By Bruce Green
Teaching Minister at 10th Street Church of Christ
in Opelika
The grain of wheat has to fall. We are born with two fears: the fear of loud noises and the fear of falling. The sensation of falling is uncomfortable. Think of when you’re in an elevator and it drops a little or in an airplane and it does the same thing. We don’t like that, do we? There’s something about the way we’re wired that makes us like having our feet on the ground or at the very least, something to hold on to.
Jesus fell, and He calls on us to do the same. The “falling” that we’re called to do is similar to the trust exercises people used to do when they allowed themselves to fall backward knowing that there were people behind them who would catch them. Only, the falling and dying Jesus spoke of in regard to the grain of wheat is the equivalent of us falling backwards into our Father’s arms. But our falling is more because just as we allow Him to catch us, we also allow Him to reign over every part of our lives — our attitudes, actions, speech, relationships — everything!
For a lot of people, this is scarier than physically falling. And it’s true — the only way anyone can do this is by fully trusting their Father. It’s the kind of trust we see Jesus display when He refused to ask God to save Him from “this hour” but rather requested that God’s name be glorified. Trust is the way we fall into the earth and die to all our sinful, misdirected ways. It is the way we allow our life to be used by God.
When we do this, to finish the metaphor, we bear much fruit. One grain of wheat can produce a stalk with up to eight heads — that’s between 300-400 kernels of wheat. That’s fruitful! In the same way, God can take our surrendered lives and produce more fruit than we ever imagined.
When we finally get to see God, that’s what will matter, isn’t it? A lot of things we get all worked up about aren’t going to make any difference but living a fruitful life will. Let’s fall into God’s arms and let Him produce fruit in our lives!
You can find more of Bruce’s writings at his website: www.atasteofgracewithbrucegreen.com.