- 1 Cor. 16:14
Fresh fruit in season is tender to the touch, and sweet to the taste. Eating apples that are not ripe yet, can leave you with a nasty stomach ache as well as a sour taste in your mouth, which is why it is very important to wait for just the right moment to pick fruit.
God takes care of us, and tends to us making sure that the fruit we bear will be sweet and tender when we give it to other people to feed from. We, on our own, cannot produce fruit. It is only when we are grafted into the vine, which is Jesus, that we bear fruit. John 15:4-5, reads as follows:
4 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. 5“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
To make sure that our fruit, which we are to serve to other people, is plump and not dried out, we must abide by Psalm 1:3:
3 He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
By reading the Word of God we are allowing the water of that Word to flush out the toxins and impurities, i.e., daily sin from our lives. At the same time, the water of that Word brings life and health to our souls allowing us to bear ripe fruit which Galatians 5:22-23 tells us is:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness,goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control.
People are hurting during this economy and they need love, kindness and a gentle touch which is the fruit of the Spirit of God. They need someone to talk to, someone who will not condemn them, but listen to them with love as they come to us for counseling and ministering.
A beautiful scripture that talks about the fruit we will bear that will feed God’s people is Ezekiel 47:12, which reads:Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.”When I was searching the scriptures the Lord gave me revelation in the Old Testament regarding a minor prophet by the name of Amos. Amos was a farmer and he tended to sycamore fruit (which is a type of fig). Have you ever wondered why you have the job you do? God uses it to season you. The very thing you are doing now is something that God will use when He sends you out to minister, and such was the case with Amos.
Daniel 4:12 talks about the sycamore tree that takes care of God’s animals as well as His people.
Its leaves were lovely, Its fruit abundant, And in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, The birds of the heavens dwelt in its branches, And all flesh was fed from it. Sycamore fruit is tougher than regular common figs. In order for a sycamore fruit to be edible, it must be cut or punctured with a knife in order to make the fruit sweeter. In Amos’ case, being a gardener tending to sycamore fruit, he understood that. He understood that prophets are often attacked for prophesying what the Lord tells them to prophesy. In fact, sometimes prophets even get “stabbed in the back.” However, Amos loved God, and it was an honor to serve God in this capacity even it was not popular with man.
Being a sycamore farmer and a sheepherder actually prepared Amos to be an amazing prophet of God. Amos was a shepherd caring for his flock, so he had practice caring for God’s people. Amos also watched on a daily basis what was involved in bringing fruit to sweet maturity, and thus God used Amos to give out His words that were contrary to what the leaders of that day wanted to hear, knowing full well that he would be “stabbed in the back” for doing so.
Amos had to give warning to Jeroboam the king of Israel, who threatened Amos and told him not to prophesy. I love Amos’ reply. He is basically saying, “Hey, I wasn’t born a prophet, I was simply a farmer who God called and raised up to watch out for His children.” In other words, “Don’t shoot me, I’m just the messenger!” is what Amos was saying.
Listen to this:
10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying,
“Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land
is not able to bear all his words.
11 For thus Amos has said:Jeroboam shall die by the sword, And Israel shall surely
be led away captive From their own land.’”
12 Then Amaziah said to Amos:
“Go, you seer! Flee to the land of Judah. There eat bread, And there prophesy.
13But never again prophesy at Bethel, For it is the king’s sanctuary, And it is the royal residence.”
14 Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah:
“I was no prophet, Nor was I a son of a prophet, But I was a sheepbreeder and a tender of sycamore fruit.15Then the LORD took me as I followed the flock, And the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’
In the time of Amos, people were affluent and they thought their money and material possessions meant that God was well-pleased with them. However, they were a little misguided because God noticed that these people were amassing great wealth for themselves, but oppressing the poor. Sound familiar? Today, many churches are oppressing those that are in need by building mega-mansions for themselves, but not providing for the poor and needy.
God has a sense of humor, and in Amos 4:1, He actually calls those women of Samaria who are married to the overly extravagant church leaders “cows.” That’s right – cows.
Amos 4:1:“Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria,
who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your husbands, “bring wine, let us drink!”
Nowadays, it seems that churches, instead of providing for the poor and needy, are building their own empires. This is not the season to do that.
My dad, who passed away in 2011 - God bless his soul - was born in 1929, the year the stock market crashed. Times were tough during the Great Depression. So, I grew up in a household where my dad understood what was needed in order to make it through during difficult economic times. He built a storehouse to protect his family during those times. We even canned green beans and raspberry jam in mason jars that we kept in the cellar. When the economy took a dive in th e 1970’s, dad made sure we were provided for. He prepared for future events for his family.
History has a tendency to repeat itself, and here we are again in a time of famine across the United States, and the world. It is time for the church to give out to God’s people who are in need. There is a famine in the land, and though the 11 o’clock news tells us the time of famine is over; it is not. It is time for the church to arise and do what God created it to do. If you are in ministry , you know the imp ortance of building a storehouse, and not an empire. Patting someone on the head, and sending them home with nothing more than a prayer, and no food or financial assistance to pay an electric bill, is not right.
The storehouse is intended to supply the need for someone’s temporary lack. God is testing us all. A lot of people are crying out to be used for ministry, yet the Lord looks down from Heaven and sees that we are not even helping people that come to the church. So, how can God send us out in the world to help the lost and the unsaved, when we do not even help our brothers and sisters in our own backyard?
Prophets, like Amos, are crying out right now pleading with “the church” to be a church with a storehouse to assist those that, for a moment in time, have lost everything, and have poured out everything, to be used by God in these last days.
God does not condemn, in fact, He understands the current financial situation you may be in right now. Maybe He is using you to the test the hearts of church leaders? Maybe He is bringing you through a Job experience wherein you allow God to strip you of everything – finances, relationships, etc. just to prove to Satan that you love God whether or not everything you own or love is taken away from you. Whatever the situation, please know that God is right there with you tending to you so that you will bear sweet fruit.
Joel 2:21-23 talks about the strength of a fig tree. Amos exhibited great strength to be able to stand up against a king who threatened his very life. Joel 2 also talks about the fruit that fig tree is about to bear, and the rain that God will pour on it.
21 Fear not, O land; Be glad and rejoice, For the LORD has done marvelous things! 22Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field; For the open pastures are springing up, And the tree bears its fruit; The fig tree and the vine yield their strength. 23Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the LORD your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you — The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month.
Stay in the Word of God; read it every day. Let it cleanse you and purify your heart. Let it prepare you to be the person of God He has already planned for you to become, so you can be an effective minister to those that God is sending to you for assistance whether it be spiritual and/ or financial.
God will pick you (your fruit) at the peak of ripeness to feed His children. So, allow God to mature you so your fruit is ripe, so the word God wants you to give someone will be sweet and full of love. It will provide peace in the midst of someone’s storm, and bring great joy to those that hear it.
Orange you glad you read this !
Cross Creek Bridge Ministries
P.O. Box 572391
Tarzana, CA 91357
Tel: (818) 881-2009
Toll-Free: (877) 303-CCBM (2009)
Cross Creek Bridge Ministries is a qualified IRS Section 501(c)(3) Organization