Fruits of the Spirit: Day 11 - Conclusions

Over the last couple weeks, we have been studying the Fruits of the Spirit. They are characteristics that God has exemplified for us to follow. These are ways that we can grow to be more like Christ in our daily attitudes and actions. I have greatly enjoyed going through these traits and I have learned a lot about myself, who I want to be and who God is through them.

The amazing part is that even with as much as I've learned, if I started over with love again tomorrow, I would learn even more. That is the beauty of the Bible, God's Living Word to us. No matter how much we learn and grow, there is always something new that God wants to share with us. I am excited to continue in my journey to learn and grow through His Word. I challenge you to read God's Word for yourself and let Him speak through it to you personally.

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The Bible is like a big road map in how to live and get the most out of our life. God gives us this map to grow in our faith as we get to know the Lord, our Creator, better. It is seen, told, exemplified and summarized throughout the entire Bible. However, this one example has always struck a chord of reverence in me, especially when it comes to the Fruits of the Spirit.

2 Peter 1:5-7 -- "In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone."

To grow in faith, first we must learn to do the right thing. That means to go in the direction God is leading you. Secondly, you must put that conscious choice into your heart. You will continue to grow in knowledge and wisdom of which way God is leading you.

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Once you begin to understand and can consistently respond and go in the direction of God's leading, stay that way. Continue to express self-control and obey God's callings. Then you must learn to patiently endure, even when God's calling is not easy or convenient. You must endure even when you don't want to because you know God has called you here and he has great, perfect plans for you. Only then can you be godly, holy and set apart as God's child.

There is no doubt in you faith and the perfection of God's will, you simply obey. You say yes to His callings. When you have faith with God in a solid, constant state, they you can begin to reach out and show God's love to others. You become a light in the darkness and others see you as different from the world, something wonderful in your life that they want in theirs.

After brotherly affection, being able to deal with others, you then enter into agape (1 Corinthians 13:4-7). This is the selfless, unconditional love that God has for us.

The truth is that most of us, including myself, will probably never reach this level of God's characteristics. But, that doesn't mean we don't continuously seek them out and strive to be a little better today than we were yesterday and a little better tomorrow than we were today.

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We cannot reach any of these Fruits of the Spirit without God's help. We live in a world of darkness and chaos, covered with sin. Only God can show us how to implement these Spirit filled characteristics that lead to perfect harmony. Only by imitating the One who loved us to become a sinless sacrifice and save us can we fulfill His purpose in us. We must join our life with His, make His mission our mission and communicate regularly and intimately with Him. We must seek to fulfill the greater intentions of the Law - the love God with our heart, mind and soul and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Matthew 22:37-39 -- "Jesus replied, "'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself."

Pray and ask God to help you begin to live by the Fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

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It is not going to happen overnight, but God knows that. You may even want to choose one and work only on that one for a while, then you can move on to another. But be diligent and prayerful and you will see great changes in your attitude, your responses and overall in your life.

God will show you victory when you are diligent and obey His calling. Learning to assume God's characteristics is always in His calling - "there is no law against these things" (Galatians 5:23). I pray that you find encouragement and begin to seek our a closer commitment with God today.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

Fruits of the Spirit: Day 10 - Self-control

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

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We live in a world of instant gratification. Communication and information are at our fingertips. Food and clothing are a short trip to the store. We don't have to work hard to get what we need anymore. I understand we do put in long hours to earn money to buy those things. However, we do not have to toil for weeks to make our clothes, raise animals to slaughter for our food or even grow our own crops to harvest each season. We can do these things, in fact I enjoy making clothes and growing crops, but we do them for purposes of pleasure, not survival.

With the never ending need-it-now world we see everyday, it is not wonder our self-control is lacking. However, even back in the Old Testament times the people had issues with self-control. This goes to show that it is less about our surroundings and more about a matter of the heart.

In Exodus, when Moses went up to receive the Ten Commandments from God on Mount Sinai, the Israelites became impatient and lost their self control:

Exodus 32:1 -- "When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt."

How often do we do that. We say, "God You are taking to long! I'll just handle it!" We choose another path and make decisions without God, which inevitably lead us from His plan for us.

