Fruit of the Spirit

 What exactly is the fruit of the Spirit?  It is 9 biblical attributes of a person who is living in accord with the Holy Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  These are found in Galatians 5:22-23.

The word “fruit” refers to the natural product of a living thing.  The fruit of the Spirit is produced by the Spirit.  Like physical fruit needs time to grow, so does the fruit of the Spirit needs time to grow and ripen in our lives.  As we give the Spirit control of our lives.  He begins to shape us to look like Jesus.  “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.  And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the lord, who is the Spirit.” – 2 Cor. 3:17-18.  Our goal as Christians is to be like Jesus.  Displaying His fruit is the evidence that we are becoming like Christ.

#1 – Love

Love is the first quality and is at the top of the list of graces.  Love is not only a quality, but an action.  A person’s love has love in his heart and shows love through generous giving to others.  Love is not “being in love” and not a feeling.  Love is a choice.

God first loved us.  We are rebellious, we cheat, we commit immorality, we’re selfish, we sin, but God still loves us.  He loves us so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus to die on that cross and the thing that kept Him on that cross was love.  He did this before we believed in Jesus while we were still sinners. 

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Rom. 5:8.

We are to love our neighbor.  When we love, we choose to set aside our own preferences and desires to the needs of others.  Jesus didn’t say to love the world, but to love one another.  He tells us to love our neighbor in the sense of being willing to work for their well-being even if it means sacrificing our own well-being.  We can love them, but we don’t have to like them. 

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.  Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” – 1 John 4:7

#2 – Joy

Joy means gladness and delight.  It’s a feeling of gladness and is established by the Lord in our spiritual and eternal circumstances.   We experience joy by abiding in Him daily and will experience the fullness of joy He promised. 

Joy is linked with praise in the Scriptures.  Joy is an emotional response to situations.  We can show joy by singing, shouting, dancing, clapping and making music as we praise the Lord.  He wants us to have a joyful heart.  Joy spring ups from deep down inside and like a spring that never runs dry, no matter what happens.  Only Jesus gives that joy.  It’s the assurance of faith that we are acceptable to God and that He is working on our behalf.

Our joy is God.  He is our Creator.  His has power and wisdom like no other.  He is our rock, our shelter, our shield, our provider, our salvation, our sanctuary, our sure foundation.  He is the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Heb. 12:2.

#3 – Peace

There isn’t much peace in this world, because the world doesn’t know the One who is peace.  We can reject the chaos of the world and embrace God’s peace.  We can rejoice in God and who He is.  We need to fill our mind with God’s truth and choose to think about the things of God.  In Christ we can relax and be at peace in the midst of all the confusions of this life.  The storm rages, but our hearts are at rest, because we know the God is and that we will be with him forever.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.” – Col. 3:15.

#4 – Patience

There is very little patience in the world we live in.  We live in a fast-passed culture.  As Christians we need to be patient.  As patient people we need to put up with circumstances and display endurance, longsuffering and perseverance. 

Losing our patience is a sign of weakness.  As the Spirit produces patience in us, He is making us more like Christ.  God is patient with sinners.  He is waiting for them to come to repentance.  He wants us to be patient while extending the offer of salvation to others.  We see so much evil in our world and wonder when God will stop it.  We are not to complain as we wait for Jesus’ return.  “Be patient then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming.” – James 5:7.

The opposite of patience is agitation, discouragement, and a desire for revenge.  God doesn’t want us to live like that, but to live with patience and peace.  God is patient and His Spirit produces the fruit of patience in us.  We are to trust God. 

“Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” – Heb. 12:14.

#5 – Kindness

When we show the kindness of God, we are tender, benevolent and useful to others.  To express kindness to those who are against us requires the work of God.  That’s why kindness is a fruit of the Spirit.  God demonstrated His kindness to us in our salvation. 

“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” – Titus 3:4-5

#6 – Goodness

As the Holy Spirit works in our lives, our character changes.  We once were selfish, cruel, rebellious, and spiteful.  As a child of God we now have the character of God.  Goodness is virtue and holiness in action.  We are motivated by righteousness and have the desire to be a blessing.  We can’t manufacture goodness on our own.  “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.” – James1:17.  Letting the Holy Spirit control us blesses us with the fruit of goodness.  Then as others see our good works, they will praise God in heaven.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.  Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” – Gal 6:9-10.

