Spiritual maturity is like planting and tending a garden. If you ignore it, death will occur. You will get no fruit or vegetables, but isn't it interesting, you will still get weeds. It requires labor to bear fruit, but weeds happen automatically. Weeds spring up through doing nothing.
The same is true of our lives. The unresolved hurts, wrong attitudes, ungodly actions and habits, anger, depression, and yes, even incorrect biblical or church teachings, can all be like what Hebrews 12:15 expresses in reference to bitterness. "See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled."
The topic of this writing is not singling out bitterness; this is only one example. The point is all of the things mentioned above can be like weeds that take root in our lives, if left unattended, and will spring up to cause trouble in one's spiritual walk and relationships, by stopping the fruit from growing. We need to continually weed our spiritual gardens.
What weeds are growing in your life? Get rid of them so that the fruits of the Spirit can have their place. The fruits are listed in Galatians 5:22 as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
However, we have to go a little further in the context, to verses 24-26. In addition to the "root of bitterness" mentioned in Hebrews, there are 4 other "weeds." 1) the passion and desires of the flesh, 2)being boastful, 3)challenging one another,and 4)envying one another.
Let us all get out our spiritual shovels and start digging out the weeds so that our own personal, spiritual gardens can produce beautiful fruit to the glory of God.
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