Grace Activates You to Bear Fruit

Grace Activates You to Bear Fruit

Grace Activates You to Bear FruitToday, I want to encourage you deeper into God’s grace. You see, we are all invited to live and move around in God’s grace. We don’t have to tiptoe around or stay around the entrance in God’s kingdom. Because of Jesus, we are all welcome right into the center of God’s sweet presence. God loves to save sinners but, folks, that’s not the end. He has beautiful things in store for all his children. You see, grace activates you to bear fruit. This is God’s will for you.

“You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil.” (John 15:16, MSG)

Grace activates you to bear fruit

Jesus chose you and put you in the world to bear fruit. His grace activates you to bear fruit (it’s not your own doing). Jesus did not “just” come to save you. He also has plans for you. With the words of Dallas A Willard ‘Grace does not come to make us passive. Grace comes to make us fruitful.’

Only Jesus can make us fruitful. Our own, even religious, efforts do not produce any fruit. Only grace activates us to produce spiritual fruit. But grace does not have any bounds. We were meant to walk on the water. Nothing is impossible with God.

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.10 Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.11 We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, 12 always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. (Col. 1:9-12, NLT)

Wasteful to stay passive

Wouldn’t it be wasteful to live our lives self-centered-ly and passively? I love how Henri J.M. Nouwen pushes us to see that we do have an active purpose here on earth. Each one of us. You and me too. Entertainment is not enough to give us meaning while on earth.

‘We seldom realize fully that we are sent to fulfill God-given tasks. We act as if we were simply dropped down in creation and have to decide to entertain ourselves until we die. But we were sent into the world by God, just as Jesus was. Once we start living our lives with that conviction, we will soon know what we were sent to do.’ ~ Henri J.M. Nouwen

God has plans for you

God indeed has plans for you. Not to harm you but to give you purpose. And all this is empowered by his grace. God’s amazing grace activates you to bear fruit for his glory. You are important in God’s kingdom. God knows you by name. So come on in deeper into God’s grace. It’s meant for you to live and move in it. God wants to bless you and keep you. But also activate and empower you for love and service. So much grace, my friend. So much grace for you.

 

Gracious God,
Forgive us for trying to manage on our own
when you want to provide everything for us.
Open our eyes to see how much grace you have for us.
Embolden us to come into your arms.
Thank you for inviting us into active participation.
Show us what you want us to do.
Pour out grace upon grace to change us inside out.
In Jesus’ precious name,
Amen

Q4U: Are you done with passively floating through life? Are you ready to let grace activate you to bear fruit, much fruit for God’s glory? Come deeper into God’s grace. So much grace. For you.

An announcement for friends of Flowing Faith:

I will be writing less at Flowing Faith in the coming months because I need more time to write a book manuscript. I am hoping and praying that I could finish it over the summer months but we will see. My posting schedule will be Tuesday-Friday from now on. I will be looking forward to interacting with you then. Also, I welcome your prayers for the project and anything and everything that surrounds it. Thank you very much for your understanding.

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you

Image courtesy of Brian Jimenez/Unsplash.com, design by Mari-Anna Stålnacke. I am linking up with Unite the Bloggersphere and #tellhisstory.

4 thoughts on “Grace Activates You to Bear Fruit

  1. Dear Mari-Anna, how enlightening and refreshing! I’d never thought about the connection between grace and fruits. The more I surrender my sin and hurt, the more grace I receive, and the more fruit I will bear. Thanks and blessings from your neighbor at God-Sized Dream.

    1. Great to meet you, Allie! Isn’t it incredible that there’s more to grace than what we first think! It is exciting to have God’s power to work in and through us. Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. Abundant blessings to you!

  2. I was so encouraged! Thank you for delving more into what our purpose is and how we go about it. I heartily agree that it is by grace that we bear fruit and not an endeavor we can do in and of ourselves. Blessings on your work for your manuscript!

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