From a Fruit Cup to an Orchard

Have you ever wondered why some Christians would seem to do so much and others would do so little? I could not understand why some would allow Jesus to show them so much truth and then, it would seem that they would just stop growing.

 

The Bible tells us in Matthew that the Word of God is like seed. When the Holy Spirit sows that seed in your heart, it may grow in several different ways. In this chapter we are going to look at the purpose of Grace and Glory in the Christian life.

 

In Matthew 13: 3-23, we are told a parable of a sower. Jesus tells us this: When the Word of God is sown, all who hear do not understand what they are hearing and of those who do not understand not all will use what they hear because of the cares of this world. However, there is a third group that will hear and do understand and will bring forth fruit. Even so, not all that are in this group will bring forth the same increase.

 

If you hear the Word but do not understand it , the Devil will come and take it from you. Second, there are those who hear the Word and understand it but have no depth and are soon offended and wither away. There are those who hear and understand the Word but are so entangled with the things of the "world" that they lose the Word. Last, there are those who hear and understand and bear fruit. However, fruit bearing is not the same for all for some bear "forth, some an hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty." Matthew 13:23.

 

So then, we have four groups and all of us fall into one of the four groups in Matthew 13:18-23. First, those who do not understand. Second, those who are not committed. Third, those who are concerned with the cares of this world and riches. Fourth, those who hear and understand the Word.

 

Now, in group four, it would seem that all who hear the Word are not equal. All hear and understand the Word and all bear fruit, but all do not bear the same amount of fruit. For verse 23b tells us that some bear "an hundredfold, some sixty some thirty." The reason for this I will call Mixture. I will talk more about Mixture later in this chapter.

 

Because all Christian people are not the same and none are perfect, they need help from God to bridge the gap from what they are to what they are becoming.

Let me give you a working definition of Grace and Glory: Grace equals all that God does for us that we can not do for ourselves, and Glory is all that God does with us as we do the "Work of the Father".

That is, you are saved through Grace. (Acts 15:11; Eph 2:5) You could do nothing to save yourself. You could do nothing to find Jesus. Jesus did it all. He found you. He saved you and He put within you a new heart that could seek His will. Therefore, Grace was applied when you were saved, not Glory. You may have felt glorious but that was after you were saved not before. Before you were saved, you were required to be perfect. The Bible tells us "be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect". (Matt 5:48) How are you to keep that commandment? How can you be perfect as God is perfect? You know that you are not perfect, far from it.

So then how can we be perfect in the sight of God? Perhaps, I could explain it to you in a diagram. Let's say that before you were saved that you were meeting 0% of what God required of you. That you were lost in your sin and could do nothing about it. Let's say that after you were saved, you stopped all sin in your life that you knew was sin, and that the percentage of what you were doing to meet the requirements of God in your life jumped to thirty (30%).

Please understand, the numbers in my illustration were picked out of the air and have no other meaning. Their only use is to help me to make my point. So now, you are still not perfect but you are less imperfect then you were before you were saved. You are still far short from what God has commanded you to be, that is to be perfect as He is perfect. So what is the answer. The answer is, of course, Grace. Grace at once makes us the other 70% and with what you are and what Jesus is and has given you, you are made perfect through grace.

 

Now, the proportions of Grace to obedience can change, however the percentage will always be 100%. Obedience is what you alone do and Grace is what God alone does.

 

Now, you may reason if the 70% of disobedience or sin left in your life is made up by Grace, why not let Grace make up the other 30% and be done with it. Well you just missed the Glory. Let me go on. The Plan of Salvation is not based on justification by Grace, it is based on justification by Faith. Faith is: you IN Jesus and Jesus IN you, working together for the Kingdom of God. In fact Faith is abiding in the vine. Jesus said in John 17:4 "I have glorified thee (God) on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do." Now, Jesus was glorified when He did the work which His Father had given him to do. Jesus goes on to say in verse (10b) "I am glorified in them" the disciples. That is the disciples was part of His work. Then in verse (22) He said this: " And the Glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one." Now Church, you were just told that obedience is what you do in response to the commandments of God and Grace makes up the rest. But Glory is what you do together WITH God in doing His work. If you stop at Grace, you will find none of the provisions of God. None of the Gifts and none of the Fruits. You will face everything the Devil has for you with no armor and no sword to fight with. You will be very little help to those you come in contact with and you will get little help from them. You are in group one above, those who hear but not understand.