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Exodus 32:35 -- "Then the Lord sent a great plague upon the people because they had worshiped the calf Aaron had made."

How often do we go our own way only to be followed by "great plagues?" We lose sight of He who makes all life possible. We stray from His perfect plan for us and begin to wander becoming lost in the world.

The Israelites knew something about wandering too:

Numbers 14:33 -- "And your children will be like shepherds, wandering in the wilderness for forty years. In this way, they will pay for your faithlessness, until the last of you lies dead in the wilderness."

But even after their disobedience and wandering, God blessed His people:

Deuteronomy 33:3 -- "Indeed, he loves his people; all his holy ones are in his hands. They follow in his steps
and accept his teaching."

That blessing goes for us too and He continues to love us, no matter what. He loves us so much, He sent His Son to die in order to save us. There is no greater love. 

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We must seek Him out and pray that we can keep His love as the focus of our lives. And we can pray that He will help us gain the important characteristic of self-control to resist the idea that the way of the world will fulfill us. I does not. No matter how many luxuries or people you have in your life it will not be enough. No matter how fast you can gain information and knowledge, it will not fulfill you. There is only one who can fulfill the desires of our heart and that is Jesus Christ.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

Fruits of the Spirit: Day 9 - Gentleness

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

We live in a harsh, fast-paced, and loud world. It is no surprise that we can easily become stressed, bitter and boisterous. Many times through trials and struggles, the gentleness of our hearts disappears.

It is not an easy thing to be set apart from the world, but that is what God calls us to do as His Holy people. We are to turn down the normal ways to deal with problems we face and have faith that God will provide for us.

We must set aside our response of anger, revenge and malice to take on characteristics of Christ. The Lord may not deal with others in the way we want Him to, but His is not worried about our sinful pride. He is a just God and the sin of the world will be judged. It is none of our concern as to how He does it, only to have faith it will be done.

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2 Timothy 2:24-26 -- "A servant of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach, and be patient with difficult people. Gently instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people’s hearts, and they will learn the truth. Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil’s trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants."

We must be kind to others, always in an attempt to show love and mercy instead of hate. We must answer and correct with gentleness and compassion. We cannot change the hearts of people, but God can.

When we respond to others with hate, harsh words and contempt, we can easily drive them away from God. When we, as Christians, do not show the love of Christ, the people do not care to know Christ at all. We must be careful not to judge others. The world is full of sin. Jesus would not have needed to comes save it if it wasn't.

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Matthew 7:1 -- "Do not judge others, and you will not be judged."

We must approach others in gentleness because when the tides turn, we also want to be approached with gentleness and compassion, not accusation.

Proverbs 25:15 -- "Patience can persuade a prince, and soft speech can break bones."

There are moments in life when a gentle Spirit can tear down walls that the strongest words or well versed argument can't touch. Sometimes we need to remember that it is okay to be human, to be imperfect, because God loves us anyway. And He forgives, even builds on our mistakes. It does not give us a pass to sin; instead, it allows us to show compassion and gentleness to others despite sin, even to ourselves. No matter how great or small the sin, love is always greater than evil.

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Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

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Fruits of the Spirit: Day 8 - Faithfulness

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

Faithfulness means being reliable, trust worthy, and constant. It means adhering to truth and being true to your word. These characteristics are not natural. These are characteristics that we know because of our constant, trustworthy, and always perfect God. He is unchanging and has proven over and over again the extent in which we can rely on Him. He deserves our faithfulness, in fact, He demands it.

2 Corinthians 5:7 -- "For we live by believing and not by seeing."

There is a saying that I have loved for years: "Seeing isn't believing, Believing is seeing." Even ones who witnessed the miracles Jesus performed first-hand had hardened hearts and did not understand that this was God, on earth, sent to save His people. However, when we, by faith, believe that God is ever present in our lives, seeks out a personal relationship with us, and still works miracles everyday, we see God in everything. It is when our faith outweighs our doubt that we can see God's hand in everything because He is always there.

