By DANNY MINTON

Once upon a time, there lived a man who wanted a lemon tree. He loved the smell of the tree blossoms, the scent of lemons, and the taste of a cold glass of lemonade. He decided that he had to have his own trees, so he traveled to the local nursery and picked out two young trees. He came home, planted the trees, fed them, watered them, and waited in expectation for his crop to grow. As the trees grew, the man saw something strange. The fruit on the trees did not look like lemons. To his surprise and dismay, he had not planted lemon trees but orange trees instead. He didn’t want orange trees; he wanted lemon trees and sat down depressed, staring at his unfortunate mistake. As he sat looking out at the trees, he had an idea. He got in his car, drove to the local grocery store, and bought several dozen lemons. He came home, pulled all the oranges off the trees, and taped lemons in their place. Now he thought, “I have two beautiful lemon trees!”

Of course, the man did not have lemon trees. All he had were two orange trees with lemons taped all over them. The kind of tree was not defined by what hung on it but by what was inside its very being. I believe that what makes us who we are is not necessarily what we see on the outside. Who we truly are comes from our hearts and what motivates us to be the person we desire. Most of what I write is intended to help us understand that our lives need to be patterned to be like Jesus. If how we present ourselves on the outside is not a reflection of who we are on the inside, then we are only lemons on an orange tree. Paul described these thoughts when he spoke about love in 1 Corinthians 13:1, “If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” (NASB) He was saying that how we are on the outside means nothing if we don’t mean it on the inside.

Our world often resembles an orange tree with lemons hanging on it. We live in a world of mistrust. We have become so used to hearing lies, half-truths, slanted information, and vague explanations that we find it difficult to believe what we hear. We have seen too many people say one thing and act another way. To use an old religious term, we expect people to “practice what they preach.” I want people to look at me and be able to trust what I say. I want them to see me as “what you see is what you get.” I want to be like Jesus. I want you to be like Jesus. If we wish the world we live in to come to Jesus, we must show them what it means. Words will not convince a straying world to enter into the community of Christ. 

As Christians, we have the power within us to change the world. If the community of Christians would realize what it holds within it and use that power, the world could not help but change. I remember the story of a hermit in a remote part of Oklahoma who discovered oil on his land and became an instant millionaire. With his money, the first thing he wanted was a big Cadillac. He had never had one before and knew nothing about automobiles but had heard that a Cadillac was the thing to have. One day, the man came to town to show off his new car. As he arrived, the people along the streets stopped and stared at the old man sitting in his brand new car, pulled by a team of four horses. He did not realize the power he had under the hood.

Christians need to realize the power living within us to change the world. God promised the Holy Spirit to be with us and guide us in how we live. We must learn to let God work in us to help us become servants modeled after Jesus. One way to be like Jesus is to teach ourselves to follow the ways of the “Fruit of the Spirit,” that Paul listed in a letter to the Galatian church. If we can learn to develop and live with “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and self-control” in our lives, letting it be seen, we can change the world. We should live our lives in such a way that no one has to ask if we are a Christian. It should be evident in our speech, actions, and integrity. Living this way becomes the most excellent way to honor Christ. Peter, in a passage similar to Paul’s, writes, “Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:5-8 (NASB)

Over the next few weeks, my weekly writings will center around the thoughts of these two men of faith. I want everyone to realize their potential to live an excellent life for Christ. Most of all, I pray the fruit of our lives will be desirable in the eyes of God and not just a bunch of lemons hanging on an orange tree just for show.

Danny Minton is a former Elder and minister at Southern Hills Church of Christ