 2:18-19 the antichrists fall into the same category; they too may be thought of as branches that did not bear fruit. They departed from the ranks of the Christians because they never did really belong, and their departure shows that they did not belong.⁴

As a result of interpreting “takes away” as “lifts up” in this passage, many have concluded that “abiding in Christ” is optional for the Christian. Here again, we have the teaching that speaks of two types of Christians — One who abides and bears fruit, and one who does not abide, bears no fruit, and yet remains a believer. But what does Scripture say? “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 4:15). Is this not the confession of every Christian? “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). Whoever does not confess that Jesus is the Son of God is not a believer and so likewise whoever does not abide in God and God in them. When Jesus said in John 6:54 “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life” and then in verse 56, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him” He makes it clear that those alone who abide in Him have eternal life. The original Greek points out that the “abiding” v. 56, is a continuous action. We find then that only those who continuously eat of His flesh and drink of His blood, i.e., continuously abide in Him, “continue in his kindness,” will have eternal life. John says in 1 Jn. 3:6, “No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.” In other words, the one who does not abide in Him has neither seen Him nor known Him which is the antithesis of how Scripture identifies the believer (1 Jn. 4:6, 7, 1 Thess. 4:5, 2 Thess. 1:8, Tit. 1:16, 3 Jn. 11, Matt. 7:23). Abiding in Christ for the Christian is no more of an option than abiding in Adam is for an unbeliever. Those born of the Spirit live and abide in Christ — Those born of the flesh live and abide in Adam. The one being characterized by the “works of the flesh” the other being characterized by the “fruit of the Spirit.” The analogy of the relationship between the Vinedresser, the Vine and the branch is a perfect and striking image of every Christians intimate union with Christ under the attentive and loving care of God the Father in salvation. Spurgeon comments,

The vine is constantly used in Scripture as a picture of the nominal church of Christ; so, like the vine, we must either bring forth fruit or we shall be counted good for nothing.... We must bear fruit, or we shall certainly perish.⁵

The NIDNTT states:

Such an abiding in Christ makes a man Christ’s property right down to the depths of his being. It is not confined to spiritual relationship or agreement, but means present experience of salvation and hence life (John 6:57). Therefore ‘He who says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked’ (1 John 2:6). The indwelling Christ, or life through the word of Christ, demands and forms a life conforming to His Spirit and nature and will and brings about sanctification. ‘He who does the will of God abides forever’ (1 John 2:17). Abiding in Christ is the same as bearing fruit (John 15:5). If there is no fruit, it is a sign that fellowship has already been interrupted (John 15:6, 1 John 3:6). Where this is true, the wrath of God rests upon the unbeliever (John 3:36).⁶

The branch in the Vine is depicted as being grafted in as a result of believing in Christ (Rom 11:16-24). In outward appearance every graft would seem to be abiding in the vine, however, unless it takes root it never bears fruit. Jesus says, “If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch” “thrown into the fire, and burned” (Jn. 15:6). It is an unsuccessful graft as a result of a spurious faith. A branch with a genuine faith becomes one with the vine, with the life of the vine flowing into the branch, and thus it is living, thriving, and productive. This is the branch in whom the Word of God “effectively works” (1 Thess. 2:13, NKJV), wherein it is “living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). It is then “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). It informs us of our purpose in this world, how we are to live while here (1 Pet. 1:17), and of our hope when departing. We hide it in our hearts, we treasure it in our bosom, our eyes are now opened to it, our ears can now hear it, we speak of it with our lips, we meditate upon it with our minds, do what it commands with our hands and walk in its way with our feet. It is our counselor, our wisdom, our comforter, our help, our hope, our joy. It upholds us, teaches us, strengthens us, encourages us, humbles us and exalts us. We embrace its promises with our whole heart (Acts 8:37, NKJV). It is more precious to us than fine gold and we treasure it more than our necessary food (Job 23:12). We abide in this living Word and it abides and lives in us that we might bear fruit to the honor and glory of our most beloved Father. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples” (Jn. 15:8, NASB). “That they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified” (Isa. 61:3). This all being accomplished as the life of the Vine flows into the grafted branch, working in it for the sole purpose of yielding fruit (Phil 2:13), the type and quality being the product of the Vine itself (Gal. 5:22). And since we could not, and would not, generate this fruit apart from the Vine, the Vinedresser rightly receives all the glory for the “good fruit” which is produced. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me” (Jn. 15:4). The branch that never takes root finds that the Word is dull, monotonous, unmoving, and ineffectual; A lifeless, dead letter, and thus the branch dries up, withers, and dies and is taken away and burned. “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead” (Jas. 2:26). So again, in the parable of the vine, we are taught the principle that we are not saved by bearing the fruit of obedience, however, if we are not bearing fruit, it is a sure sign that the graft was unsuccessful and we are not saved (1 Jn. 2:4). “Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us” (1 Jn. 3:26). In Matthew 13:41, 42 it says of the tares,

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw (Grk. ballo) them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

And in Matthew 7:19,

Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown (ballo) into the fire.