#7 – Faithfulness

Faithfulness is a word for standing fast.  It’s a quality of reliability and trustworthiness.  It is to have real integrity.  Faith is built in us by God’s Word being built into us and by our acting upon it.  God builds faith in us as we walk with Him daily.  God becomes a part of us.  We know that He is the strength of our life.  We know God loves us so we know He is faithful to us and always keeps His promises.

Faith is a gift of the Holy Spirit given to us when we believe Jesus is our Savior.  We are to be faithful to the Savior who redeemed us.  Faith is dead to doubts, dumb to discouragements, and blind to impossibilities.  It shows endurance and firmness of purpose.  It possesses a staying power in spite of feelings and difficulties.

A person of faith is one who fully trusts God will do what He says in every situation, every time.  A person of faith should set the example for others and is committed living a life of faith showing God to all people at all times.

“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” – Heb. 11:6.

#8 – Gentleness

Gentleness or meekness is not weakness or lack of courage.  It is the opposite.  It forgives others, corrects with kindness, and lives in tranquility.  It’s closely linked to humility.  It is the opposite of self-assertiveness and self-interest.  It is a key ingredient in unity and peace within the body of Christ.

Meekness is an attitude toward God and shown to others.  It’s an attitude of submission to God which results in strength in godly ways toward others.  It is love that seeks the things of God and others before its own.

“Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.” – Phil. 4:5

#9 – Self-Control

This is the hardest one of all.  Our fleshly desires are continually at odds with God’s Spirit and want to be in charge.  Self-control is releasing our grip on our desires and choosing instead to be controlled by the Spirit.  When the Spirit indwells in us, He gives us strength to control our sinful desires.  Self-control says no to the flesh and yes to the Spirit.

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” – Rom. 12:2.

Conclusion

“For this very reason, make every effort and to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.” – 2 Peter 1:5-7.

We can’t bear the fruit of the Spirit on our own.  We can’t love, have joy, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness or self-control by ourselves.  We have no power but the Holy Spirit does.  If you are a believer, He lives in you.  He is the one who gives you power to love and to have peace and patience.

What kind of fruit do you produce?  Is your life filled with idolatry, hatred, strife, envy, jealousy?  If so now is the time to yield completely to Him as your Lord and Savior.  Come to Him in faith and He will give you the Holy Spirit to guide and mold you to produce fruit.  You first need to repent of your sins and give your life totally to Him - Surrender, Commit, and Receive.

When you become a believer, the fruit of the Spirit will be coming directly from Him.  This will be a sanctification process.  It will not happen overnight.  It will be on His timetable, but you can trust Him to handle each of the areas.  Just stay in His Word and in prayer trusting in Him alone.

Hope to see you here for our next study.  --- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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Wisdom

When we talk or think about wisdom, we think of the book of Proverbs.  It’s packed full of a collection of wise sayings and good advice.  Many of these proverbs came from the wisest man who ever lived, King Solomon.   Proverbs was inspired by the Holy Spirit.  It speaks of God’s eternal words about Himself and His will for His people.  Chapters 1 and 10 are identified as “Proverbs of Solomon”.  Chapter 25 is titled “More Proverbs of Solomon”.

In this age of technology, how are you growing in wisdom as a person, family member, neighbor, co-worker and citizen through greater access to information?  Are we better off than the generations of Solomon?

Proverbs has sensible and practical answers to all kinds of difficulties.  It is the greatest “how to” book ever written.  The promises in the book are that those who choose wisdom and follow it will be blessed in numerous ways; long life (9:11); prosperity (2:20-22); joy (3:13-18).  Those who reject God will suffer shame and death (3:35; 10:21).  To reject God is to choose folly over wisdom and separates us from God, His Word, His wisdom and His blessings.

Proverbs tell us to seek godly wisdom, fear the Lord, be teachable and don’t be foolish.  This book is a source of practical wisdom for living a life that pleases God.  It covers many topics and addresses every situation in life.  Following these instructions will result in healthier relationships, honest and productive business dealings, rewarding community experiences and a moral life.  The book’s purpose is to make you wise, but it must be applied which is centered around the fear of the Lord.

The key idea is “The fear of the Lord” and is found 14 times in the book of Proverbs and is found only 7 times outside of this book.  To fear the Lord doesn’t mean we live being afraid of Him.  It means to show reverence, respect and honor to Him.  He is the Creator and we need to look at Him that way.

