Let the Chips Fly

DateLine (1/17/07 – Nanuet, NY)

A few weeks back during a wind storm one of the trees in the woods behind my house fell into my neighbor’s yard. Since it was my tree, I felt responsible to remove the debris. This past Saturday Kyle and I pulled out my old chainsaw, adjusted the chain, filled it with gas and oil, and headed over to clean up the mess. Before cranking up the chainsaw I took a look at the chain to determine if it was sharp enough to get the job done. As far as I could tell it was in good shape. But my experience with chainsaws has taught me that you can’t always tell by touch and sight whether a chainsaw chain will get the job done. I’ve laid into a tree only to find myself cutting sideways when a chain was over sharpened on one side.

On this day, I fired up the saw, moved toward the downed tree, and dropped the bar against it. As it sliced into the horizontal trunk like a steak knife in hot butter, it threw out a steady stream of long well formed chips. The only way to tell if a chainsaw chain is up to the task is to try it out and observe the results. A sharp chain kicks out a long steady stream of uniform chips.

The church has a similar challenge. It is possible to look like a Christian; one can even sound like a Christian. It is possible to impersonate a Christian such that it’s near impossible to tell if someone is an imposter or the genuine article. As a matter of fact, Jesus warns us against trying, We are encouraged to leave it up to God to judge one’s faith and sincerity. But the Bible does give us some very strong clues. It’s a lot like my experience with the chain saw. One of the primary purposes of the church, and therefore church members, is to share the Gospel with our contemporaries. Jesus warned us in the Sermon on the Mount that those who tout themselves as Christians, especially setting themselves up as church leaders, but seem to be interested in everything but spreading the Gospel, are probably not worth the DVD that their image is recorded on. It’s like a fruit tree that doesn’t bear fruit. The inward condition of a person will be evident in the “fruit” that they produce for the Kingdom of God.

"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers. Luke 7:15-23

While it’s not a recommended practice to set ourselves up as judge of others, God gives us this tool so that we can discern leadership that may try to lead us astray. If you have questions about the sharpness of a chainsaw, put it to the test and see what the chips look like. If you have a question about those who set themselves up as church leaders; inspect their “fruit.”