And in John 15:6,

If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown (ballo) away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown (ballo) into the fire, and burned (all emphasis added).

We have no reason to believe otherwise than that the “they” that gather in Matt. 13:41 are the “they” that gather in Jn. 15:6. The “those” who practice lawlessness and are thrown (ballo) into the fire in Matt. 13:41 are the “anyone” who does not abide and are thrown (ballo) into the fire in Jn. 15:6. The fire in Matt. 13:41 is eternal damnation and to suppose that the fire in Jn. 15:6 is to be anything less is to pervert its plain meaning. Some who see abiding as optional suggest that the fire here is the loss of reward at the judgment seat of Christ (1 Cor. 3:15) where their works are burned up in the fire. However, the branch in John 15 represents the person not his works; “he is cast out as a branch” and therefore the person is thrown into the fire; not saved through the fire as it is said of the person in the Corinthian passage.

We see then that the branch appears to be in the vine but bears no fruit — the fig tree appears as any other fig tree but bears no fruit — the tares appear to be wheat but they bear no fruit — the seed that falls on the first three of the soils bear no fruit. The teaching in these passages is unmistakable — The branch, the tare, the tree, and the first three of the four seeds, bear no fruit and as a result they will bear the eternal wrath of God’s judgment, establishing the truth that saving faith is a fruit bearing faith; an obedient faith. On the other hand, a counterfeit, fruitless faith, even as salt without flavor, “is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet” (Matt. 5:13).

We find this same principle once again, resulting in the same fate, in the parable of “the dragnet” (Matt. 13:47). The net being the gospel cast into the sea of humanity gathering some of every kind,

And when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:48-50, NASB).

Again, we have the “they,” which are the angels of God gathering and throwing the “bad” into the fire of eternal judgment (Matt. 13:50). The “bad,” whether they are those who, “profess to know God, but they deny him by their works” (Titus 1:16), claim Christ as Lord but do not the things which He says (Luke 6:46), reject Christ as Lord declaring, “We do not want this man to reign over us” (Luke 19:14), the fruitless professor or the flat-out fool who says in his heart “There is no God” (Ps. 53:1), all fall short of saving faith and will suffer the same fate — the fiery wrath of God in judgment.

We come then to appreciate what Jesus said to his disciples about the necessity of understanding the parable of the four soils, for those who misinterpret this parable often misinterpret many of the sayings of Christ (2 Pet. 3:16) resulting in a misinterpretation of the identifying marks of a true Christian. Consequently, many end up deceived, thinking they are what they are not, with a salvation they have not. The parable of the rock and the sand becomes two types of Christians (Matt. 7:24); those who “walk in the Spirit,” and those who “walk in the flesh,” become two types of Christians, etc. Thus, there are no longer two ways, a “broad” and a “narrow,” but a third way added which is a mixture of the two. This is a so-called gospel where one can “enter in at the narrow gate” (Matt. 7:13) and then walk in the broad way. One can “enter” the kingdom by a profession of faith, however, if they aspire to “inherit” the kingdom, i.e., have a “special” abiding relationship with Christ and receive rewards, they must now become a disciple of Christ and begin walking in the narrow and difficult way. Whichever way one chooses their salvation is secure. While the true sheep are hungering for the deep things of God the so-called shepherds spend much of their time force-feeding the goats who have no spiritual hunger at all. They labor, fertilizing and watering the “tares,” while the growth of the precious “wheat” is stunted. This is a gospel wherein the Chief Shepherd is so permissive that His sheep are given the option as to whether or not they must follow Him. As King He is so weak that He allows His citizens to refuse to come under His rule and reign, resulting in moral anarchy throughout His kingdom; A Master of the house that allows His slaves to serve other masters; A Father that is incapable of bringing his children into reverent submission, which according to 1 Tim. 3:4, 5, 12, disqualifies Him from being a Pastor or a deacon in the church, much less the Lord of lords. In short, they have a form of godliness but deny the power of God in salvation (2 Tim. 3:5).

