Inside And Out by Dr. Paul Chappell

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Inside and Out

by Dr. Paul Chappell

Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

Matthew 12:33-35

Maybe you've seen the Peanuts cartoon I came across. Lucy is talking to Charlie Brown. With an angry expression she declares, “I hate everything. I hate everybody. I hate the whole wide world!” Charlie Brown replied, “But I thought you had inner peace.” Lucy then said, “I do have inner peace. But I still have outer obnoxiousness.” There are a lot of people whose lives display a contradiction between what they say they are on the inside and how they appear on the outside. The two are supposed to match. Those who observe our lives should see a consistent, continuing reflection of the love of God. “Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be” (James 3:10).

While it is possible for people to deceive others for a time, eventually the type of “tree” we are will be revealed by the fruit that we bear. There is no way for an evil tree to bear good fruit. The overflow of what is in our hearts will eventually come out in our words and our actions. The only way to produce good words and good works is to have a good heart. But that is beyond our ability to achieve on our own. We must have divine help. “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26).

Today's Growth Principle:
Does what others see in your life clearly display the power of God at work within?