Pray the Word with David Platt is a resource from radical.net.

Matthew chapter 3, verse 8, bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

This is such a powerful exhortation from the mouth of John the Baptist in light of reading through the story

of scripture and specifically the Old Testament history leading up to the coming of Jesus.

Because what did we see as we read through the story of scripture we see over and over and over again

God's people sin and they experience the consequences of scripture, we see over and over and over again, God's people sin,

and they experience the consequences of that sin. They experience suffering as a result of sin.

They experience hurt and pain. And so then they turn back to God. God in his mercy and grace forgives them, restores them,

and then what do the people do right after that? They go back to their sin. They turn back to it.

You're not read just so many different stories and circumstances in the Old Testament. Like, no, no, I see where this is going. They're going to do it. You not read just so many different stories and circumstances in the Old Testament.

Like, no, no, I see where this is going. They're going to do it again. Like haven't they learned?

Don't they realize what this does? It always leads to bad. And yet they keep going back to it.

It's just a frustrating story to read until you realize it's a mirror of our own lives.

Because we do the same thing. Somebody could read the story of our lives and be saying the same thing. No, no, no, no, no, I see where this is going. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't you know that turning from God's way to your own way doesn't lead to our joy. It doesn't lead to your good. It doesn't. And yet we still do it. We still turn from God's way to our own ways. We still think we know what is better. You would think we would learn.

You would think all of us would learn, but we don't.

And so the exhortation here in Matthew 3, verse 8, these words, I mean, there's just a few words here, but they're so potent.

Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

This is true repentance, not just to turn from sin, only to turn back to sin.

That misses the whole point of repentance.

Turn from sin and keep turning from sin and experience the fruit of righteousness,

of freedom from sin, freedom to follow God's ways,

and to experience God's good purpose in our lives on a day by day basis.

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