Sunday, April 26th
How's Your Fruit Stand Doing?

Welcome to The Journey Church. I'm Pastor Ben Tims.​

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I know we have four seasons in a typical year, but living in Minnesota, it seems like we only have two; winter and road construction. Now that the weather is cooperating (a little) we start to see some new growth on trees, flowers, shrubs, and even rhubarb. After a LONG winter, it’s so encouraging to see signs of life in nature, and gardens.

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2026 has been declared the year of bearing fruit at the Journey Church. The fruit that we are talking about isn’t dependent on the weather; it’s fruit that is produced by Holy Spirit working in our lives 365 days per year, 24/7.

Every summer, you can find fruit and produce stands that pop up to sell their different products. They are usually busy, because we love fresh, homegrown items. Can you imagine how busy these stands would be if they had big signs in front of them saying: Free Fruit. They would need to have a police presence to direct traffic.

If I saw a “free” sign, I would be skeptical. Why are they giving it away? Is it bruised and rotting? There would have to be a catch somewhere, because we all know there is nothing in this world that’s free, right?

Luann and I grow a big garden every year. We love to can our own food. Salsa, different tomato sauces, beans, peas, corn, etc., that’s what we like to do. It seems that every year, after all the work is done, we say, that’s a lot of work, maybe next year we’ll take a break, and not plant a garden. Well 45 years later, we still do it every year.

Why? Because we can enjoy the fruits of our labor in the middle of winter. Homemade tomato soup, green beans, jalapeno poppers, there’s nothing better than having a taste of summer in the wintertime. We even think about winter as a time where we get to take a break from all of the hard work that the nicer months bring us.

What is the one thing that will grow in a garden with no rain, no sunshine, no fertilizer, and no work required? WEEDS! They pop up everywhere, uninvited, and multiply like crazy. We are constantly fighting the weeds from overtaking our garden.

Have you ever looked at your life as a garden? I have. Our spiritual gardens are not weed resistant. We have to constantly be aware of the fact that we have an enemy, the devil, who wants to overtake our God given gardens.

Spiritual weeds are thoughts, habits, or attitudes that consume time and energy, hindering spiritual growth and the production of "fruit" like peace and joy. Similar to a physical garden, the soul requires consistent, active weeding and nurturing through scripture and prayer to prevent these distractions from choking out faith.

Let’s look at some of the most common weeds that like to creep into our spiritual gardens:

1) Anxiety and worry: This could be excessive concern over life, finances, or the future, which divides attention from God.

2) Busyness: A packed schedule that leaves no room for quiet reflection or spiritual nourishment.

3) Unbelief and doubt: Negative thoughts that cause you to question God's truth or goodness.

4) Pride and selfishness: Prioritizing self-focused desires over spiritual growth.

5) Unforgiveness and bitterness: Holding onto past hurts, which act like choking weeds in the heart.

6) Materialism: Placing temporary, worldly success above eternal spiritual health. 

All of these weeds (plus many more not mentioned) are the things that will limit or possibly wipe out any fruit production in your garden, your spiritual life. One thing I do know about weeds is this, they don’t need water to grow, but if you do water weeds they will grow fast and deep.

Weeds are hard to detect when we have an abundance of rain. Everything is green and the weeds can kind of blend in with the good things we are growing. The easiest time to spot weeds is in a drought, they are always green, they stick out like a sore thumb. I guess what scares me about all these weeds is their potential for multiplication.

When I was a kid I would break off the stem of a dandelion that held a cluster of seeds. A stiff breeze or a puff or breath would instantly launch a jillion of those tiny, angel-hair parachutes. Now as I fight the spread of these wind-born warriors, I can’t help but wonder how many dandelions there are in just one of those dandelion seed-balls. Letting just one weed grow freely in your life could result in a crop failure.

As Christians, how many weeds have taken root in our lives? How many things have we poured our time and attention into that are choking out the Spiritual fruit we are trying to grow? How can we tell the difference between a weed and fruit when it is so easy to mistake one for the other? Am I watering weeds?

Galatians 5:22-25 NIV says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

These verses set the standard. If what we are investing our time and energy into isn’t growing those types of fruit, we need to look closely to be sure it isn’t a weed. If it is a weed, we have to be willing to reach down into the dirt and uproot it before it grows and starts choking out the fruit we are working so hard to grow.

How do you weed your spiritual garden? 

1) You need to perform some daily maintenance. Dedicate time to prayer and studying the Word to prevent weeds from taking root.

2) Learn to identify and uproot the weeds. Actively recognize habits or attitudes that drain your spiritual energy and consciously turn away from them.

3) Encourage and foster growth. Cultivate the "fruit of the Spirit"—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—to naturally crowd out weeds.

4) Seek accountability. Engage with a community of believers, community groups, join the men’s group that is starting up, all of these can help identify hidden weeds.

Just as in a garden, if weeds are not removed, they can become deeply rooted and harder to pull later. Weeds left unattended can cut the harvest by as much as 40 to 60 percent. When I consider the consequences in my life of the “harvest hinderers,”(weeds) I know that I need to get serious about pulling, poisoning, and plowing under those destructive weeds.

I wish I had some high-powered herbicide to help you instantly eradicate weeds from your life. The reality is that all soil has weed seeds. Lives do too. What you and I need is a personal visit from the Master Gardener and His hoe. We need some Holy Spirit herbicide power. When Holy Spirit is living inside of us, He brings conviction, strength, and power to overcome weeds, and then He produces good fruit for others to enjoy. Consistent attention allows your spiritual life to flourish. The goal of our spiritual gardens is more than just bearing some fruit; it’s bearing MUCH fruit.

