Matthew

Shalom! In today's passage, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees by calling them the "Brood of Vipers" and he continued - Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit (Matt. 12:33). Also, Jesus said, The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil (Matt. 12:35). Then, the question we should ask ourselves is - "What treasure do I have in my heart?" Let's ask for God's grace to fill our hearts with the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, so God's treasure can be brought out through us. May God Bless You and Happy Bible Study! #Tree #Fruit #GoodandEvil #Exposition #Expositorysermon #Expositorypreaching #Expositoryteaching #Matthew #Matthew12

[@Cheryl-te1zs]

Can you still be saved if you bear bad fruit?

[@1theology]

Hi Cheryl, thank you for your question!
In Ephesians, Paul said, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:8 - 9). This passage tells us that salvation is only through faith. Also, it is the gift of God, i.e., we do not earn through our works, whether good or bad. If we earn it, the Bible wouldn’t say it’s a gift from God, right?
Then, how about our fruits (works)? Does it matter? The answer is in verse 10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). After we become a believer, then we will do good works because we are created in Christ Jesus for good works!
Therefore, the order of things is this - 1) We receive faith from God by hearing the Word of God (cf. Romans 10:17, if possible, vv. 5 through 17 to better understand context). 2) If we have faith, then we will strive for good works and do not/cannot continue sinning (cf. 1 John 3:9) although this does not mean Christians live perfect life... However, if we truly understand how valuable salvation is, we should be able to make the right decisions by the power of God. This change will take time and seems to be difficult, but let’s remember that it is possible with God (cf., Matthew 19:26). I will pray for you and please let me know if you have additional questions!