Ways to fear the Lord:

Be aware of His presence during the day.  Speak to him throughout the day. 

Learn to trust Him daily and don’t be afraid to confess sin and ask God to help you walk in His peace.  He is your refuge.

Value and respect the Bible.  After all it is God speaking to us.  Remember “All Scripture is God-breathed …” (2 Tim. 3:16).  Read and know the Bible and commit to applying what you read. 

Worship God during the day, not just on Sunday.  Let worship permeate your life.  “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” – Ps. 95:6.

Avoid situations that are not of God.  Watch your actions that may lead you into sinful thinking and actions – bad relationships, movies and TV shows.

Repent of any sin.  Live a repentant life style daily.  Ask God to create in you a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within you. (Ps. 51:9-10).

Worship only God.  “So fear the Lord and serve Him wholeheartedly.  Put away forever the idols”. – Joshua 24:14a.

How can we gain wisdom?  We need to seek wisdom by asking God for it and then trust it, because all wisdom comes from the Lord.  “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” – Prov. 2:6.

Principle:  Wisdom comes from living righteously.

Some Key verses:

Prov. 1:5 - “let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.” 

Prov. 1:7 - “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.”

Prov. 4:5 - “Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them.”

Prov. 8:13-34 -“To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.  Counsel and sound judgment are mine; I have understanding and power.”

Summary of Proverbs

Proverbs 1-9 – Solomon addresses the young.  He praises wisdom.  He warns against rejecting wisdom; he gives the benefits of wisdom; he gives warnings against all folly; he calls for all people to find wisdom.

Proverbs 10-24 – These chapters contain advice that applies to those in responsible positions and covers various topics.  Solomon gives descriptions of wisdom.

Proverbs 25-29 – These sayings are Hezekiah’s collection of Solomon’s proverbs.  Here he gives wisdom to leaders, wisdom in avoiding court, and wisdom on individual matters.

Proverbs 30 – These sayings are sayings of Agur.  He declares that every word of God is flawless.

He talks of man being humble and the purity, strength, and integrity of God’s Word.  He warns of speaking ill of others.  He gives warnings to foolish generations and mocking.  He warns of wickedness of the adulterous woman.  He mentions 4 small yet wise creatures and gives 4 examples of majesty – ants, coneys (rabbits), locusts, lizards.

Proverbs 31 – These are sayings of King Lemuel.  He warns of the danger of sexual immorality and of alcohol.  He says we should defend the defenseless.  Prov. 31:10-31 sayings are on womanhood and Hebrew wisdom.  This chapter illustrates one who has found wisdom.  The woman described in this chapter can also be viewed as the Bride of Christ (All Christians) and her work in the world.

When you look at these qualities in chapter 31, do you put yourself down or compare yourself to others?

How do you live out the gospel to build up your witness, family, business, community and church as described in this chapter?

Principle:  God gives wisdom to everyone who knows and trusts Him.

God’s Spirit, living in all believers, works wisdom in us day by day.  His light penetrates every part of life and transforms.  Our Creator God sustains the universe and gives His people wisdom throughout every age through knowing Him.  If you want wisdom, the book of Proverbs is the place to access God’s voice.

James describes the same wisdom from Proverbs that characterizes God’s people.  James 3:17 – “But wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

Where do you need wisdom?

What in your speech or attitude is unwise and dishonors God?

Do you struggle with a particular sin or try new ways to manage it or bring it under control on your own?

Will you take time to confess, repent, and accept God’s forgiveness and ask Him to change you?

Hope to see you here for our next study.  --  I encourage you to trust in Jesus.

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1 Kings 11

We have seen King Solomon’s slowly turning away from God, but not much about his failure until now.  In chapter 11 we see his failure described.  He married many wives, 700 royal wives and 300 concubines.  God clearly stated in Deuteronomy 17:17 that this was against what God wanted for Israel’s kings.  “He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray.”

It seems Solomon desired many wives because of his lust, but it was also for power and prestige.  Maybe Solomon had become drunk with his fame through the world, because in those days a large harm was a status symbol.  He was never really satisfied.  The more he had, the more he wanted.

Solomon’s wives worshipped foreign gods and to keep them happy Solomon built places of worship for them and with time he joined them in worship.  Age didn’t make him any wiser.  He didn’t lose his faith entirely, but just added sinful things to his life.  He compromised.  His heart was not fully devoted to the Lord as the heart of David his father had been.  For the wisest man on earth, he was very foolish.  If this was the case with the wisest man who ever live, then what hope do we have apart from dependence upon Jesus?  I hope Solomon’s example drives us all to greater dependence on Jesus.

