“For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure produces evil; for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Luke 6:43–45 (RSV)
I love the rolling fields of Iowa. They are full of promise these early days of spring. As the seeds are planted goes the prayers of those who till and keep the land. We cast hope into the soil each year, trusting God to send the rains, call forth the life within the seed and measure the days until we gather the harvest.
Jesus may have been a carpenter, but his heart is that of a farmer. He redeems us so we may become that good soil in which His Word is sown. He tends and keeps us so that we might become for Him a bountiful harvest in His Kingdom.
He pours the Spirit upon us to nurture the faith He has given. He seeks the good crop He would have us be in this world. It grieves Him should we seek after the unfruitful things of this dying age. Jesus does not cease to seek after us that He might transform us from a useless weed in the field of the Lord to a harvest of blessing we are created to be.