For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. Luke 6:43-45
Thorns
Words of Jesus; Son of God, God the Son – 082820
“For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” Luke 6:43-45 (KJB)
Words of Jesus; Son of God, God the Son – 081220
“And He began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto Him a great multitude, so that He entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. And He taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in His doctrine,
‘Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: and it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: but when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.’ And He said unto them,
He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.’ ” Mark 4:1-9 (KJB)
Prophets Speak – Christmas Day One Hundred Thirty and One
And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are a rebellious house. You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” Ezekiel 2:6-8 (NKJV)
What do I want for Christmas today?
Though I live in a foreign land, because it has turned her back on the One who made her great, I want to eat the Word of God daily through study, reading and application of it in my life; that I may be a witness for my God and Savior Jesus Christ no matter what this nation or the world may hurl at me; to be strong and faithful even unto death, and unto life.
Jesus Speaks – Christmas Day One Hundred Seventy and Three
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?” Matthew 7:15-16 (KJV)
It should be apparent to every Christian that there are false teachers and false prophets in our Nation, and in the world; espousing health and wealth, security, safety, and power even when there is unconfessed, unrepented sin.
What do I want for Christmas?
I want the words that I speak and preach to confront and expose evil, and all unrighteous behavior; to call for repentance and faith toward Jesus Christ, His death, burial and resurrection; and to remind all that Jesus is coming again; and to be ready for His return.
“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” 1 John 3:2-3
Dealing With Our Sin; the Enemy Within
“But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell. Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them.” Numbers 33:55-56 (KJV)
There is a certain ideology of the world today that likens Christianity to extremism of the religious nature. For some reason; fear, shame, or for whatever reason Christians are silent about the things concerning holiness in the life of the Christian; and the major extreme we as individuals must go to to root out, rid ourselves of all that is vile, evil and unholy.
We need to be extremist when it comes to dealing with unholiness. The first place is to begin within ourselves. Put it off. Christ Jesus has given us power and authority to deal with evil in ourselves.
The above verses are verses for Israel to deal with the evil of the land of Canaan they were about to conquer in the name of the LORD. The Canaanites had polluted the land with innocent blood; sacrificing children, and the elderly alike; worshipping unholy deities. God had given them more than 400 years to change their ways; but they did not. Now He was going to purify the land.
For the Christian we are to put off sin, and put on Christ. The apostle Paul speaks of spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:10ff); and that warfare deals with fighting sin within, and around us. That warfare does not involve the shedding of innocent blood. That blood has already been shed; the blood of Jesus Christ for our sins.
The warning of verse 56 above is that if we do not drive evil out, and we allow any of it to remain, then that evil will be a torment; just as thorns in our sides, and pricks in our eyes; the evil we let remain will be a vexing of our souls. May God help us.
Making Judgments, Bearing Fruit, From the Heart
“Can the blind lead the blind? Shall they not both fall into the ditch? The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Either how canst thou say to thy brother, ‘Brother, let me pull out the mote that is in thine eye,’ when thou thyself beholdest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother’s eye. For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” ~Jesus (Luke 6:39-45)
Soil Conditions, Heart Conditions and Harvest Revisited
“Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” ~Jesus (Matthew 13:18-23)
Soil Conditions, Heart Conditions and Harvest
“Behold, a sower went forth to sow; and when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: and when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: but other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” ~Jesus (Matthew 13:3-9)
The Sower And The Hearts Of Humanity
“And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? The sower soweth the word. And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended. And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.” Mark 4:13-20 (KJV)
It is to be understood that the “field” where the seed is sown is the world. The seed that is being sown is the Word of God. When the Word of God falls on hard soil – the walkway, pathway, etc. – then the devil comes along and carries it away. This hard soil is a hard and unaccepting [unbelieving] heart toward God.
The “stony ground” is the heart of an individual who hears the Word of God and seemingly receives it, but because there is no depth for growth, troubles, trials, and heat come along and he wilts away, because there is no root. This individual has “gladly received” the Word of God, but with no true heart for it.
The “thorny soil” is the person who has heard the Word of God, and like the previous one receives it gladly, but due to worldly influence, greed for riches, and other distractions is choked off from receiving the life giving rays of Son light.
The “good ground” hears the Word of God, gladly receives it and goes on and bears fruit. Each area of the soil will bear a different amount of fruit, but it bears fruit none the less. That is evidence of a genuine believer/follower of Jesus Christ. He/She will bear fruit. A changed life is the first evidence, a burden for the lost, condemned and dying, and being a witness are evidences of fruit. All of these will lead to souls coming to faith in Christ. Christians will bear fruit.
