Many Christians will be in for a surprise when they appear before the judgment seat of Christ. They will come to find out that their “good works”, which were all done in the name of Christ, were never recorded. Most church projects, community outreaches, and personal ministries will not have any significance or value that day. All the wasted strength, wasted years, all the wasted finances, grand services, intended to awe and overwhelm more than anything else, will be worthless in the eyes of the Righteous Judge.
In this regard, Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.”No matter how great and noble our projects are, if we do not abide in Christ we cannot bear true fruit in the eyes of God.
The Lord said through the prophet Isaiah:
– For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55: 10-11)
Here we see how, the Lord uses a very simple comparison. The earth is able to bring forth fruit only when it is watered by rain or water from the thawing snow. It’s impossible for the earth to produce fruit without rain or snow.
Likewise, it is impossible for us to produce spiritual fruit without a direct connection to God. However, growing closer to God enables us to receive the word that comes forth from His mouth and bear true fruit.
There are no man-made methods, programs, expertise, or efforts that are able to make the dry land produce fruit. Let’s face it, all that we are capable of doing, with all of our wit, know-how, and experience – is to make it appear like there’s a movement happening, create a false impression on people’s minds that great work is being accomplished. But all that is worthless in the eyes of God.
The formula for success is very simple: if there is no spiritual fruit, then rain is needed; everything else is a colossal waste of time and effort. When the church begins to cry out to God for the power of the Holy Spirit, God’s grace comes, which then births true fruit.
► I believe the time has come for the church to become radical in understanding the importance of the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian. When Jesus said that apart from Him we can do nothing, that’s exactly what he meant.
Pavel Gurzhiy