What A Peel

O

ne of the most intriguing areas of the grocery store is the produce section.  I am constantly amazed at the variety of fruits and vegetables constantly on display in this area.  As the seasons change, the produce aisle changes as well.  Fruits and vegetables, normally out of season in our country, find their way to our shelves from other areas of the world where they are grown in abundance. 

One of my favorite fruits is the banana.  No matter the season, produce managers in every grocery store proudly display this tropical fruit in abundance.  Almost everyone I see in the produce section stops to look at the bananas and most of these people pick up a bunch to take home.  Each week, I buy a bunch of bananas myself.  As a matter of fact, it takes me almost as long to find the right bunch of bananas as it does to complete the rest of my shopping.

Now, you may be wondering why it takes me so long to select a simple bunch of fruit.  Well, have you ever stopped to consider the process necessary for selecting a bunch of bananas?  Consider this!  When approaching the produce stand, you are attracted by the initial color of the bananas.  They all look so pretty, dressed in their brightest yellow jackets.  However, upon closer inspection, you find some of the bunches are still green, meaning they are not yet ripe, and others are dark, indicating they are past their peak.  Sometimes, the peels are very dark, almost black indicating the bananas are either way too ripe or, perhaps, rotten.

Yes, you can tell a lot about a banana by its peel.  After all, what you are after is on the inside but you make your selection based upon the outside of the fruit.  Hmmmmm, this sounds familiar, doesn't it?  Somewhere, Jesus spoke about fruit and its application to our spiritual walk with him.  Somewhere he made a connection between the type of fruit we bear and the type of person we are.

Matthew 7:20 is a small sentence but it packs a powerful punch.  In this verse, Jesus says,“Therefore by their fruits you will know them."  In this particular passage, Jesus underscores a great spiritual truth, namely, that our exterior attitudes and actions indicate the interior conditions of our hearts and souls.  The way we act towards others, the way we spend our time and money, the way we care for those around us, all indicate the type of person we are.  Although we claim to be spiritual and truly concerned for others, our words are not the true indications of our commitment to God.  No, our actions indicate to those around us just how deep and true our commitment to God is.

The banana peel is the criterion I use to select the fruit I buy.  If the peel is too green, I don't choose it because the fruit is immature and not ready for use.  Likewise, if the peel is too dark, I know the banana is bad and will not serve my purposes well. However, the banana with the healthy yellow peel is my choice every time.  I know that the fruit inside will be good, ripe, and ready for use.

It is the same with us.  Everyday we are surrounded by people searching for answers to their questions.  Most of them, although they may not know it, are looking for God.  All around them they see people professing to be Christians, but their lives reflect nothing of what God stands for.  Like the initial approach to the banana display, they are attracted by what they see and hear about Christianity.  They are drawn to it and want to learn more about it.  However, upon closer inspection of Christianity's fruit, that would be we Christians, they find that some fruit is too ripe, some is not ripe enough, and other fruit is simply rotten.

What better reason could their be for us to take inventory of our relationship with God?  Let us come before God, before the ultimate fruit inspector, and learn the true condition of our hearts toward him.  Let him weed out every part of us that is immature or rotten so that we display only the best fruit.  Our lives, in all aspects, must be true and consistent.  The outward appearance of our lives will reflect the inward condition of our hearts.  The question then becomes one of good fruit or bad fruit, ripe or rotten, useful or not.  Jesus' words are true, “Therefore by their fruits you will know them."  What does your life look like today?