ROOTS
Roots are important. Everyone has a family tree & basically have 2 immediate origins – mother & father. Then there are 4 origins – grandparents on mother's side and grandparents on father's side. Plants also have roots that spread out. Generally, the stronger the root the more healthy the plant. If you want to nourish the root there is a product called Miracle Grow for the roots. If you want to kill the plant, get rid of the root – Round Up weed killer. It kills the root.
Then there are abstract kinds of roots. People have orientations, habits, and attitudes that are deep roots. We all have evil ones and good ones. Selfishness, lies, hate, rage, promiscuity, profanity, vengeance, greed, etc. are examples of evil roots. The product – (outgrowth) of this root is typically a life of striving & straining, pushing moral & ethical limits, cheating, and only being as organized & productive as one has to be to get by. Sometimes, the evil root grows too strong & people push the limits too far which often means jail time. And it appears that jail doesn't usually “cure” people, going by the high rate of return. Some “birds” have been over sentenced & return to society with anger which can & does make the evil root stronger. Benjamin Franklin said, “anger leads to shame”. And the bad root can and does ultimately lead to hell.
On the good side is the root of faith & truth. Love of God & righteousness, the work ethic, family values, forgiving & loving others, and lawfulness are examples. This root appears to produce a more healthy lifestyle of stability, productivity, & progress toward goals. Not only on the individual level but also at the family level. We can feed our good roots in our thought life. “... whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, ...pure, ...lovely, ...gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Philippians 4:8 Many of the people on the good side have strong religious values, and the good root can and does ultimately lead to heaven.
Now it would appear helpful for all individuals to periodically examine their roots. We all have an assortment of good & evil roots. The question is, which side is the strongest? Are my good roots stronger or the bad ones? Many folks see a problem or issue on the bad side and make a resolution to change. That makes sense & it's a nice plan but too often we don't have the POWER to control our ROOTS (or the resulting destiny). Resolutions usually last about a week then flop.
God offers us power to nurture the good roots and starve the bad roots. “As many as received him (Jesus), to them he gave power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (Miracle Grow on the roots), the old has passed away, behold the new has come.” “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses . . .” John 1:12, 2 Cor 5:17, Acts 1:8 We are all making choices from day to day that affect our destiny – (this is the very reason we are on this planet.) Some will say, “I'm not making choices one way or the other, I just live natural.” Well Jesus said, “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” Matthew 12:30 (That means the bad root is being fed.) Going back to the first sentence - “Roots are important,”- it only makes sense to nurture the good ones & starve the bad ones, if we care about our future. Why not cultivate the good root so that it supports the plant all the way to the “city in the sky”? (This “ROOTS” analogy is almost on track with the “Jack in the Bean Stock” adventure.) But I don't expect to find giants in heaven – just redeemed people, and the King of course. Choose Jesus he is alive, and get your roots blessed. See also “House Plants”. - link 4
Many other Titles: www.gospelnotes.org * * F. J. Stone * *
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