These pray for the revival of backsliders, when in fact it is salvation they need. The so-called “spiritual” Christians, with pride, look down on the “carnal” Christians with a righteousness that does not exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees but is identical to it; “I thank my God I am not like these other men.” They are “puffed up” thinking that they excel more than others as a result of the superiority of their own character and goodness. Their justification is not of themselves, but their sanctification is. “For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7) — As David Wells rightly says, “A God with whom we are on such easy terms...is not the God of Abraham, He is not the God of Jacob, and he is not the God of the true Christian.”⁷

If we have even the slightest concern for people’s souls, we cannot leave these erroneous teachings unchecked, no matter how well respected the man who teaches them. For it not only perverts the gospel but the very nature and character of God. Jesus said, “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed the tares among the wheat.” As we continue to sleep, the enemy’s seed continues to be sown, and as we see in the modern-day church, it is indeed producing a great harvest of fruitless and wayward professors. J. C. Ryle commenting on the parable of the four soils writes;

We may listen to a sermon and approve of every word it contains, and yet get no good from it in consequence of the absorbing influence of this world. Our hearts, like the thorny ground, may be choked with a rank crop of cares, pleasures and worldly plans. We may really like the gospel, and wish to obey it, and yet insensibly give it no chance of bearing fruit, by allowing other things to fill a place in our affections, until they occupy our whole hearts. Alas, there are many such hearers! They know the truth well: they hope one day to be decided Christians; but they never come to the point of giving up all for Christ’s sake. They never make up their minds to ‘seek first the kingdom of God’ — and so die in their sins.... Let us learn from this parable that there is only one evidence of hearing the Word rightly. That evidence is to bear ‘fruit.’ The fruit here spoken of is the fruit of the Spirit. Repentance towards God, faith towards the Lord Jesus Christ, holiness of life and character, prayerfulness, humility, charity, spiritual mindedness — these are the only satisfactory proofs that the seed of God’s Word is doing its proper work in our souls. Without such proofs our religion is vain, however high our profession: it is no better than sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal. Christ has said, ‘I have chosen you and ordained you that ye should go and bring forth fruit’ (John 15:16). There is no part of the whole parable more important than this. We must never be content with a barren orthodoxy, and a coldly maintenance of correct theological views; we must not be satisfied with clear knowledge, warm feelings, and a decent profession; we must see to it that the gospel we profess to love produces positive ‘fruit’ in our hearts and lives. This is real Christianity. These words of St. James should often ring in our ears: ‘Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.’ (James 1:22). Let us not leave these verses without putting to ourselves the important question, ‘How do we hear?’ We live in a Christian country; we probably go to a place of worship Sunday after Sunday, and hear sermons. In what spirit do we hear them? What effect have they upon our characters? Can we point to anything that deserves the name of ‘fruit’? We may rest assured that to reach heaven at last it needs something more than to go to church regularly on Sundays and listen to preachers. The Word of God must be received into our hearts, and become the mainspring of our conduct: it must produce practical impressions on our inward man, that shall appear in our outward behaviour. If it does not do this, it will only add to our condemnation on the day of judgment.⁸

God’s kingdom is depicted throughout Scripture as a vineyard (Isa 5, Jn. 15). A vineyard, including every individual plant in the vineyard, has only one purpose for its existence; the bearing of fruit. A plant that remains fruitless does nothing more than take up the ground and must be plucked up, taken away, and discarded. Israel as a people were the rightful heirs of the kingdom but forfeited their inheritance as a result of their unfaithfulness to God, not serving Him in acceptable worship, with reverence and awe. With the exception of the remnant, they had become a barren and fruitless nation. “A disobedient and contrary people” (Rom. 10:21), living in opposition to His will; unwilling to faithfully and lovingly submit to His rule and reign as King (Luke 19:14). Appearing outwardly righteous before men but in their hearts they were hypocrites; honoring God with their lips but their hearts were far from Him and their worship of Him was in vain. Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men (Matt. 15:7-9). Their apparent righteousness being nothing more than filthy rags in God’s sight (Isa. 64:6). Therefore, the kingdom was to be taken away from them and given to a people producing its fruits (Matt. 21:43). The Owner of the vineyard would gather up and destroy the fruitless plants, those who perished in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD, establish a new vineyard, wherein there would be the fruit-bearing remnant from the previous vineyard as well as new branches grafted in from every nation; Whoever, by faith, would fear Him and work righteousness would be accepted by Him (Acts 10:35); The one who by faith, “joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways” (Isa. 64:5). For He, Himself would put His laws in their mind and write them on their hearts. He would be their God, and they would be His people (Heb. 8:10). They would be productive in that He would live and work in them, abiding in them and they in Him (Ezek. 36:27, Phil. 2:13, Jn. 15:4, 5). For, “if the root is holy, so are the branches” (Rom. 11:16). Fruit being His only objective He shows no partiality between branches for even the new branches would also be broken off if they did not take root and bear fruit (Rom. 11:16-22). Therefore, only the living and fruitful branches would ultimately remain and grow in His vineyard and would bear a bountiful crop; some thirty, some sixty, some a hundredfold, bringing forth the fruit of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control,” “in all goodness, righteousness, and truth” (Eph. 5:1, 9 Gal. 3:27, 1 Jn. 2:6, Gal. 5:22); they would relate to Him as their Lord, be obedient to His teachings, and seek to do His will with love from a pure heart (Luke 6:46, Matt. 7:21, 1 Jn. 2:17, Heb. 10:36, 1 Tim. 1:5). They walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls them into His own kingdom and glory (1 Thess. 2:12) bearing the peaceful fruit of righteousness (Heb. 12:11). Being slaves of God, they are “set free from sin,” and have their “fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life” (Rom. 6:22, NKJV).