The Lord spoke to Solomon a third time.  He became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from Him.  The Lord had appeared to him twice before and warned him of the dangers of disobedience.  Now that Solomon had disobeyed, the Lord said He would tear down his kingdom and give it to one of his subordinates.  For David’s sake, this wouldn’t be done in Solomon’s lifetime.  Instead it would be torn out of the hand of Solomon’s son. 

What false gods are in your life?  Some idols today are:  famous people, our possessions, our jobs, TV, video games, power, and even our kids can be idols.  Anything or anyone you put before God is an idol.

God raised up adversaries who opposed Solomon – Hadad the Edomite, Rezon son of Eliada, and Jeroboam son of Nebat, who would eventually rule over the 10 northern tribes of Israel.  God left one tribe to the House of David.  The small tribe of Benjamin was absorbed into the tribe of Judah.

Jeroboam was one of Solomon’s officials.  He was a man of standing and was put in charge of the whole labor force.  God assured Jeroboam if he obeyed His rules and commandments, He would be with him and give Israel to him and God would humble David’s descendants, but not forever. 

Jeroboam and David were appointed by God.  David waited on the Lord to make the throne clear and God blessed his reign.  Jeroboam didn’t wait on the Lord, but make his own way to the throne and God didn’t bless his reign.  Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, which shows how wicked he had become.  Jeroboam fled to Egypt and stayed there until Solomon’s death. 

The Lord was very patient with Solomon, because his sin didn’t happen all at once.  It happened over time.  That’s the way Satan works.  You start out with a little sin and all of a sudden it turns into more sin and bigger sins.  Solomon disobeyed almost every rule that God had said kings should follow.  He increased his number of horses and chariots; he gathered great riches to himself; he married women, even foreign women.  Worst of all, he worshiped false gods.  He knew his disobedience brought judgment.

I think Solomon realized what was important and that all his power and possessions were useless when he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.  He summed up his life in Ecclesiastes 13:8 – “Everything is meaningless”. 

Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel for 40 years.  Then he rested with his fathers and was buried.  This doesn’t mean he was a saved man since this term ‘rested with his fathers’ is also used when the wicked died.  So we don’t know if he is heaven or not; however 2 Chronicles 11:17 may be a clue.  But we do know that God can forgive any sin and maybe Solomon came to his senses at the end.  His son Rehoboam succeeded him as king over Judah and Benjamin which was called Judah or the southern kingdom.

David spiritually recovered from his faults and sins, but he never worshiped false gods or built shrines to them.  Both were driven by their egos and their hormones.  David repented, but we are not told if Solomon repented.  David had a heart for God.  Solomon was puffed up and full of himself.  Solomon’s greatest accomplishment was the building of the temple where the people could look to the Lord in prayer and trust Him to hear and answer their prayers.  God punished Solomon, but He kept his promise to David.

Are you guilty of sin or overcome by difficulties and trials in life?  Jesus is our temple.  Turn to Him.  No matter how we fail; Jesus never fails.

Solomon’s life began with great purpose.  It began with his heart following God and obeying His ways, but somewhere along the way he stopped guarding his heart and was led astray.  Jesus warned us in Mark 8:36-37 – “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?  Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Principle:  Begin well and finish well.

Solomon’s life is a warning for our lives.  Solomon had it all and fell.  Watch out if you think you are doing well.  This is an opportunity for Satan to steal your heart from God.  Guard your heart against compromise.  Guard your heart against what seems to be small choices that show love for someone or something other than the Lord your God.  “Now these things happened to them as an example and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.  So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” – 1 Corn. 10:11-12

How can you live a life that stays focused on Jesus and doesn’t turn away? 

Immediately repent of sin – 1 John 1:9

Stay focused on Jesus daily – Hebrews 12:1-2

Depend upon the Holy Spirit to enable you to live the Christian life – Zechariah 4:6; John 15:5

Stay in His Word – Ephesians 6:17

Be obedient – John 14:15

Principles: 

A heart for anything other than God separates us from Him.

God lovingly uses consequences to turn us back to Him.

This is the last of our study on 1 Kings.  Hope to see you here for our next study.

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