23rd Week in Ord. Time, Saturday – 10th September 2022 — Gospel: Lk 6,43-49
Good Fruit and Good Heart
Our actions are signs of our inner attitude. The nature of a tree is known by the fruit it produces, and each tree produces a different kind of fruit. A tree bearing good fruit has likely been cared for; it has a strong trunk and branches and is free from pests. It gets plenty of water, nutrients, and sun. A tree bearing rotten fruit likely suffers from neglect of enough water, nutrients, or surrounded by weeds or pests. The tree is an apt image of our spiritual health. If a person’s heart is good, then what s/he produces will also be good, whereas if a person’s heart is evil, then the deeds of that person will also be evil. When our soul is healthy and well nourished, we produce good fruits. As James taught, true faith is active and “completed by works” (Jas 2,22). However, a person who lives in unrepentant sin also bears fruit, because God often uses desperately broken people despite their flaws (Jona 1,1-3; Judg 14,1-4). It is not the heart of the person, in and of itself, which produces good fruit; it is the redemptive grace of God through the Holy Spirit.
