Produce fruit in keeping with repentance

Scripture:

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? ⁸ Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. ⁹ And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. ¹⁰ The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Observation:

After introducing John the Baptist and his ministry, Matthew now focuses our attention on some of his famous words. He calls the Pharisees and Sadducees a brood of vipers, and calls them to “produce fruit in keeping with repentance”. Then John declares that being in the physical genealogy of Abraham is of no use to them and warns them that if they don’t produce good fruit, they will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Then John declares forth his prophecy of the coming Messiah, who is far more powerful than Him, and gives us the image of a farmer at the threshing floor, separating the wheat and the chaff.

There are many lessons even in these few words of John, but we will focus on three. Firstly, consider the words “Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?”. John preached “repent, for the kingdom of God is near”, and later Jesus said the same thing. What does it mean for the kingdom of God to come near? It is not good news for unrepentant sinners, who can only expect wrath from God. Recognizing this, people went out to John the Baptist and repented (changed their mind) not to continue in sinful ways.

Secondly, John preached that we are to produce fruit in keeping with repentance. What does it mean to keep with repentance? It means to continue in that new direction we have taken, away from sin and towards holiness. As we move that way, we will produce good fruit along the way and bless others. However, there are some who will not keep with repentance but turn back to sinful lives and therein is the warning for them that they risk being thrown into the fire.

Thirdly, John declared that out of the stones, God could raise up children of Abraham. Later, when He entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, Jesus famously declared  “Even if they (the children) keep quiet, even the stones will cry out (Luke 19). Later in Peter, he likens believers like living stones, being built into a spiritual house. In Galatians, Paul explained that it is not so much those physically descended from Abraham who are children of Abraham but those who have faith like Abraham. In Ezekiel 11:19 and 36:26, the prophet prophesies about God removing our hearts of stone and giving us hearts of flesh. When we put our faith in Jesus, our dead hearts of stone become flesh, alive!

Application:

Remember firstly, that we repent because we are fleeing from the coming wrath, which is for unrepentant sinners. Then, check ourselves to see if we are keeping with repentance, walking in the path towards righteousness in the Lord. Faith without works is dead. What are our deeds for God? Are we showing love and kindness to others, or mainly concerned about ourselves? Pray to our Lord, to remove our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh. The condition of our heart is an important thing, whether our heart is open to God or closed because of sin.

Prayer:

Praise You, Lord Jesus, for Your great love for us. You came to save us, that we might escape the wrath due to us for our sins. Help us produce fruit in keeping with repentance, even as we seek to follow You. Remove our hearts of stone, and give us hearts of flesh, living hearts open to You. Forgive our sins O Lord, and lead us in Your righteous ways. In Jesus name, Amen.