A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mt 7:15-20
Jesus said to his disciples:“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,but underneath are ravenous wolves.By their fruits you will know them.Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut downand thrown into the fire.So by their fruits you will know them.”
REFLECTION
By their fruits you will know them.
We all have a favorite fruit, either eating it as a snack or as dessert. There are 15 fruit trees that also bloom with beautiful flowers: Peaches, pomegranates, mango, loquat, apple, lemon, pear, pomelo, lychee, grapefruit, guava, strawberry, orange, persimmon and cherry. So not only do we have a delicious sweet fruit to nourish us but God has given us beautiful flowers to enjoy before the fruit.
For the unskilled eye, one can see the tree with the beautiful flowers and not realize what kind of fruit tree it is. What we see and also what we hear might have the look or the sound of the real thing but with closer inspection, it is actually not what we thought it was.
Many of us are presented with what appears to make sense, but does not follow the Commandments nor the teachings of Jesus. If what we hear and see does not bring us closer to God, then we know that is false.
Many preachers or teachers present what we think is the truth but if you think critically or inspect what they say, one might see defects, errors, irrelevance, or wrong conclusions that make their message incorrect. We have to be careful who we listen to or what books we read. We need to have a relationship with God and allow our spiritual life to grow through the Holy Spirit. With care, watchful observation and a good prayer life, we can bear good fruit.
People should notice kindness, patience, joy, happiness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance and love when they are around us. The seeds of today are the flowers of tomorrow and the fruits for the future for all to enjoy.
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