When I cleared the back hillside of rosemary and rats, I realized long before I began the project that this was only a part of what needed to be done. The next phase was the daunting task of covering the hillside with vegetation, vegetation that did not include more rosemary! Peggy and I decided on some beautiful evergreen junipers which grow to no more than 6 in. in height, but which spread out laterally in every direction for several feet. Peggy and I were so pleased with our decision, and even though it would take a few years for the junipers to fill out, it would eventually cover the back hillside with a beautiful green groundcover. There was just one problem – I needed to plant dozens of young junipers across the hillside, and each of those plants required a hole to be dug for planting. And that’s when the real work began.

You need to know that the holes that needed to be dug were not in “ordinary” soil. You see, much of our town of Folsom is composed of old river terrace deposits formed by the American River many years ago. And so, a normal hole required the extraction of a variety of rocks ranging from fist size to actual boulders. The largest was over a foot in diameter, about the size of a soccer ball. Interestingly, the locals call them “Folsom Potatoes!” Digging a few holes would not have been an issue, but I needed 32 holes to cover the hillside with juniper. And so, each morning for about two weeks, I was out digging holes and planting junipers before the temperature got too unbearable. However, the planting was eventually completed, and the barren hillside is now covered with beautiful green plants.

The Bible has much to say about planting and expecting a harvest. The Prophet Isaiah used a metaphor to describe the nation of Israel. He said that God had prepared the soil by plowing it and removing the stones, and then planted the choicest of grapevines. After making all of these preparations, He expected it to produce an abundant harvest of good grapes, but in actuality, it produced worthless grapes. Sadly, God asks,

“What more can I do for My vineyard?” (Is. 5:1-6).

In the end, He knew that it had to be laid waste, and that’s when He allowed the Babylonian army to destroy Jerusalem, including the temple, and those not killed by the sword were sent into exile in Babylon. Here is God’s assessment of what had happened to the nation,

“I looked for justice, but behold bloodshed; For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress” (Is. 5:7).

Interestingly, the Prophet Amos echoed the same concerns in his own message to the nation,

“Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24).

I have used what I call “The 4 I’s” to describe the failure of the nation of Israel, not only during Isaiah’s time, but also in Jesus’ day. They include: Idolatry; Injustice; Immorality; and Indifference to the things of God. Needless to say, in each of our lives, as He did during the Old Testament, God is looking for both justice and righteousness. Doesn’t this sound a lot like what is happening in our world today?

Last week as I shared about clearing our back hillside of unwanted “stuff,” we looked at the biblical concept of leaven, which Jesus and the Apostle Paul used to describe evil teaching and influences in our lives. And then, we looked at what Paul called “deeds of the flesh,” and followed his thoughts as he listed over a dozen of these deeds that are opposed to the will of God (Gal. 5:19-21). So, like my back hillside, what is needed following the clearing of the “leaven” is the planting of justice and righteousness. And that’s when Paul began to describe “the fruit of the Spirit,” or “the fruit” that is produced by the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Here is what Paul said to the churches in Galatia,

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control…” (Gal. 5:22-23).

And then Paul expanded on these character traits in his letter to the Church at Colossae by saying,

“Put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other…just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity” (Col. 3:12-14).

These are the character traits that need to be planted on the barren hillside of our lives when all of the “junk” is removed. And these character traits produce the “fruit of righteousness.” What the Law could not do, God did by sending Jesus to die for us, and then to give us His Holy Spirit to indwell and empower us. Paul used three different phrases in Galatians 5 to describe how this is to be worked out in our lives. He says that we are to “walk by the Spirit;” be “led by the Spirit;” and “live by the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16, 18, 25). Many refer to this process as the “Spirit-Controlled Life.” In other words, we allow the Holy Spirit to move in our hearts and minds in order to impart character change that will, in turn, impact all of our relationships.  

The Holy Spirit is given to us by Jesus the moment we receive Christ as Savior and Lord, and the Holy Spirit is the One who changes us from the inside out. The Holy Spirit not only empowers us, but also guides us. We must learn to walk each day by acknowledging His presence in our lives, and asking Him to guide and control all of our actions, responses, and motivations.

But like the plants that I just planted, it’s going to take some time for them to grow and mature and eventually cover the entire hillside. Likewise, these character traits, once planted, will need some time to mature. And that’s what the Christian life is about, growing to maturity in Christ. It is an individual journey for everyone! It doesn’t happen overnight, but we need to begin somewhere, and that is to ask Christ to come into our life, and then to allow the Holy Spirit to empower and guide us each moment of each day.

But there is one more thing that needed to be done with those plants that I have placed in the soil. And, as you might have guessed, that will take us to the third phase of my my Backyard Project. Hope to see you next week.