However, I find in the relationship of working with Jesus, a law. As we work the "Work of the Father" we are brought into a greater obedience to His will. The greater obedience allows us to bear more fruit and as we bear fruit we are given the Glory of God. The Glory of God is obtained as we "do the work which He has given us to do." Therefore, if through Glory we are brought onto obedience we need less Grace because we are made more perfect or less imperfect by Jesus' working in us and through us. Let me once again illustrate:

Please understand that Glory is not the good you do , Glory is the good that Christ is doing through you as you abide in Him. Glory is released as you work the work which the Father has given you to do.

Now I find in this same law another law, a second. As we work the work of the Father, we become partakers as well as givers. That is, as we feed we are fed, as we teach we are taught, as we heal we are healed. As we die out to self we are made alive to Jesus. As we lose ourselves in Him we find ourselves. We are helped by helping. We gain then, by giving, We are free to do what we want and what we want is to be a servant.

To them that have not hidden the Word in their hearts this law will seem as foolishness. The natural man cannot and will not understand the things of the Spirit. Jesus said of that, in Matthew 13:11. Because it is given unto you (Christians) to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven, but to them (the worldly minded) it is not given."

All can hear the word but all do not understand. All who understand will not receive the Word into their lives the same way. All who receive the word will not do the work of the Father in the same way. But to them that do the work of the Father there will be an in crease and that increase is Glorious.

Then in verse (12) He again states the law of the Spirit "for whosoever hath, to him shall be given and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath." Then in verse (14) He, Jesus, gives the reason that He talks in parables and riddles is so that "by hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand and seeing ye shall see and shall not perceive." The point is this: The truths of God are for the people of God. God's people will hear His voice. The people that are not of God may hear but they will not understand what they hear. The Glory of God is not for the world, it is for the people of God that are doing the work that the Father has sent them to do.

You may understand what was told you completely because understanding is given to you by the Spirit of God. However, you may not understand what was told to you at all because you have no understanding of the Spirit.

Understanding in the Spirit will only come to us as we are IN the Spirit. You can not understand the things of God with your mind, you must understand them with your spirit. God does not live in your mind He " lives" in your spirit. Now, there is a problem in living in the Spirit. That is, you may from time to time allow the Holy Spirit of God to control your understanding only to take it away from Him and control your understanding with your own mind. As you swing back and forth from spirit to natural you will have a MIXED understanding of the things of God and will be confused about what God wants you to do. The will and work of God will be unclear in proportion to that Mix of the Spirit and Self and will manifest itself in low yield in the fruit harvest.

However, the mixture does not need to be a problem in the Glory of God. Let me explain, before you are saved, there is no mixture of self and spirit in your life because the control is all self. When you are first saved you will relinquish part of your control, some more then others to God. Thus the mixture.

One of the reasons you are Baptized by Jesus into His Holy Spirit is so the Natural man, the self will loose control of your life and your understanding and thus eliminate the mixture. Spirit control can come over a period of time or at once. However, I find that usually, it comes to most Christians as a very real experience after a time of growth. Nevertheless, please understand this.

If you desire the Glory of God He will eliminate the mixture in your life and give you a perfect understanding of His will for you. The way He does this can seem difficult but only before it happens to you. He will crucify your old nature and break your spirit.

I must at this time give you a step by step outline of first, that the Old Man is and then how the Old Man is Crucified and two, how God breaks your spirit in order that His Spirits may be released. Please do not think of the Old Man as a friend, he is not. The Old Man is the "Mr Hyde" of your soul. He is not only the enemy of God, he is your enemy too. The Old Man does not seek the highest good in you. The Old Man desires are for the base and crude things in life. He seeks his own and loves only himself. He is full of fear and doubt and resists the things of God. If you can say to God: "God I want to know You. I want truth, your truth."

