by I haven’t been able to get my mind off trees and what we can learn from them in God’s Word. I love trees and the fact that I have a tree, at the moment, in beautiful shades of orange outside my kitchen window – I am constantly thinking of trees. The below verse is still in my mind while studying trees. I would like to further expound upon the fact that trees grow and produce fruit or flowers in their own time.
Psalm 1:3 “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”
This should be an encouragement to all of us to keep going for the Lord and the fruit we bear is what the Lord had for us in our life. If one is obeying the Lord and sees one soul saved in one’s life, then that is the fruit God had for you.
Take for example some of the following trees:
- An English oak tree starts producing acorns at around 40 years old and peaks in productivity around 80-120 years.
- Magnolia trees take between 10-20 years before blooming.
- Dogwood trees can be 5-7 years before flowering.
- Fruit trees vary. Pawpaw and Sweet Cherry trees can take 4-7 years. Pear, Plum, and Sour Cherry trees can take 3-5 years. Other fruit trees may take 2-4 years.
- A Walnut or Pecan tree can be 10-15 years before it produces walnuts if planted from a seed.
1. Spiritual Growth of the Christian
Notice, none of the trees produce fruit as a sapling tree. Not to say that a person who gets saved can’t go out and spread the Gospel and see souls saved immediately. That can happen. But, let’s focus on newborn Christians who need some time to grow.
Just like a young sapling needs much sunshine, room, and time to grow; a baby Christian needs encouragement and time to grow in the knowledge of God’s Word. Tall, mature trees in a forest can sometimes crowd out a sapling on the forest floor. Some saplings in the forest don’t make it to maturity because they don’t get the sunshine and room for growth that they need. Mature Christians mean well, but sometimes they can smoother a young Christian by trying to pour their years of Bible knowledge and wisdom into them in a brief time. A young Christian needs time to read, ponder and learn what is taught, read, and preached from God’s Word.
II Peter 3:18 “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ…”
Just like our trees mentioned above, some take years to produce fruit. If a farmer plants a Cherry Tree and a Walnut tree at the same time and the Cherry tree produces cherries within 4 years, the farmer wouldn’t pull out the Walnut tree since it wasn’t producing walnuts in 4 years. The farmer would be patient, cultivate the soil, fertilize the tree, water the tree because the farmer would know that in due time, the Walnut tree will produce its walnuts.
Baby Christians are the same as our tree mentioned above. I’ve seen some people over the years get saved and almost immediately they are quickly growing in God’s knowledge and producing fruit. Some I’ve seen have been a bit slower. They are all still God’s children, some are just a bit slower in producing their fruit. What can mature Christians do in the meantime?
- Wait
- Be patient
- Encourage
- Fertilize or help, but don’t over fertilize, give God time to work in their lives
In time, baby Christians will mature and produce fruit in God’s timing.
2. The Tree of Life
During my study of trees, I found it interesting that so many places in the Bible reference the “tree of life.” We know that the ultimate “tree of life” is in heaven for God’s children to enjoy someday.
Revelation 22:2 “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life…”
But, did you know, there are many things we as Christians can gain here on Earth that God calls the “tree of life”? Here are some of those things we can gain now while we live our lives for the Lord.
- Godly wisdom.
Proverbs 3:18 “She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.”
- A wholesome tongue. Wholesome means kindly, pleasing, peaceful, virtuous, healthy, with morals, and happiness.
Proverbs 15:4 “A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.”
- Soul winning.
Proverbs 11:30 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.”
So, while we are persevering each day for the Lord, instead of focusing on the growth of others; let us focus on our own spiritual growth. How are you doing in the areas of Godly Wisdom, a Wholesome Tongue, and Soul Winning?
Notice all three of the things above have to do with our conversation? If I grow in these areas, someone may ask, “Just how does it help me?” It helps with our holiness before God.
Some people ignore the verse below about being holy. They think holiness isn’t attainable, but we can keep growing and striving to be as holy as we can each day of our lives.
I Peter 1:15-16 “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”
So, in conclusion:
- Let’s have patience with others in their spiritual growth.
- Let’s keep working on our own spiritual growth to improve our holiness before our Lord and Saviour.
