Developing healthy Roots

“If you don’t like the fruit check the roots“

If you don’t like the fruit, check the roots. Jesus, in his message about the sower sows the word, in Matthew 13:1-23, likens the kingdom of God to a farmer sowing for a harvest. Jesus likens fruit production in the kingdom of God to four types of hearers: the careless, passive, distracted and the attentive.

In three out of four cases, the lack of a harvest, the problem is in the root system. For example, the careless hearer in Matthew 13:19, seed was eaten by birds and in Luke 8:12, the devil stole their seed. The passive hearer had no root in themselves and so withered in times of persecution and tribulation. The distracted hearer’ seed was choked out by other things that were more important to the hearer. In the fourth case, the hearer kept the word in an honest, and a good heart (Luke 8:15) bringing forth fruit with patience. Scripture references Isaiah 11:1 & 10, John 15:1-8; Ephesians 3:17 & Colossians 2:7