Fruits of the Spirit & Epilogue

Fruits of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (NIV)

            The Apostle Paul let us know that we have unlimited freedom in Christ. We are not bound to the chains of sin that once enslaved us, but we are free to live a righteous life that is exemplifies the character of God. Galatians 5:13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh, rather, serve one another humbly in love. (NIV) Living free in Christ does not mean that we can any way that we choose. The true followers of Christ will allow the Holy Spirit to lead and align their lives in accordance to what pleases the Father.

            God has given us a standard of living and that standard includes how we are to treat one another. Jesus gave a new commandment that we are to love each other. John 13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have love you, so you must love one another. (NIV) By loving one another, we show others the love of God. God’s love is the opposite of world’s standards and is based on His righteousness, purity and goodness.

            God desires for His people to live a life free from the chains of sin. Jesus came and died for our sins so that we would no longer be bound by them. Through His death and resurrection, he allowed us to also be able to die to the flesh and not give in to our sinful nature. Galatians 5:19-21 ^{19}The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ⁽²⁰⁾idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ⁽²¹⁾and envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (NIV) These things will keep us from inheriting the Kingdom of God for sin cannot be in the presence of a Holy God.

            God gave us His Spirit that produces the fruit for which He want us to freely partake in. This is why Jesus told us to recognize the fruit, because we are known by our fruits. Matthew 7:16,20 ⁽¹⁶⁾By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ⁽²⁰⁾Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. (NIV) So let’s breakdown the fruits that we are to have as believers to ensure that we are bearing the right types of fruit for the world to see.

a.)    Love – 1 John 4:20-21 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. (NIV) Love is a fruit that we all must have because we cannot love God and lack love for our brothers and sisters. God is love and therefore, if we truly desire to live for Him, we will allow the Spirit of love to be in our hearts.

b.)    Joy – Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (NIV) There are times in life when we will have difficult situations that may cause us pain such the death of a loved one, illness, loss of a relationship or some other untimely and unwanted occurrence. Yet the Spirit of joy is always there to help us recover and to bring joy to a gloomy heart. 

c.)    Peace – 2 Thessalonians 3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. (NIV) Storms are guaranteed to come in the lives of believers, but during the eye of the storm, the Holy Spirit is there to give peace to those who have faith and believe.

d.)    Forbearance (longsuffering/patience) — Ephesians 4:2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. (NIV) God is always patient with His children. We are to also be patient with each other in all aspects of our lives. The Spirit is there to give us the patience that we need so that we can deal with others as God does with us.

e.)    Kindness – Proverbs 11:17 Those who are kind benefit themselves, but the cruel bring ruin on themselves. (NIV) Jesus showed kindness to all who came to Him. Even the woman who was caught in the act of adultery was granted mercy and forgiveness by Him. Therefore, we too are to be kind to others and in so doing, we are showing them the kindness of the Spirit.

f.)     Goodness – Psalm 31:19 How abundant are the good things that you have stored up for those who fear you, that you bestow in the sight of all, on those who take refuge in you. (NIV) God is good and the Holy Spirit enables the believer to show goodness to others. When we help someone in need, that is showing the goodness of the Lord. The Spirit enables us to have a heart to do good, which also enables others to see Christ in us.

g.)    Faithfulness – Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who commandments. (NIV) The Lord has always been faithful to his children. His faithfulness has never stopped even when we are unfaithful to Him. The Holy Spirit helps the believer in their desire to honor God in their faithfulness. No one has the desire to be faithful to God on their own accord without the unction of the Spirit of God.

h.)    Gentleness – 2 Corinthians 10:1 By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you – I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” toward you when away!(NIV) Paul expressed a great boldness in his letters to the church, but when he was met in person, he displayed the fruit of gentleness. The Holy Spirit gives the fruit of gentleness for the believer to use at the appropriate time when ministering, talking and relating to others. There is also a time when one has to be bold and unmoving when standing on the word of God, yet through gentleness, love and patience. is needed when helping someone one on one to understand about the love of God.

i.)     Self-control – Proverbs 25:28 Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control. (NIV) Jesus displayed self-control with those who sought to destroy Him. He was never abusive verbally, physically or emotionally even when beaten, slapped, and mocked by others. His only response was for the Father to forgive His abusers. He responded with love and did not react with hate. The Holy Spirit enables the believer to also possess the fruit of self-control. This does not mean that one will never get angry, but even in our anger, the Holy Spirit helps the believer to not sin.

Epilogue

            The Holy Spirit is fully operational in the believer’s life. He is always present to give us the tools that we need to walk in the fullness of God. He is not an inanimate object, but is a real person who exist as part of the Godhead. He lives inside all believers who invite Him in. He loves, guides, teaches, and cares for us. He is our Friend, Companion, and Protector. He is everything that we will ever need for He is God.

            The Holy Spirit is never to be taken lightly or spoken against. God is a forgiving God, but when someone has a total disregard, and lack of respect for the work of the Holy Spirit by speaking curses against Him, that person cannot be forgiven of that sin. Mark 3:28-29 “Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” (NIV) All sins can be pardoned apart from this, which will land the individual into the eternal lake of fire.

            We are never to grieve the Holy Spirit away. How do we do this? This is done by ignoring His guidance and doing things our own way outside of the will of God. Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (NIV) The Holy Spirit is more important than food water and drink. Without Him in our lives, we would not be able to survive as a Christian. We would easily succumb to the enemy’s tricks and schemes. Nevertheless, God did not leave us without a Helper. All we have to do is allow Him to take total control over our lives and only then will we be victorious in the end.  

NEXT WEEK, WE WILL BEGIN THE SERIES ON ANGELS.