Fruitfulness
The world often measures success by wealth, position, and other such visible accomplishments. God’s kingdom defines success differently. Fruitfulness is the true mark of success. Jesus illustrates this in one of His first parables about the farmer who sows seed in Mark 4 and Matthew 13. When His disciples asked what this parable meant, before providing a response, He asked them: “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?” Mark 4:13 (ESV). In Jesus’ estimation, this parable is foundational for understanding kingdom living.
The Parable about Fruitfulness
The farmer sows seed, the Word of God, into four kinds of soil, representing different heart conditions of humanity: First, The Path - The seed falls on the footpath or beaten path, a heart likely hardened by life. This path is well known and easily accessible to everyone, including the enemy. Satan quickly steals the word before it takes root. No fruit is produced from this seed. Second, The Rocky Soil - The seed is received with joy and quickly sprouts, a heart likely shallow in the things of God. The soil has no depth to cultivate it or sustain lasting fruit. When trials, persecution, or hardship arise, the plant withers because it lacks a solid foundation. The initial fruit is short-lived and does not endure. Third, The Thorny Soil - The seed falls on shallow ground that has thorns also present, a heart likely distracted by allegiance to the world. The seed begins to grow but is choked out by weeds, the worries of life, the seduction of wealth, and the desire for other things. The fruit never matures, and the harvest is lost. Fourth, The Good Soil - The seed falls on fertile soil, a receptive heart. This is the heart that receives God’s Word deeply and is pliable by it through discipleship. The seed thrives, grows, and produces a harvest, thirty, sixty, or even a hundredfold.
Abiding for Fruitfulness
In John 15: 1 - 2, Jesus expands further and paints a clear picture of fruitfulness: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” Fruitfulness, He explains in verse 5, comes through abiding in Him. “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me, you can do nothing.” The result of staying in this abiding place, Jesus continues in verse 7b: “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.”
Fruit
So what is fruit? Scripture points to several dimensions. Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22 - 23): love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these, there is no law. Fruit of the Mind (Romans 12:2): transformation through renewing the mind, so we discern and live out God’s will. Fruit of the Body: multiplication through childbearing, discipleship, and works that reproduce life in others. Fruit of a Life Well Lived: the sum of our testimony, marked by changed lives that change other lives.
Kingdom success is fruitfulness, measured by lives transformed by God’s word, will, and purpose, lived through the Holy Spirit and multiplied through us into the lives of others. This is the glaring evidence that we are His disciples, aligning with Jesus’ statement: “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8).
Father, help us to live lives that bear fruit, fruit that will remain until the coming of Christ. Amen.