D/19 “Known by Our Fruit: The Call to True Fruitfulness”

Day-19 “Known by Our Fruit: The Call to True Fruitfulness”

Beloved, the Lenten season invites us into the desert, not a physical desert, but a spiritual one to reflect, to repent, and to be renewed. In this wilderness, Jesus’ teaching from Matthew 7 becomes deeply personal: What kind of fruit am I bearing? Lent presses us beyond appearances and into the heart of who we are becoming before God.

1. The Danger of Empty Appearances

Jesus warns against false prophets who appear genuine outwardly but are corrupt within. The danger He names is not limited to teachers or leaders; it applies to all disciples. Lent exposes the ways we, too, sometimes “wear sheep’s clothing”: outwardly faithful, inwardly distracted, half-hearted, or spiritually asleep.

We can appear religious yet remain unforgiving. We can serve and still seek recognition. We can speak of love while harbouring resentment. In Lent, God calls us back to truthfulness to drop our disguises and let grace penetrate the heart.

2. The Test of Fruitfulness

“You will know them by their fruits.” Jesus offers a simple yet piercing test: our actions reveal our roots.

A fig tree doesn’t bear thorns, and a heart rooted in God’s love cannot produce hatred, arrogance, or deceit. True fruit compassion, patience, humility, and forgiveness grow only when our souls are nourished by the living Word and sustained by the Spirit.

Let us ask what kind of fruit others taste from my life? Do they taste joy, mercy, truth or bitterness and pride?

3. The Soil of Lent

Fruitfulness begins not in our effort, but in our rooting. Trees do not strain to bear fruit; they simply remain planted in healthy soil. So too in our spiritual life, when we remain rooted in Christ, fruitfulness follows naturally.

Lent provides the soil for renewal. Prayer deepens our roots in divine presence. Fasting clears space for spiritual hunger. Almsgiving lets compassion flow outward. As we tend these roots, the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23) ripen within us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

4. The Urgency of Bearing Good Fruit

Jesus concludes His warning solemnly, “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down.” This is not condemnation, but an invitation: to repent while there is still time, to let the Spirit prune what is dead and lifeless in us, and to bear lasting fruit for God’s kingdom.

Lent’s urgency is not despair but mercy. God gives us this sacred season to return, to be transformed, to bear fruit that endures. As John 15:8 says, “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”

Fruitfulness is not achieved; it is received, born from abiding in Christ, purified by repentance, and nourished by love.

“Lord, prune what is false in us. Plant Your truth in our hearts. Water us with Your mercy, that we might bear good fruit, fruit that will last into eternity.” Amen.