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But what does faithfulness mean to us? How can we possibly obtain this characteristic that we use to define our Almighty God? I have long ago learned not to put too much faith in people. That sounds harsh, but we are human and we all make mistakes. No matter how many Fruits of the Spirit we master, we are still imperfect. However, we can seek to be more like Christ in every way and ask forgiveness from Him and from others when we do make mistakes.

Proverbs 28:20 -- "The trustworthy person will get a rich reward, but a person who wants quick riches will get into trouble."

I will only put my faith in the Lord who always guides and guards me. But I do seek to be a faithful person - I want to be reliable, trustworthy and constant. I want to be someone that others can count on and come to for encouragement and support.

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Luke 16:10 -- "If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities."

Over time, our faithfulness grows. We cannot expect others to trust us immediately, we must earn respect. Even from God, we must be diligent and obedient in the small things before we can do something great. Over time we can prove that we are reliable, trustworthy and constant. As we show these characteristics in the small tasks, we will see greater opportunities and tasks to overcome.

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The Fruits of the Spirit do not come to us immediately. We have to learn and grow over time to be more like Christ. These are characteristics that help us in our journey to be more Godly and seek God in all we do. When we faithfully seek out our source of love and life we can love others faithfully and bring light to darkened places. We can show God's love and light to others.

Day 1 - Introduction

Day 2 - Love          

Day 3 - Joy            

Day 4 - Peace        

Day 5 - Patience     

Day 6 - Kindness    

Day 7 - Goodness   

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Fruits of the Spirit: Day 7 - Goodness

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

Goodness is a more difficult Fruit of the Spirit to grasp, at least for me. When I think of good, I think of good grades, a good meal or a good day. It's an adjective of some other noun, but what does goodness mean as an action of faith?

Goodness is the act of being good, choosing right instead of wrong and having moral excellence.

James 1:5 -- "If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking."

It is easy to get lost in the world, but we can seek God for His guidance. When you do not know right from wrong in any given situation - ask God. He will answer you. Not only will He show you the way, but He will grant mercy on you and remind you of His eternal love.

Isaiah 63:7 -- "I will tell of the Lord’s unfailing love. I will praise the Lord for all he has done. I will rejoice in his great goodness to Israel, which he has granted according to his mercy and love."

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God has an eternal perspective and a perfect plan for each of His children. When we are deciding which way is right, we need to look no further than God's direction. If we stay faithfully on the path the Lord sets before us, we will always be in the right. When we walk in obedience with God, we will always be doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

1 Peter 2:9 -- "But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light."

Goodness is a long term state of being. You can be good, but it takes being good again and again to exert goodness. It is a definition of your character. Goodness is an outward reflection of your relationship with Christ. Goodness is pouring ourselves and what Christ has given us into others. When we invite Christ to come into our lives and change our heart, our desires, actions and reactions all begin to exert our goodness, our faithfulness in walking with the Lord. It means we not only consciously choose the right, Godly way, but that, over time, it becomes easier to always choose that way.

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Psalm 119:40 -- "I long to obey your commandments! Renew my life with your goodness."

When we walk in obedience with the Lord, He will fill us and renew us in goodness. Then we can share everything we know about God with others and share His shining light and love with the world.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

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Fruits of the Spirit: Day 6 - Kindness

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

Kindness is beautiful. There are so may small acts of kindness you can perform every single day just by being aware of the needs of people around you. The best part about kindness is that nothing is lost, you gain from God just as others gain from you.

Proverbs 11:17 -- "Your kindness will reward you, but your cruelty will destroy you."

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Kindness goes beyond just the acts of kindness, beyond only going out of your way to help others. It is also in your reactions to others, especially when you are hurt or upset, and even when you are excessively happy. Our reactions, our words, our tone all affect others. When we say disgruntled, degrading and mean things, we are being negative - this is not kind. When we are prideful and boast excessively of our accomplishments we are not kind.

However, even when we are sad or happy, if we are conscious of how our words and actions affect others we are being kind. This generous, merciful way to respond to others is the way God would have us treat others - with love.