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men (Rom. 14:17, 18).

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked [He will not allow Himself to be ridiculed, nor treated with contempt nor allow His precepts to be scornfully set aside]; for whatever a man sows, this and this only is what he will reap. For the one who sows to his flesh [his sinful capacity, his worldliness, his disgraceful impulses] will reap from the flesh ruin and destruction, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life (Gal. 6:7, 8, Amplified).

Dear reader, let no one mislead you with empty words, the thorny ground hearer was lost — The tare was a child of the devil — The barren fig tree was cursed — The branch without fruit was dead — The “bad” in the net condemned. Do not be deceived in believing that a professed relationship with Christ would exempt you from the necessity of doing the works of Christ (John 14:12), even as the Jews were deceived in that they thought their relationship with Abraham would exempt them from doing the works of Abraham (Jn. 8:39), walking in the steps of the faith which Abraham had (Rom. 4:12). Those who claim to believe in Christ are likewise called to walk in the steps of the faith which He had, “to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 Jn. 2:6), “imitators of God, as beloved children” (Eph. 5:1). The fruitless are those who hear such words but they do not live and abide in their hearts and thus never come to fruition. These are the deceived James speaks of who are not doers of the word but hearers only even as the first three soils (Jas. 1:21, 22). Albert Barnes writes;

It is implied here, that by merely hearing the word but not doing it, they would deceive their own souls. The nature of this deception was this, that they would imagine that that was all which was required, whereas the main thing was that they should be obedient. If a man supposes that by a mere punctual attendance on preaching, or a respectful attention to it, he has done all that is required of him, he is laboring under a most gross self-deception. And yet there are multitudes who seem to imagine that they have done all that is demanded of them when they have heard attentively the word preached. Of its influence on their lives, and its claims to obedience, they are utterly regardless.⁹

We read in Jeremiah 17:7-10,

Blessed is the man who trusts [has faith] in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.
(emphasis added).

We find then this central and vital truth throughout Scripture;

For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks (Luke 6:43-45).

Lest we be deceived we need to ask ourselves; Have we truly understood the gospel according to Scripture? Have we repented with a godly sorrow over our sin and turned to Christ that He might set us free from it, delivering us from evil? Have we received a renewed heart out of which comes forth good things, bearing the fruit of righteousness, or do we remain so caught up in the cares, riches and pleasures of life that the word is ineffectual in bringing forth its intended fruit? Are we lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God? Do we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness or do we seek first the kingdom of this world and its pleasures? Do we live for ourselves, doing what pleases the flesh, or are we living for Him, doing His will, for His good pleasure? Are we about our Father’s business or about our own? Are we abiding in Christ and does His Word abide in us bearing fruit to the glory of the Father; a hundredfold, sixty, thirty? Would the fruit of the Spirit or the works of the flesh describe our character as we live our daily lives? Has the Word of God become living and powerful, effectually working in our hearts, cleansing us from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God, bearing the peaceable fruit of righteousness and of holiness or is it to us more like a dead and lifeless letter having little effect on the sin in our lives? Are we like the wise man that hears His teachings and does them or like the foolish man who hears and does not do them? Are we good trees bearing good fruit or bad trees bearing bad fruit? Are we slaves of righteousness or slaves of sin? Are we the bad in the net or the good? Wheat or tares? Are we Christians or not!? For,

The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, [i.e., every branch not abiding in the Vine, every tree that does not bear good fruit, everyone who says Lord, Lord, but is not doing God’s will, the tares among the wheat, the chaff, the goats among the sheep, the bad fish in the net, the unrighteous], and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear. - Matthew 13:40-43 Matthew 7:19, John 15:6 Matt. 13:48-50, (emphasis added).

To those with ears to hear, the message of Jesus’ parables is abundantly clear; those who profess to be Christian while not bearing the fruit of righteousness in their daily lives are deceived. Such are clinging to the cross of a dead savior without an intimate and ongoing relationship with the living Lord, which is indeed a counterfeit cross that cannot save the soul.

CHAPTER TWELVE
Righteousness vs Self-righteousness