Sermon delivered on Trinity Sunday, May 26, 2013, at St. Augustine’s Anglican Church, Columbus, OH.

Lectionary texts: Proverbs 8.1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8.1-10; Romans 5.1-5; John 16.12-15.

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Last week we studied that role of the Holy Spirit in the Church and we looked at some of the Fruit of the Holy Spirit, that is the results of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives and the life of the Church.  Among the fruit, we named some virtues Love, Joy, Peace, Forbearance, Kindness, Goodness and Faithfulness among them. The Fruit of the Holy Spirit cannot be limited to just one list but should be seen has a constant flow of gifts that the Holy Spirit brings to us and to the Church as a whole. Today, I want to discuss what is involved in growing this Fruit.

For many years I have enjoyed growing fruit mostly pears, apples, grapes and tomatoes. I have been struck by the wide variety available. As I have looked through the Stark Brother’s catalog, a book that arrives in the middle of winter with  photographs of unbelievably good looking fruits and vegetables. designed to encouraged the reader to buyer more plants that he or she could ever grow, I am struck by the wide variety of fruits – many types of apples and pears, more types of grapes than I could imagine.  There are even trees that have several different types of fruit on the same tree, in fact just yesterday, on the internet, I saw an ad for such a tree,  –   just as there are many types of fruit with come from the gift of the Holy Spirit

I have discovered that there are a number of common things that go together with growing fruit and I believe that some of these same factors also apply to growing or increasing the yield of the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.  Having a small yard, I mostly have grown Dwarf Fruit Trees, these trees are designed to produce regular size fruit on a tree that is relatively small in height. These trees are most often created by grafting a regular branch or shoot of a normal size fruit tree on to the roots or root stock of another tree;  sometime  the roots are of the same type of fruit, but often it is from another variety, for example I had a pear tree that had been grafted on to the root stock of a Quince tree. This grafting is done to produce a smaller tree or one resistant to some disease. We as the people of God are said to be grafted on to the true vine of Jesus Christ, and it is the Holy Spirit that to a large extent is responsible for this grafting and it is through the Vine which is Jesus Christ that we are joined to the Heavenly Father. We are asked to produce Fruit not on our own but because we are joined to the Father through Christ by the gift or presence of the Holy Spirit.

No matter how good the root stock or the vine to which a fruit is being grafted there are still a number of factors that determine whether the tree will be productive, whether the fruit will be edible or pleasing to the eye, or whether it will survive at all. One of the first decisions that needs to be made is where to plant the tree or vine. Different fruits require different soils, but there are common factors. The soil should be stable, rich in nutrients, and have adequate moisture.

For individuals to bear the Fruit of the Spirit they too need to be rooted in a stable environment; hopefully, this is found in the Christian Family into which they are born or adopted.  The family needs to be one that puts its relationship with God through Jesus Christ in the highest priority.  It needs to be a family that is rich in spiritual practices, thou like different soils, these may vary greatly from family to family.

Some sadly will never experience this type of family environment, but not all is lost.  A bigger family, the community, we call Church, can and does still serve in this role. Many of us have seen the poor looking tomato plant that is being sold in a small container looking barely alive,  spring to life and produce abundant fruit once it is transplanted into the larger garden . So it is with some individuals that when they come to the church, perhaps not as strong in their faith as could be hopes,  that on finding  a church which provides that stable environment, a church rich in faith and commitment to one another, they too can blossom and show forth the fruit of the spirit. Both the family and the church need to be that rich soil.

Even with rich soil, most gardeners and fruit tree growers, find it worthwhile to supplement the soil, no matter how good, with additional minerals and other  nutrients to help the plant to grow stronger, larger and more productive. Christians need to consider spiritual supplements.  They come in a wide range of forms these include bible study materials, attendance at retreats or renewal weekends, internet seminars like the one that was made available to this church last weekend, good books written on living the Christian life to name but a few.

