Holiness, the Fruit of Fathering and Crops

David W Palmer

In recent studies, we have seen that Jesus and the apostle Paul both revealed that holiness or sin is a fruit of your walk with your spiritual father: communion with Father God will result in holy fruit—including godly characteristics and the works that he has prepared for you to walk in; but a close walk with Satan—musing on his ideas and growing them in your heart—will result in the fruit of sin. Fruit in these relationships is likened to the fruit of marriage, which is children (See: Rom. 7).

The Holy Spirit through the apostle James confirms the idea of sin coming about through a conception:

(James 1:14–15 DKJV) “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. (15) Then [the next step is that] when the lust has conceived, it bears sin; and sin, when it is full grown, breeds death.”

The apostle Paul uses marriage to illustrate our relationship and fruitfulness with God. It is the love and romance of intimacy with Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and Father that produces change and holy fruit in our lives. This reminds me of another illustration that I’m sure we can all understand:

A mother had an interesting experience with her son. He was always a problem growing up. She had repeatedly to give him the same instructions, day in and day out: “wash your hands,” “clean your teeth,” “have a shower,” “put on clean clothes,” “comb your hair,” etc. She wondered if her instruction and training was making any difference at all; it seemed that he wasn’t listening. She would teach him one day, then the next day it was as though he hadn’t learnt a thing. She would have to give her basic instructions again and again.

Then, out of the blue, one day he came in clean, well groomed, and smelling wonderful. What changed him? Was it the law his mother had laid down? No, that educated him to what was right, wrong, and expected; but it didn’t empower him to obey it. So what did change him? Yes, I’m sure you have guessed; he met a girl. Then the change was automatic (at least in the early stages of courtship). Romantic love and the promise of intimacy had the power to change him, whereas the [albeit love-motivated] knowledge of legalism did not.

This is exactly the way God wants to transform us. The law is our educator—teaching us the ABC’s of walking in right relationship with God; they educate us, but cannot produce the fruit of holy living any more than prenatal classes can produce a baby. The law prepares us for an understanding of the holiness that God intends to birth through our lives.

God wants us to be so in love with him, so hungry for his fellowship, intimacy, and communion that we literally leave uncleanness and unholiness behind. He wants our God-given hunger for intimacy to bring us to his throne to receive mercy, enjoy intimacy, and find grace.

For example, a friend of mine visited a revival overseas. When he returned, I asked him what it was like. He said, “I saw God in his holiness, and I want to be just like him.”

(2 Corinthians 6:16–7:1 DKJV) “… for you are the temple of the living God; as God has said, “I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they will be my people. (17) So come out from among them, and be separated,” says the Lord, “and do not touch the unclean thing [or person], and I will receive you. (18) And I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,” says the Lord Almighty. (7:1) Therefore, having these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

Here, the Holy Spirit lists the promise of intimacy, closeness, and access as being the motivators—or empowerers—for changing us to holiness and separation. In this context, Scripture says that if we “come out from among them and be separated,” God will be accessible and a Father to us; that is, he will always be very near at hand and welcoming so we can be constantly in his presence, where we can imitate him as “much loved children” (Eph 5:1 DKJV).

God’s plan is that we become clean and holy through receiving his mercy and finding grace at his throne:

(Hebrews 4:16 DKJV) Let us therefore keep approaching the throne of grace with boldness that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (well-timed help).

Conceiving children and bringing them to birth is clearly the picture God uses; it helps us understand the process by which he imparts his holiness to us. It is also the process that enables us to walk in the works he has prepared for us to walk in (Eph. 2:10).

Jesus taught along parallel lines when speaking of how the Kingdom of God works. He said the Kingdom of God is like a man who sowed seeds:

(Mark 4:26–29 DKJV) And he said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like, it is as if a man throws seed onto the soil; (27) And sleeps, and rises night and day, and the seeds germinate and grow up, he doesn’t know how. (28) For the soil produces fruit automatically—first the blade, then the ear, after that the full grain in the ear. (29) But when the fruit is ready, immediately he sends in the sickle (harvester), because the harvest is ready.”

In the same way that babies begin as seeds sown into the womb, harvests begin as seeds sown into the earth. Jesus shows that there is a similarity to both processes; this helps us look at the nexus to learn about how relationship with him and his kingdom grows spiritually: Both have a time-factor—the period from sowing to harvest; and both have an “automatic” aspect of the growth—independent of whether the planter knows how it works or not.

The farmer in Jesus’s story only needs to know how and when to plant, and how and when to reap. The rest of the process will take care of itself, whether he understands it or not. Jesus is saying that this is exactly how the Kingdom of God works. All we need to know is how to get his seeds into the soil of our hearts, how to be patient during the growing period, how to keep the weeds and pests out, and how to reap it; we do not need to “know how” it grows.

So whether it’s a husband planting seed in his wife, a farmer planting seed in the soil, or a believer conceiving holy actions, words, and character, the principles are the same. (Obviously, the farmer doesn’t sow his seeds in the same level of intimacy as a father, but he can get a harvest nonetheless.)

Both farmers’ crops and babies illustrate a very important principle. In both cases, a patience-testing period comes between the planting and the harvest or birth. Despite our human excitement or impatience, this phase cannot be shortened or lengthened. We simply need to understand that this is part of the process of holy fruit-bearing in God’s kingdom.

To further understand how the process of “sweatless holiness” works, tomorrow we will return to Paul’s teaching in Romans. But for today, let’s ensure that we are bearing fruit to the right Father with patience; and let’s check that we are receiving the right seeds into the soil of our hearts, and that we protect, water, and grow them.