Based on Luke 13:6-9 (New King James Version)
“He also spoke this parable: ‘A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ’ ”
Salvation is attained only through the grace of God, when we repent and convert from all our sins, and by faith, acknowledge and accept that Jesus died for our sins and was raised by God the Father on the third day, and receive the Lord Jesus as our Lord and God. This is the full Gospel message of salvation. But once a person makes this decision, is there anything left to do? After this, can a person live only for themselves, to do their own will, and expect to live eternally? Or must there be something that is produced as a result of this faith?
Many believers today think that after accepting Christ or converting to Christ, everything is done, and that nothing more remains to be done, and they base this belief or doctrine on certain passages scattered throughout the New Testament. Many believe that since salvation is not attained by works, then works after conversion no longer have any value either. However, looking at a much larger and broader view of the Scriptures, which goes far beyond just a few verses, we would understand that when we are born again or converted to Christ, it is only the beginning. Through many of the Lord's own teachings, we understand that God's will is for us to yield a product as a result of our faith, and if we do not bear the fruit God expects or live to do His will, just as we read, He will cut us off and remove us from His vineyard.
The first thing we must understand is that we cannot accept teachings as complete based on just a few verses. The Word of God relies on itself, and in multiple places, to complete a principle. For example, there are four gospels written by four different people who existed at different times. And incredibly enough, two of them were written by people who did not physically see the Lord, like Mark and Luke. Who is responsible for the authorship of the Scriptures, man or God? It is written: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16. So, why would God inspire four different gospels to be written by different people, and by two who had never even seen the Lord? Wouldn't one book be enough, and for it to be written by a single writer, and by the closest and most intimate person to the Lord? If that were the case, the only gospel that would matter would be the Gospel of John. But that's not how God designed things. He allowed and designated different people to give different perspectives, and even to complement each other in demonstrating the fullness of Christ, both through the account of the person who was closest to the Lord on earth during His ministry (John) and the person most distant and removed from the Lord's physical life, like Luke, who wrote his gospel 50 to 70 years after the Lord's death. What does this teach us? That it is God who inspired and gave His accounts through the Holy Spirit. And also, that we must look beyond just a few verses here and there to complete divine principles that must be observed and followed as part of faith in Christ.
Another point we can discuss is the matter that once a person converts to the Lord if they no longer need to worry about anything else. The moment a person converts, does the Holy Spirit begin to function as some sort of autopilot (as some think) within our lives? Returning to the Scriptures, if this were the case, that a person no longer needs to worry about anything after converting to the Lord except to ensure that there is a genuine conversion, then why study the Scriptures? Let us go further. What would be the point of God inspiring such a book as the Holy Bible, which is not a short book, a product that took centuries to produce through many writers? Why spend so much effort and sacrifice if the Holy Spirit is enough to do everything we need to do? What would the Scriptures matter if we are already on a set path without any possible detours, so to speak? It is impossible to think that the Scriptures were created and written as a waste of time. If we look at the universe, everything God has made, everything that proclaims His greatness, from the smallest and invisible things to our eyes to the largest and most expansive reaches of space, absolutely everything has a purpose. And if that is the case, wouldn't God have an even greater purpose with His Word? Through it, He created everything that exists today and that will remain eternally. God used the Word to create the visible and the invisible, the physical and the spiritual, the temporal and the eternal. As it is written: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” John 1:1-3.
So, what is the purpose of the Word? God never took away or canceled man's free will, neither before Christ, nor after Christ. The Bible teaches that everything is subject to free will, to what man decides to do within the immovable things of God. The Bible teaches us that there are things already fully set by God, but within all of that, He allows man to decide what to do with their life, and thus, leaves room for judgment. It is impossible for judgment to come if we are simply God’s puppets or robots. Each of us is accountable before God for what we do, and we will be judged as such. The Lord Himself spoke often about the coming judgment, and that all of us, even believers, will be held accountable for what we did. This is what the Word says: “Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” 2 Corinthians 5:9-11a. If the Apostle Paul was to be included in such a judgment, we are to be included also.
And so, we must understand that our faith must bear fruit, that is, we must do with our faith what God commands us to do. We must study and live the Word to do God's will. This is the purpose for which we were saved, to do God's will voluntarily, convinced of His truth, and out of love for Him. Thus said the Lord: “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.“ John 15:1-2. So, is your faith producing the fruit God so longs to see in you? Or are you producing nothing, thus running the risk of being removed by God forever? Lord bless! John. God bless Israel!