Jesus cursed the fig tree because it lacked fruit and produced only leaves. It symbolized pharisaical hypocrisy, where works and talk are not in alignment.

To be made clean only prepares us for producing fruit. If we stand still, simply resting on our justification, the dark forces will pull us backwards.

Teaching God's laws to our children is not just a suggestion but a command. If we do not rear and educate our children, Satan will.

Fruit is not produced immediately; it is produced only when a plant is both mature and stable enough that mere survival is no longer its top priority.

We tend to avoid acknowledging our weaknesses, but at some point, each of us will admit our powerlessness and inability to carry out God's will on our own.

Horticulture is not so easy as merely planting a seed and watching it grow. Tending and keeping implies continually watering, fertilizing, and cultivating.

Producing fruit is not simply a matter of having Jesus Christ or being forgiven. He says we will not produce anything unless we go on growing in Him.

Dr. Bruce Wilkinson explains that 'takes away' should be more properly rendered 'takes up,' meaning new grape vines are lifted out of the dirt.

Like the farmer waiting patiently for the rains, we must wait patiently for the yield of the implanted seed, the fruit God will harvest from us.

The majority of the growth or maturation of a pineapple plant takes place from within. The same holds true for our calling and conversion.

Jesus Christ is the Vine and His Father is the Vinedresser; we are the branches, subject to trimming and pruning in order that we bear abundant fruit.

Like its physical counterpart, spiritual growth happens slowly. A newly baptized Christian will not produce the fruit of the spirit as easily as a mature one.

If our worship of God ends in slavish obedience, so does our salvation! While He wants us to obey, God is not looking for obedient drudges but loyal children.

Our Heavenly Father, the Vine Dresser, has provided His junior partners some valuable tools to assist in pruning and cultivating His emerging spiritual crop.

Jesus' cursing of the fig tree has puzzled and even disturbed Bible readers for centuries, as it just does not seem to be something our Savior would do.

Each Christian must develop godliness through righteous behavior and service, adding virtue to their faith.

In the Parable of the Barren Fig Tree, Jesus does not attribute tragedy directly to any person's sins as the Jews did; instead, He affirms the sinfulness of everyone.

Conversion must out in changed behavior, the fruit of God's Spirit accomplishing its miraculous work in us. The Corinthians provide a negative example.

The Bible speaks of the Spirit as the power or mind of God, the power of love and of a sound mind. It emanates from Him and thus can be said to be poured out

Without a meaningful relationship with Christ, God's people cannot possibly bear fruit. Our responsibility is to yield to God's creative work in our lives.

A Bible study on love, one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

God personally communicated with Adam, Eve, Abraham, Moses, the prophets, and to us through His Son. With the Scriptures, God teaches His faithful today.

The Greek author Xenophon, in his work The Art of Horsemanship, dispels the notion that meekness is weakness by describing the 'meeking' of war horses.

John 15:2 seems to say the Vinedresser cuts off every barren branch, but the Greek behind 'takes away' shows God doing something else: He lifts up.

Trees provide living illustrations of godly behavior that will prepare Christians to partake of the Tree of Life in God's Kingdom.

In Pentecostalism, speaking in 'tongues' is the worshipped sign that God has accepted a person. Yet the miracle of Pentecost was not the speaking gibberish.

If we are intent on bearing fruit, we can do some things to make sure that we are not inhibiting the process. We find them in one of the fig tree parables.

The Book of Hebrews is a must-read for all members of God's church who seek the key for spiritual growth through a meaningful relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Kingdom parables allude to the process of spiritual maturity, depicting a planted and cultivated seed becoming a sprout, eventually bearing fruit.

No act is insignificant because of two natural principles: the tendency toward increase and reaping what we sow. They play major roles in our lives.

Within the fig, there are many fruits in what seems to be a singular fruit. Like the fig flower, God's saints do not fall if they are producing fruit.

Jesus said the greatest commandments were Lord toward God and neighbor. There is no connective between the first and second clauses; they cannot be separated.

The Jewish converts to the Way, although having had the benefit of Messianic prophecies, did not recognize the powerful significance of Psalm 8.

While it is common on Facebook to defriend/unfriend, Christ's love for His people is a friending with the condition that godly fruit is produced.

God can take satisfaction that He is doing the right thing, and thus His rejoicing can even come from painful judgments. Sacrificing and rejoicing are linked.

Here are five easily neglected doctrines, which, if carelessly observed or distorted, could jeopardize the salvation of God's people.

God's calling and predestination can be confusing, especially the verse that 'many are called, but few are chosen'. Why does God not just choose everyone?

Government may be the most important subject in the Bible because it touches on how Christians are to govern themselves under the sovereignty of God.

Our lives parallel what Christ experienced: crucifixion, burial, resurrection, and glorification. The death of self must precede resurrection and glory.

We must strive to bear spiritual fruit efficiently and productively. Material well-being is not as good a measure of fruitfulness as is the use of God's gifts.

Imagine a man studying the Bible for two hours a day. But if he then spends his other waking hours watching cartoons, he will derive little benefit from study.

If we neglect our cultivation of spiritual fruit during the year, the harvest will reflect that. The fruit of one's labors will be evident at harvest time.

The book of Hebrews teaches that our relationship to Christ as our Savior, High Priest, and King is the key to salvation. He shows us the way to the Father.

Though the American mindset does not feel inclined to serve, outgoing service to others yields the maximum joy and fulfillment one can possibly attain.

Our responsibility is to yield to God's sovereignty. Nevertheless, God has enabled us to freely sin, but holds us responsible for governing ourselves.

God has blessed the firstfruits with precious belief and knowledge which must be protected, guarded, nourished and exercised so it will not slip away.