John 15: 1-8

Somebody once compared a Christian to a basketball player. To be a good player, he said, it’s not enough that you know how to dribble the ball or avoid getting fouls. What matters most is to be able to shoot, to make points, to be productive.

Christ was saying the same but used what was familiar to his time and people. He compared a true follower of his to a plant. A plant does not just sprout or grow but should bear fruit. “He who abides in me, and I in Him, he it is that bears much fruit…By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciple” (Jn 15,5-8).

Christianity is not a negative religion of “don’ts” or just avoiding sins, but one of “do’s.” Christ makes it clear, “You must bear fruit in plenty,” fruits of good works.

“Bearing fruits,” boils down to the simple ministry of helping, caring, sharing with others.

In the parable of the last judgment, Jesus says that only those who faithfully carry out their Christian ministry of helping, caring and sharing will experience “eternal life.”

In that awesome moment, we shall not be asked such questions as: How often have you been to Mass, or how seldom? How many prayers have you said? How many sins have you avoided? We shall have to answer one, and one question alone: how much have you done for people in need – or have you done anything at all?

Are Sunday mass, prayer, and obedience to the Church precepts unimportant? Not at all. But the fruit of all our prayers, the fruit of all our worship, the fruit of all our bible study and theological probing should flow to the ministry of service.

A man once confessed, “What scares me is when I come face to face with God in the next life. Mother Teresa of Calcutta reports and God says, ‘Teresa, you should have done more good works.’ And there I am – right behind her!”

We are told to obey God’s will – doing what the Lord commands – which is the only way to succeed in life. We say these things week-after-week, day-after-day, but how often do we act accordingly.

May I offer a suggestion? We all have good intentions toward other persons. We intend to forgive, we intend to reconcile, we intend to communicate, we intend to be faithful to our spouses, we intend to donate, to serve, to commiserate, we intend to visit our old folks in the nursing home, we intend to give to charity, we intend to intend. This week, let’s forget all those good intentions, except one. Then let’s carry it out. Just do it!