Isaiah 37:31 NASB
[31] The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward.
Fruitfulness happens on two levels for the Christian; the interior fruitfulness of the life and character of Christ in us, and the exterior fruitfulness of the ministry of Christ through us. Both of these realities are supernatural, and miraculous. You can’t produce the fruit of the Spirit in your life by doing your best to produce it. As branches we can only bear the fruit He supernaturally produces. The same is true about the life of laid down love for others, whether it’s simple acts of service, or the ministry of signs and wonders. It’s all Jesus, and therefore it’s all miraculous. Jesus tells us in John 15 that we are called to bear fruit, more fruit, much fruit, and fruit that remains. The fruitful life is the abundant life in Christ that Jesus promises us.
Here is the question; how do we cultivate that fruitful life? There are two simple words we need to internalize; intimacy, and dependency. Jesus said that if are to bear fruit, we must abide in Him, and that verse in Isaiah 37 speaks of the life of intimacy on which the life of dependency is built on. We are actually mandated in John 15 to “abide in His love.” If you want the fruit of His life to grow upward in your life in abundance, then your roots of intimacy must go ever downward, deep into the immense heart of God. We’ve said this before, “If you want to go farther, you have to go deeper.” In a large part, to the degree that we cultivate His presence and His love in the Secret Place, will determine the degree to which we experience personally, and manifest publicly His life and love.
Don’t make the Christian life so complicated. If you want more, take your roots downward. Seek Him and allow the roots of your heart, soul, mind , and strength to go deeper into His His heart. As C.S. Lewis said, “Further up and further in.” If you want to go further up, you’ve got to go further in. It’s always bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. Remember intimacy with God is not a duty. It’s is the greatest gifts ever offered mankind.