HOW many of my little readers can tell what kind of fruit grows on an apple tree? Someone says “apples.” Yes, that is right. Now, if I tell you that oranges grow on a cherry tree, you will say, “Oh, no! cherries grow on cherry trees.” And you are right. Each tree has its own kind, of fruit—sometimes good, and sometimes bad.
Little children are like trees. They bear either good fruit or bad fruit. If they disobey their parent, tell lies, quarrel, or do anything else that is naughty, they are bearing bad fruit, and God does not like that. He wants to see the good fruit, which is “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” Galatians 5:22, 2322But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (Galatians 5:22‑23).
We cannot talk about all of these today, but hope to do so in succeeding papers, if the Lord will.
I.
ML 03/15/1903