2. Productivity

He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season…

  Psalm 1:3

So far, we have seen that the Christian life should be marked by spiritual stability. Healthy Christians will grow in faith and maturity, leading to this stability. Healthy Christians are not easily deceived because, not only do they know what they believe, they know in whom they trust. But stability is not the only characteristic of a healthy Christian. If we claim to be walking with the Lord, we should also exhibit productivity.

Healthy trees produce fruit. Healthy Christians do the same. In Psalm 1, we see the tree described as one that “yields its fruit in its season.” We accept this basic premise of gardening. If we want healthy, fruit-bearing trees, we must see that they are in the best condition possible. The better the tree, the better the fruit. Our lives are no different. If we want to see good, effective, life-changing fruit come out of our lives, we have to spiritually nourish and care for ourselves. Jesus talks about how this fruit is to come about. Consider His words:

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

        John 15:5

Jesus gives us the most important factor in whether or not we will bear fruit…abiding in Him. This word “abide” means to “stay in a given place, state, relationship, or expectancy.” It means that we dwell in a relationship with Christ and that we remain in that relationship. As we do this, the natural product is spiritual fruit. 

Today, it seems that so many people are merely desiring to obtain a pass into heaven or acquire some kind of “get out of jail free card” when it comes to their Christian faith. They live like the world yet believe themselves to be abiding in Christ. Instead of looking for spiritual fruit, they seem content to find all of the loopholes in life by embracing a worldly lifestyle while trying to hold onto Jesus at the same time. This kind of Christian existence simply will not lead to spiritual productivity. 

So what does it mean to be spiritually productive? The short answer would be that Christians should be pointing others to Christ. Whether it is our words, our attitudes, our motives, or our lifestyle, all things about our earthly life should be a testimony to the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. We’ve been changed, redeemed, forgiven, and set free. What person, newly rescued from a life and death situation, would not honor and tell everyone about their rescuer? Gratitude leads to a life of service to Christ. And we don’t do this with sour faces or heavy hearts. Christian service is the most rewarding and joyful experience that we can have in this life. It supersedes all other endeavors because it is participating in something far greater than anything that can be measured here on earth. We were created to have a relationship with God and through faith in Christ, being saved, and receiving the Spirit of God into our lives, we can have just that. And as we live, breathe, and abide in Christ everyday, the byproduct is spiritual productivity!

Spiritual productivity also means that our lives produce something of eternal value. While many (if not most) people seem content to spend their earthly lives building their own kingdoms, which will not stand the test of time, Christians are to be spending their time building up the kingdom of God. Instead of being money-focused, Christians are God-focused, setting their minds on things above (Colossians 3:1-2). One life is investing in the temporal while they other is investing in the eternal. Consider the following:

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 

But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value.If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.

    1 Corinthians 3:11-15 (NLT)

Paul reminds us that we cannot build on any other spiritual foundation than Jesus Himself. This is what Christ was saying when He spoke “apart from Me you can do nothing.” Any kind of spiritual productivity, something that will last into eternity, must be built on the foundation that is Jesus Christ. But beyond that, Paul describes what it will be like in the day of judgment for Christians. Our earthly work will be tested by fire. This is symbolic of putting our work to the test. If it is burned up, meaning that we had invested only in the temporal, then we will suffer loss. But if our work is tested with fire and remains, we will receive a reward. This passage finishes with a reminder that our salvation is not linked to our work. We don’t work to be saved rather we work because we are saved. So the question has to be asked, “Is there a connection between our love for God and our productivity for the kingdom?” We would be wise to examine our level of spiritual productivity.

But before we close out this look at spiritual productivity, we need to look at one of the leading causes for a lack of productivity…bitterness. Consider the following:

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

        Ephesians 4:31-32

What prevents us from spiritual productivity or contributes to our ability to produce fruit is the root of our lives. Just like a tree has to have a healthy root system, so our lives must be free from a root of bitterness. In the passage above, Paul reminds us to rid ourselves of several things. Certainly wrath, anger, clamor (fighting), slander, and malice should not be found in the Christian life but it is the first item on Paul’s list that is at the root of all of these other things. Bitterness leads to wrath, anger, clamor, slander, and malice. Observe anyone that has been hurt by another and you will likely see that person taking verbal jabs at the offender. Why? A root of bitterness has developed in that person’s life and unless it is replaced with a healthy root system, one that nourishes and restores, then the lack of productivity will continue. So what does this mean for us? We need to guard our hearts against bitterness. Once that root develops, it will begin to cloud all other aspects of our spiritual lives. Only when we are able to truly forgive and move beyond the hurt, guilt, and baggage of the past, will we be fruitful, productive Christians. 

When coupled with the first characteristic, we can now conclude that stability leads to productivity. Stability and productivity…two of the characteristics of a healthy, vibrant, and effective Christian life!