43 “For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. 45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. (Luke 6:43-45 NKJV)
This is an attempt to apply this verse to the present context, where speaking (sharing) is not just limited to word of mouth, but has taken the form of different social media and so on. The purpose is to help the reader understand and apply the truth that Jesus teaches.
For a good profile does not bear bad posts, nor does a bad profile bear good posts. For every Profile is known by its own Post. For facebookers do not receive fruitful feeds from filthy posts or worthy tags from filthy photos, nor do they get good posts from a bad profile. A good facebooker out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good posts; and an evil facebooker out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil posts. For out of the abundance of the heart are his Facebook posts.
For a good Tweeter does not bear bad Tweets, nor does a bad Tweeter bear good Tweets. For every Tweeter is known by his or her Tweet. For Tweeters do not receive fruitful tweets from filthy Tweeters, nor do they get good tweets from a bad Tweeter. A good Tweeter out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good tweets; and an evil Tweeter out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil tweets. For out of the abundance of the heart are his Twitter tweets.
For a good blog does not bear bad posts, nor does a bad blog bear good posts. For every Blog is known by its own Posts. For bloggers do not get fruitful blogs from filthy bloggers, nor do they get good blogs from a bad post. A good blogger out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good posts; and an evil blogger out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil posts. For out of the abundance of the heart are his Blog posts.
For a good YouTube/Vimeo channel does not bear bad videos, nor does a bad YouTube/Vimeo channel bear good videos. For every YouTube/Vimeo channel is known by its own videos. For users or browsers do not get fruitful videos from filthy channels, nor do they get good videos from a bad channel. A good User out of the good treasure of his heart produces good videos; and an evil User out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil videos. For out of the abundance of the heart are his YouTube/Vimeo channel videos.
For a good Website does not bear bad content, nor does a bad website bear good content. For every Website is known by its own content. For browsers do not see fruitful content from filthy websites, nor do they see good content from a bad website. A good Webmaster out of the good treasure of his heart posts good content; and an evil Webmaster out of the evil treasure of his heart posts evil content. For out of the abundance of the heart he posts content.
For a good Netizen does not bear bad chats, nor does a bad Netizen bear good chats. For every Netizen is known by his chats. For Netizens do not get fruitful chats from filthy users, nor do they get good chats from a bad user. A good Netizen out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good chats; an evil Netizen out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil chats. For out of the abundance of the heart are his Messenger chats.
For a good Caller does not make bad calls, nor does a bad Caller make good calls. For every Caller is known by his calls. For Receivers do not get fruitful calls from filthy callers, nor do they get good calls from a bad Caller. A good Caller out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good calls; an evil Caller out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil calls. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
For a good Texter does not send bad SMS/MMS, nor does a bad Texter send bad texts. For every Texter is known by his Texts. For Receivers do not get fruitful texts from filthy texters, nor do they get good texts from a bad Texter. A good Texter out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good texts; an evil Texter out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil texts. For out of the abundance of the heart his hand texts.
“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.” (Philippians 4:8)
Isn’t it true that almost everyone in this world tries to show and prove his or her “worth” and value? And worth is more often than not attached to one’s qualification, family or community background, position, job, income, creativity, productivity, etc and people of high status and wealth and popularity are valued highly. But the Bible attached value and gives worth to entirely different things. Let’s take a look at it from Luke 7:1-10 and I am going to bring in the issue of “worth” or “value” from the perspectives of different people involves in this incident.
Worth or Value: The Centurion’s Perspective
I was very much surprised to note that which the centurion valued.
“Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him. When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.” Luke 7:2-3 (ESV)
The Bible says that it was his servant who the centurion “highly valued”. But the Bible does not say why he valued him highly. But we learn a very important lesson here. We need to value people irrespective of their work and hierarchy. My ownership of authority should never make me devalue the one who lacks authority or one who submits to my authority.
And the Bible does not just say that the Centurion valued his servant. It goes on to say how he valued him; thereby teaching the ways to show that we value someone.
He loved him “who was dear to him” (Luke 7:2 NKJV)
He was concerned of him when he became sick (Luke 7:2)
He looked out for ways for his servant to be healed (Luke 7:3)
He stooped down & pleaded so that his servant might be healed (Luke 7:3 NKJV)
If I value someone these qualities and actions need to be seen in my life.
Worth or Value: The Jewish Elders’ Perspective
Now let’s see how the elders of the Jews looked at this issue.
“And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”” Luke 7:4-5 (ESV)
The elders of the Jews say that “He (the Centurion) is worthy”. And they give two reasons for valuing him -
He loved the Jews
He did something good for them (built them a synagogue)
Loving and helping others is the key.
Worth or Value: Jesus’ Perspective
“When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”” Luke 7:9 (ESV)
When was it when Jesus marvelled at the Centurion and what quality of him made Jesus to value him more than the Israelites?
“Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.” Luke 7:6,7 NKJV
He considered himself worthless
The healing of his servant mattered more than his worth
When the Centurion considered himself “worthless” he receives worth from the LORD of all Worth! When I think or show off myself as someone, then I am no one. When I think that I am worthy, in fact I am worthless.
A straight question – you need to go to someone for some work; but that person does not value you. What would be your reaction? At this juncture do we let the work suffer because our worth suffers? Let’s check ourselves.
This fits for any sort of a work and especially when it comes to God’s work. Many a times we do not allow God to work because we are so much bothered and concerned about our worth!
Worth or Value: The blogger’s Perspective
Even as I learnt so much on being worthy from all the above perspectives, I was very much attracted to Jesus. It was an opportunity to show or prove His worth. He was the One the centurion was looking for, the elders were pleading to. He could have talked about Himself – about who He was, about His powers, etc. Rather, he appreciates the centurion! And very silently does a miracle too! No self-promotion, no boasting!! And that’s called to be THE WORTHY.
May the Lord help you and me to change and have the right, biblical perspective and Christ-like attitude.
Also read the other blogs in line with this thought -
Isn’t it true that almost everyone in this world tries to show and prove his or her “worth” and value? And worth is more often than not attached to one’s qualification, family or community background, position, job, income, creativity, productivity, etc and people of high status and wealth and popularity are valued highly. But the Bible attached value and gives worth to entirely different things. Let’s take a look at it from Luke 7:1-10 and I am going to bring in the issue of “worth” or “value” from the perspectives of different people involves in this incident.
Now let’s see how the elders of the Jews looked at this issue.
“When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said,