Here is a summation of the conditions of “hearts” of men:
- The first kind are those who hear the Word, but it has no affect on them and so the devil snatches away the Word;
- The second kind are those who seem to receive the Word of God gladly; they may even seem excited about it, but the troubles of persecution and rejection of friends, and such come along, and they take off to sights unknown;
- The third heart is much like the second, but it is not persecution or trouble that causes them to turn away from the truth, it is rather, the desire for wealth, riches, pleasure, etc.. None of these first three are even redeemed. They are all still condemned, dying, and without hope. Is there any hope for them.
- The fourth heart is the blessed heart that has genuinely been saved, changed into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and it brings forth fruit. It is the fruit which brings honor and glory to the sower.
Yes! We can pray for people who are in such a condition, as those of the first three, that God may continue to prepare their hearts and get rid of the thorns, and give depth to the soil that they might bear fruit. After the sowing of the seed it is God’s work alone.
-Tim A. Blankenship
The LORD’s Razor
Ahaz is the king of Judah as we look at this passage of Scripture. According to Second Kings chapter sixteen Ahaz was a young man of twenty years of age when he began to reign. He also did not follow the path of David, and “Did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD his God”. He followed the path of the kings of the Northern kingdom.
Ahaz had even “Made his son pass through the fire, according tot he abominations of the nations whom the LORD cast our from before the children of Israel” 2 Kings 16:3 (NKJV). That means that Ahaz sacrificed his son in the fires of worship to Molech, the god of the Moabites. Is it any wonder that YHWH became angry with the sins of Judah.
Here is the judgment that was to follow:
“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes. In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a man shall nourish a young cow, and two sheep; And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk that they shall give he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the land. And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, it shall even be for briers and thorns. With arrows and with bows shall men come thither; because all the land shall become briers and thorns. And on all hills that shall be digged with the mattock, there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns: but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of lesser cattle.” Isaiah 7:18-25 (KJV)
The “In that day” statements are of a future day for Israel of that day. They do however continue until Jesus Christ the Messiah comes and makes all things new. “The LORD will whistle for the fly” is picturesque of a man calling a dog. It is as though the Lord calls the fly to Judah to become a nuisance to them. A fly is also an insect that comes around uncleanliness, death, and stench. Of course the fly here is representative of Egypt or Assyria coming to carry the people away into captivity.
Assyria is noted for being beekeepers, thus they would be the ones coming to carry away people into captivity as well.
No part of the land of Judah was going to be inaccessible to the foreign invaders. The steep ravines, rock clefts, pastures, thorns would all be places the enemy would find for rest.
When God judges the sins of His people He judges completely. When His people sin they should know it. If they are ignorant of their sin He will inform them, then it is up to them to repent and turn back to the Lord. It is so sad that we live in an era of time when many preachers are not even preaching for the revelation of sins curse and damage to the body of Christ. We hear much more about the goodness and love of God, and how good we are. God will not hold us guiltless for not proclaiming the whole counsel of God and His Word. There will be a judgment day.
The day came to Judah when the land became desolate. It was no longer and agricultural land, ie., growing fruits, vegetables, crops of the field. It became almost desolate, and deserted. Overrun with briers and thorns. Three times in verses 23 – 25 we read about the “Briers and thorns”. “That wherever there could be a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels of silver, it will be briars and thorns” (v. 23). “With arrows and bows men will come there, because all the land will become briars and thorns” (v. 24). “You will not go there for fear of briars and thorns” (v. 25).
There will be an abundance of milk, because there will be no need to till the land, be no way of doing so. The people who remain in the land will eat curds and honey. It was a time of great poverty. The places where there should be a vineyard are places for hunting – the men with “arrows and bows”. It will be a place for cattle and sheep to graze on what there is to graze.
The land of Judah had been a wealthy land. It was during the time of Ahaz, but poverty was on its way. Those of us who live in the good old USA let us not be so haughty to think that poverty may not be right around the corner for us. You can laugh if you will, but this country is in the hands of the Almighty God, and with a snap of His fingers the Stock Market could crash overnight. No matter what the financial experts say. They have no control of our economy, but God does. God has give us ample warnings and we only attribute the warnings to weather, or disease, or being born that way. We are the United States of America. We love our freedom too much to let anything serious happen. A bridge in Minneapolis, MN. collapsed last night (08/01/07 p.m.).
Be alert God is in control. He is good. He also is holy, righteous and just. He will not allow sin to dominate and control His people. He will judge sin completely.
-Tim A. Blankenship
The Fire and Hammer 