John 15:8 NIV “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear (a little fruit), No, it says much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

Can you produce too much fruit? Well in a natural garden that can happen. When Luann and I decide what we want to grow in our garden, then it becomes a question of how much do we need. She will tell me to get four tomato plants and I come home with six. Two rows of beans turns into four, two cucumber plants means four to me. My theory is, what if one or two plants die, then we won’t have enough. I can tell you that has never been the case.

We end up having a bumper crop, because we do water, weed, cultivate, and fertilize. Many of you have enjoyed some of the “excess” from our gardening. We don’t throw away the extra fruit, I take bags of ghost peppers and jalapenos and drop them off to my friends at Las Margaritas, they act like its Christmas when I show up. I love blessing them with my extra fruit.

Can you bear too much Spiritual Fruit? NO! The more fruit Holy Spirit produces in you, the more you have to give away. Look at your life as a “fruit stand”, pretend that you have a “Free Fruit” sign posted at your stand (life). Is there a traffic jam? Do people line up to get some real fruit?

"They'll Know We Are Christians by Our Love" is a popular 1960s hymn by Catholic priest Peter Scholtes, based on John 13:35 NIV “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

The hymn emphasizes that Christians should be recognized by their unity and love for others. Jesus states that sacrificial love for one another is the defining mark of His disciples. It emphasizes that true Christian witness is shown through unity, compassion, and action. Love is an active, sacrificial, and visible demonstration of faith, not merely a feeling.

A few months ago, I brought a message on the “fruit” of the Spirit, drawing specific attention to the fact that it is fruit, not fruits, of the Spirit. Love is just one of nine of the fruit. Do you have the other eight as well?

There is a farmers market in Hastings during the growing season. It’s open every Tuesday and Saturday in the Westview Mall parking lot. I’m always amazed at the variety of fruit displayed. It’s all laid out perfectly on the tables. It all looks so good and fresh; it’s hard to control myself. I don’t even care what the price is; I just want some of it.

It makes me think about my fruit stand. Do I have more than just one fruit? If I had all nine fruit, would more people be waiting in line to get some? Do you want Him to visit your garden? Why not ask Him to come right now? Ask Him to do some fresh cultivation in the soil of your heart.

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The Bible is the best form of weed prevention in your spiritual garden. Is the Bible your moral and ethical compass? Are your decisions, and actions a reflection of what the Word of God says?

2 Timothy 3:16 NLT “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.”

In Matthew, we can read the parable of the weeds and tares. It’s a teaching by Jesus about the Kingdom of Heaven, explaining that good (wheat) and evil (weeds) coexist in the world until the final judgment day.

Matthew 13:24-30 NIV “Jesus told them another parable: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner’s servants came to him and said, Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from? An enemy did this, he replied. The servants asked him, do you want us to go and pull them up? No, he answered, because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.”

There are six elements in this parable for us to understand.

1) The Field: Represents the world.

2) The Sower (Good Seed): The Son of Man (Jesus).

3) The Wheat: The people of the Kingdom/true believers.

4) The Weeds (Tares): The people of the evil one/unbelievers.

5) The Enemy: The devil.

6) The Harvest: The end of the age/judgment day.

There are three core lessons that we can take away from this parable. 

The first is don’t judge too quickly. The parable warns against attempting to separate righteous and wicked people prematurely, as this judgment belongs to God at the end of time. In my physical garden, weeds are easy to spot, I know the difference between a weed and fruit. But in our spiritual garden we have to careful not to judge too fast.

Matthew 7:1-2 NIV “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

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The second lesson is to accept that good and evil coexist, and the presence of "weeds" should not be surprising to us. In my physical garden, I don’t let weeds live with my fruit; I pull them or spray them as soon as I see them. A weed isn’t going to turn into a tomato plant. In our spiritual gardens, we live in a world that has good and evil, we can’t be pulling what we think are weeds; we need to be discerning.

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The third lesson is that God has the final justice. The weeds will be burned, while the wheat (righteous) will be gathered into the barn, ultimately shining in the Kingdom of the Father. The Angels will do the harvest; they will separate the good from the evil. Again, in my physical garden, I know when it’s time for harvest; I know when the fruit is ripe for picking. In our spiritual garden, God is the ultimate harvester. He will separate the good and evil. The evil will burn (in hell), while the righteous will live with the Father forever in Heaven.

I know there are several people here this morning that put artificial fruit in bowls or use artificial flowers in pots. The fruit will never rot, and the flowers will never fade, but they are fake. No taste, no smell. People will know when they look at our spiritual garden, if our fruit is real or fake. Your walk better match your talk or nobody will want to take any of your fruit.

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Next week Jerry preaches on stewardship.

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Thanks For Joining Us

Connect with us at www.thejourneyhastings.church

Message Questions

1. Which of the “spiritual weeds” mentioned (anxiety/worry, busyness, unbelief/doubt, pride/selfishness, unforgiveness/bitterness, materialism) is the biggest struggle for you right now? Why?

2. What are some ways you may be knowingly or unknowingly watering some of these weeds?

3. How do we go about pulling up these spiritual weeds?

4. What is God’s purpose in saving and calling us?

5. Why did Jesus tell us not to “pull up the tares” sown in the world (unbelievers/potentially false professing Christians).