Some fruits need to have supplements on a regular basis; others do well with just periodic special feedings.  Most clergy are either required or strongly encouraged to practice a formal prayer routine often referred to as saying the office. This involves taking time during certain periods of the day to stop and pray with an emphasis on reading Scripture as part of that prayer.  Many are enriched by setting a set time of the day  for a short period of meditation and reflection sometimes with the Bible and other times just listening quietly for God to speak to their hearts.

There is a part of fruit growing that I find  personally very difficult.  Most fruit trees and grape vines need to be pruned. This is a process in which parts of the plant are removed because they are no longer productive  the part has become damaged or deceased or the limbs have become so thick that the plant as a whole is not thriving. The hardest pruning comes when the new plant, just starting to grow, needs to be pruned so that it will grown into the right shape to be productive.

We also need to undergo the process of pruning. Sometimes that is pruning that we can undertake ourselves and at other times we need others to assist us. Those new to the Faith will often need encouragement to rid themselves of practices and ideas that will in the long run stunt their growth but even more mature members need to be aware that they from time to time need to prune or cutout things from their life which are interfering with their fruitfulness.

Perhaps this is an area of sin. It may not in itself  be or appear very serious but if not dealt with can lead to a weakening of a person’s relationship with God.  It may be some environment or practice which not sinful places us in situation that we are exposed to temptation or at least not to thoughts or desires appropriate for a Christian.  This will vary greatly from individual to individual.

In the last year, I have found that I had to prune several television shows that really enjoyed from my watching due to some of the negative effects that they were having on my thoughts. It may sound silly, but giving up these programs was at first painful, I really did not want to do it, but having done so I can see the positive results.  Some many years ago  my wife and I attended a Marriage

Encounter weekend. During that weekend one of the things discussed is how a couple can together become more involved in Church life. As we took time to discuss this as a couple, we came to the conclusion that we were actually doing too much – that we were not focusing enough on our relationship. We decided that we needed to prune back some of those activities.  They were not bad activities – but they were distracting us from time we needed to share as a young couple and would have kept us from being as fruitful as we could be.

Are there activities that while not bad that are cluttering up your life?

Some fruit plants, to be really productive, need to go through some decree of what we might call hard times. High winds, periods of dryness, severe rain or even frost, allow these plants to flourish or produce exceptional fruit. In fact there is a sweet wine, commonly known as Ice Wine, that can only be produced from grapes that have been frozen. So it is with many if not all Christians, that to be the most fruitful must go through some really hard times.  I know that there are many members of this Church that have or are experiencing this. Some of these who have suffered most have produced some of best fruit of the spirit.  If you are going through such a time now or in the future, you need only look to the reading of Romans 5  which was our Epistle reading which says “Knowing the suffering  produces endurance,  and endurance produces character and character produces hope and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s has been poured into our hearts through that Holy Spirit which has been given to us.”

But going through difficult times, is not easy, and we like a tender plant or a young tree often need support to stay healthy. Two ways that we in the Church experience such support is through prayer and by personal sharing.  The personal sharing can be as simple as bringing meals to someone or taking the time to listed to them. Saint Augustine’s is a community that can rightly celebrate that it is a community that stands in support not only of its members but of others who are in need.

The fruit on the tree is not only meant to be source of food, but the seed of the fruit is also meant for reproduction. The seed from one fruit enters good earth and produces a new tree or vine that in turn produces additional fruit, in fact multiplying the fruit manifold. So it is with the Fruit of the Spirit, when we respond to the Spirit and let the Spirit’s Fruit be part of our lives we help it to spring forth in the lives of others.   As we show Love to others, they are able to discover Love in their lives.As we show forbearance, we encourage others to do so. But the fruit of the Holy Spirit is not limited to just one kind of fruit in its reproduction. We might show kindness and faithfulness blooms in another. We are people of Peace and others are moved to Goodness. We are all called to grow an Orchard of Fruit Trees for the Fruit of the Spirit. Have you grown any  Fruit lately?

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.