The Secret to a Fruitful Life

Colossians 1:10: “So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

Hallelujah! Today is the first Sunday of the new year. God is a God who seeks fruit from His people. If the time comes for fruit to be borne, and yet no fruit is found, it is a serious problem. This year, to bear fruit, we must focus on three truths from today’s passage: We must live in a manner worthy of the Lord. As a result, we will bear fruit in every good work. Through this fruit, we will grow in our knowledge of God. I will share God’s message with you based on these three points.

First, Living a Life Worthy of the Lord

To bear fruit, we must live in a way that is worthy of the Lord. When we do so, our Master, Jesus Christ, will be pleased with us. But how can we live in a manner worthy of the Lord? The first step is to listen to His Word and obey it. This requires the servants of the Lord to diligently listen to His Word and faithfully deliver it to others. When we believe that the Word we hear is God’s message to us and obey it, we live in a way that pleases Him in every aspect of our lives.

When does God speak to us? God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day, setting it apart as a day of worship for His people. Psalm 118:22-24 declares, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

The “stone the builders rejected becoming the cornerstone” refers to the prophecy of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross and His resurrection. Therefore, the Lord’s Day—the day of His resurrection—is a day appointed by the Lord. On this day, we gather in His presence to rejoice and be glad. According to Psalm 118:25-26, when we worship on this day, the Lord promises to save us and grant us His blessing and prosperity. Through worship, we find rest, experience peace, and receive renewed strength and energy. Moreover, we encounter His healing grace for the broken areas of our lives.

The Importance of Keeping the Lord’s Day

How have you regarded and observed the Lord’s Day so far? Have you merely seen it as a day to take a break from your work, studies, or other daily responsibilities? The Lord’s Day is a day set apart by God for His people to remember Him. God commands, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy” (Exodus 20:8). This day is not our own—it is the Lord’s day. Because it belongs to Him, it is a day when God pours out His blessings upon us. If we desire freedom from the burdens of life and prosperity in our endeavors, the key lies in remembering the Lord’s Day and keeping it holy.

Let me share a personal testimony. One individual who heeded my encouragement to strictly observe the Lord’s Day later passed the highly competitive civil service exam in Korea. Similarly, when I was in college, many middle school students who committed to keeping the Lord’s Day holy experienced significant improvement in their academic performance. As a result, their parents came to recognize and respect both me and the church.

Observing the Lord’s Day is not merely a religious duty but a channel through which God’s blessings flow into our lives. Through it, we experience His grace and prosper under His hand. Let us honor the Lord’s Day this year, and in doing so, bear fruit that brings glory to God.

Second, Bearing Fruit in Every Good Work

When we live in a manner worthy of the Lord, we will bear fruit in every good work. In Mark 10:17-18, a man asks Jesus how he can inherit eternal life. Jesus responds, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” Jesus then instructs him to follow the commandments: “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.”

These commandments can be summarized by the commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.” However, Jesus does not explicitly mention the commandments regarding our relationship with God. Nevertheless, Scripture warns, “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar” (1 John 4:20). If we cannot love those we see, we cannot truly love the God we do not see.

In the parable of the sheep and the goats, Jesus emphasizes that “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me,” and “whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me” (Matthew 25:40, 45). Additionally, Jesus teaches that if we forgive others, God will forgive our sins, but if we do not forgive others, God will not forgive us (Matthew 6:14-15). Even our worship is unacceptable to God if we have unresolved conflicts with others. Jesus instructs us to first reconcile with our brother or sister before offering our gift at the altar (Matthew 5:23-24).

Thus, obedience to commandments about our relationship with God is realized through how we treat others. Every good fruit is rooted in right relationships with others. Yet, we cannot bear such fruit unless God dwells within us. Right relationships require selflessness, but humanity is inherently selfish. Only when Christ lives in us, through the crucifixion of our old selves, can we live selfless lives that bear good fruit.

Who, in your life, do you need to reconcile with this year to bear the fruit God desires? Let this be the year you forgive, make peace, and build right relationships, bearing fruit that is pleasing to the Lord. May this year be one of reconciliation and fruitful living in Christ.

Third, Growing in the Knowledge of God

Growing in the knowledge of God goes beyond theoretical understanding. According to the Bible, even demons know about God, but their knowledge is only intellectual. Truly knowing God means experiencing His Word and works firsthand and being confident in their truth. God is the Creator of the universe, the One who lives forever, and the One who rules over all things. He is incapable of lying, and everything He speaks will surely come to pass.

To grow in the knowledge of God, we must first believe in Him and obey His Word. When we do so, we experience His Word being fulfilled in our lives, and we come to know through experience that His Word is true.

There are steps to growing in the knowledge of God. Starting with faith, we add goodness, then knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and finally, love. As we progress through these steps, we come to know God more deeply through experience.

Faith: Faith means confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord, acknowledging that He died on the cross to pay for our sins and rose again to make us righteous. This confession includes a commitment to obey His Word.

Goodness: Goodness involves bringing people who live in darkness into the light of the gospel by following the example of Jesus, serving them with humility.

Knowledge: Knowledge is gained through experiencing Jesus. Since He is the Light, we come to know Him as we walk with Him in the light.

Self-Control: Self-control involves overcoming habits of lying and self-righteousness, which are part of the old nature, and instead actively living in truth and righteousness.

Perseverance: Perseverance means not giving up on others, no matter how they treat us, just as Jesus showed patience and compassion to save us. It involves praying and waiting for their salvation.

Godliness: Godliness is not about our own character but about reflecting the character of Christ. It requires constant spiritual breathing—taking in the Holy Spirit and releasing worldly thoughts.

Mutual Affection: Mutual affection, or “Philadelphia,” is shown by being kind to one another within the church and showing mutual respect and honor.

Love: Love involves turning away from worldly desires such as lust, pride, and greed (1 John 2:15-16). A born-again Christian belongs to God’s kingdom, not the world. Loving God means becoming His friend rather than an enemy of God by loving the world.

Through these steps, we grow deeper in our knowledge of God. This is the joy of being a child of God.

How much effort have you made to know God? Through consistent spiritual training, I have personally experienced the blessing of knowing God more deeply. I have full confidence that if I were to sleep tonight and not wake up in this world, I would awaken in heaven with a glorious body and see my loving parents in the presence of the Lord.

Dear brothers and sisters, don’t you also feel the desire to grow in your knowledge of God? Let this year be a time of growth as you seek to know Him more and experience the joy of walking with Him.

Let us conclude today’s message.

To bear fruit, we must live in a manner worthy of the Lord. When we do so, we will bear fruit in every good work, and through this fruit, we will grow in the knowledge of God. To achieve this, there are practical steps we must take.

First, we must long to hear God’s Word, especially on the Lord’s Day. Second, we must seek the Holy Spirit to inscribe His Word in our hearts and empower us to obey it. When we commit to this, God will allow us to witness His Word being fulfilled in our lives and enable us to testify to His truth.

Let us pray together.
Lord, pour out Your Spirit upon us so that the Word You have given us today may be inscribed in our hearts. Grant us the assurance that it is truly Your Word and empower us to obey it. Help us to honor the Lord’s Day this year, living lives worthy of You, bearing good fruit, and growing deeper in the knowledge of God. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.