He will, at once, bring you into a place with Him where you and He may abide together. Now, as you maintain the relationship IN Him something starts happening to the Old Man, he begins to die. As you continue to abide in the Spirit by (1) desiring a place in God, and (2) by asking God with your mouth to give you a place in Him something else will happen. You lose your spirit to His Spirit. Your spirit and the Spirit of God, in a very real sense are "married". Let me give you an illustration: I can remember back many years ago when seeing a girl that was in my seventh grade class with me that I thought was a real cure. Like any other thirteen year old boy I really did not understand what I was feeling. However, as time passed our friendship grew and by the time we graduated from school we were married. So it is, in the Kingdom of God. We start a relationship with God because we see something in Him we love and as time passed our friendship grew and we were also married in the Spirit. Now, my wife's maiden name was Shaw but that name is now changed to Parlin, the same as mine. We two, that is my wife of twenty-four years and I, are "one flesh". As you love and desire a place in Jesus, His Spirit and your spirit become "One Spirit". Jesus prayed to His Father and asked Him to make He and us one as He, Jesus and the Father are one. So now my wife's old name that is, Dee Shaw is no more. However, she now has a brand new name that is, Dee Parlin. She now has a new relationship, and a new name. She gave her old life to live with me.

No man could ask for a better helpmate, mother, wife or partner. Her desire is for me now, and not for her old life. Again, so it is in the Kingdom. I have up my old life and my old name (the Old Man) and now I am married to Jesus Christ in His Spirit. I want to be a good helpmate bride and partner. My desire is for Him now and not for my old life.

Now Christian, just as my wife's past life is gone and her new life is with me, so is your old past nature gone and when you abide with the "Bridegroom". Just as you may seek a relationship with someone that you want to live with you forever, share all your joy and sorrow with, go through hard times and good times. Face all that this life has to give and do it together, and in the that togetherness, be the better for it. Just as you may seek that in Jesus, you will find that old things are passed away and all things are new. Then as you live, live in the Spirit you will find that the longer you know Him the better you can love Him and the Mixture in your life will be gone.

So then: (1) He has found you and wants to live with you. (2) You, however must "open the door" and let Him in. (3) If you open the door He will come in and abide with you forever.(4) He will give you His name and all that His Father has given Him. (5) He will take care of your every need. (6) In Him you will find total fulfillment in your life. You will bring forth fruit.

Fruit bearing is governed by the mixture of self and spirit in your life. That is the reason some will bear ".....forth, an hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty."( Mat 13:23) Need I say that there is more Glory in bearing an hundredfold then there is thirty. The measure of our worth in the Kingdom of God is in our ability to "bear Fruit" Fruit bearing is only accomplished as "we abide in the vine". We are told that we can know those around us by the Fruit they bear.

So now, if you understand that Grace is there because God loves us. Grace will bridge the gap between what you are and what you are becoming in Jesus. Because Grace you were saved and because of Grace you are perfect in the sight of God in regard to sin. Where sin abounds grace does much more abound. However where obedience abounds Glory abounds.

The Devil will try to stop you from getting saved, if he can. He will try to stop you from getting Baptized into the Holy Spirit, he will try to stop you from finding out why you were Baptized in the Holy Spirit.

He will tell you that you are poor, when you are rich. He will tell you that you are sick when you are well. He will rob you of all God has given you but only if you let him. For he knows that once you have tasted the Glory of God he has lost. (Rom 8 :38) Once you start to work the work of your Father he is beaten.

Christian, if you want to see the Glory of God in your life. If you want to bare fruit, then do the work that the Father has given you to do. Now you have the Grace but then you will also have the Glory! Then as you work the work of the Father that little cup of Fruit you bare will turn into an orchard.

 

by Dr. Roger Parlin © 1990-2002