Make The Tree Good

by Chris Simmons

We read the words of Jesus in Matthew 12:33-34 where He said, “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. You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.” In order to achieve true and substantive change for the better in our lives, we must begin by making true and substantive changes in our hearts. In order to bear good fruit, we must “make the tree good.”

When it comes to overcoming sin and temptation, when we try to stop a sinful habit (the fruit) without changing the heart (the tree), we will surely be disappointed, frustrated, and defeated. Think about swearing, abusive language, and sins of the tongue (Ephesians 4:25, 31; Colossians 3:8). What will happen if we try to stop swearing without changing the heart? We will still think what we used to think but try to put on the brakes before the word actually comes out of our mouth. Eventually, we won’t catch it in time and we’re swearing again. What happens, however, when we actually change our heart, our focus, and our thoughts? We no longer even think about such profane words and we no longer have to worry about them coming out of our mouth (Matthew 15:19).

Think about it from the other perspective: what if we try to begin to serve God and others (as we ought) and teach others the gospel but don’t change the heart? We may try and fake it for a while but it won’t last because it’s not genuine and we will find ourselves unable to sustain our service. On the other hand, what if I change my heart so that I can’t bear to think of others not knowing about the grace of God and the forgiveness found in the gospel through our Lord Jesus Christ? I’m then able to persevere and continue to press on in bearing good fruit. We’re not just to avoid an evil heart but relentlessly pursue a good heart. Note that Jesus didn’t say, “make the tree good and the fruit won’t be bad.” It’s not enough to avoid the evil heart!

In Jesus’ words of Matthew 12:33 is found a command for each of us to make a choice. Jesus used the word “either,” meaning it’s one or the other, and implicitly stating that there is no middle ground. We can’t be in the world and in the kingdom. Either make the tree good or evil – not a little bit of both.

The question is: how does one make his or her tree good? Jesus answers that question for us in Matthew 12:34 when He speaks of that “which fills the heart.” What fills our heart is one of the keys in determining whether our tree is good. So, what is filling our heart? Jesus wants us to know this but we must also know that Satan is also aware and constantly seeking to also fill our hearts with his evil and sin. We read of his efforts with Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:3 to fill their hearts with pride and deceit. What we are filled with will depend on what we are hungry for. We read in Psalms 107:9, “For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and the hungry soul He has filled with what is good.” Anyone who has any experience with trees knows that a tree that produces must be properly fed.

You also don’t need to be an arborist to know that another key to making the tree good is ensuring that it has a good root structure. Having deep healthy roots will make the tree good, strong, and stable. During the dark period of time when Sennacherib and the Assyrians were troubling and intimidating Israel, and King Hezekiah was praying to God for deliverance, God spoke of judgement against Sennacherib and the health and healing of His people when He said in II Kings 19:30, “And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.” The good tree must have strong and deep roots in order to survive and prosper when tried and tempted. Remember in the explanation of the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:20-21), the seed sewn on the “rocky places” and that it represented someone who “hears the word” and “receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself but is only temporary and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.”

This is what Solomon spoke about in Proverbs 12:3 where he said, “A man will not be established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous will not be moved.” Again in Proverbs 12:12 he wrote, “The wicked desires the booty of evil men, but the root of the righteous yields fruit.” We also read in Jeremiah, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8). How then do we go about developing such healthy and strong spiritual roots?

It’s through the same things that must fill our heart – that is, our faith in the word of God. Paul wrote in Colossians 2:6-7, “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.” Our roots have to reach deep into the word of God so that we can be “strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love” (Ephesians 3:16-17). Superficial roots make for a dangerously unhealthy tree and superficial knowledge faith and knowledge of God’s word make for a dangerously unhealthy soul.

Finally, strong and healthy roots are also dependent on healthy spiritual relationships based on God’s word. David began the Psalms by saying in Psalms 1:1-3, “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.” The health of our tree is dependent on the quality of our associations.