2 Thessalonians 3:13 -- "As for the rest of you, dear brothers and sisters, never get tired of doing good."

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It is not always easy to put our own feelings aside to be kind to others, but that is why God gives us kindness as a Fruit of the Spirit. It is not natural, it is divine and Godly. We can ask God to show us opportunities to be intentionally kind to others and show us where we need more help. Jesus will give you that help. No small act of kindness is ever wasted. God can turn a small kindness into a huge reward.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

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Fruits of the Spirit: Day 5 - Patience

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

To me, patience is the trickiest of the Fruits of the Spirit. If you haven't heard it before, you will hear it now: don't pray for patience! I mean you can, but be prepared for a difficult, sometimes long trial to teach this very important characteristic. I say this mostly in jest because the experience gained from a trial teaching patience is unforgettable and useful. The Bible has a lot to say on patience, so we know that it is a very important characteristic to learn and to live out.

Romans 12:12 -- "Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying."

Patience is needed mostly when we are doing or going through something we don't want to in the first place, a tribulation. One of the most important things to remember about learning patience is to pray -- constantly, unceasingly and fervently pray. It is your communication to God a source of hope when your situations begin to look never-ending. Have patience, keep hope and pray that your trial and greater understanding of God's plan for you will bring forth great blessings and good for the Kingdom of God.

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At the end of a trial-to-learn-patience, you will feel lighter, more hopeful and more sure of your Great Creator and His love for you. When we patiently endure, we will be greatly rewarded in Spirit and body and renewed by the Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 40:31 -- "But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint."

Patiently enduring through trials and overcoming adversity changes you, with God's influence for absolute better. Through our trials and relying on God through them we come closer to God and gain characteristics that line up with His plan for us.

James 1:12 -- "God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."

Learning Godly patience is hard, but when we can embrace it and live in it, there are great rewards for s in God's Kingdom.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

Fruits of the Spirit: Day 4 - Peace

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

Peace, isn't that what we all want? To feel calm and rested. To be still and silent. To be free of conflict and strife. To be free of the mind from annoyance, distraction, anxiety and obsession. To be in harmony and tranquility. Okay, maybe not everyone wants it, but I do. And God can provide this serenity to those who seek it.

Psalm 29:11 -- "The Lord gives his people strength. The Lord blesses them with peace."

Peace is not something the world can offer. The world is fallen and broken by sin. There is always war, worry, anxiety and uneasiness. However, God does not want His people burdened by the flaws of this world. He wants us to rise above the uncertainties of this world and focus on the certainties in Him.

In the Gospel of John, before Jesus goes to the cross, He prepares His disciples with the knowledge of the Holy Spirit, who will come once He is gone. The disciples are unsure and confused by this, but Jesus comforts them by explaining that the Father has a great plan and that the Holy Spirit will be sent in the name of Jesus to teach and remind the disciples of everything Jesus did and said while on earth.

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John 14:27 -- "I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid."

Jesus left His disciples with a peace that only He could offer and a reassurance not to fear what is ahead. This is a peace only a relationship with Jesus can bring - a knowledge that God does have a plan and that He really is in control of everything - good and evil - that is on the earth.

Philippians 4:6-7 -- "Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."

Peace comes with knowing in your heart that you can go to God with anything and then acting on that knowledge. Peace comes when you know that you know that you know that God will take care of you no matter what happens and that even through bad situations, God can bring for great good!

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

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Fruits of the Spirit: Day 3 - Joy

Galatians 5:22-23 -- "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

Many see the word "joy" and think of happiness. However, they are two very different things. Happiness is a temporary feeling that shifts and changes as easily as the wind blows. It is often determined by your situation or your mood.

Joy, on the other hand, is a solid foundation that Jesus gives us to stand on.

John 16:24 -- "You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy."

By calling on Lord Jesus and maintaining a close relationship with Him, He gives us, not only joy, but abundant joy. It is more than a passing feeling, it is the knowledge that when everything else is falling apart, Jesus is standing in the middle of the ashes holding you up. It is the wisdom to know a bad day does not mean a bad life. Joy is the love that passes between Christ and us and then goes through us to reach out to the world. This is constant, no matter what circumstances you find yourself in, good or bad. 

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Let's face it, we are not always happy. We sin and make mistakes. We live and work among people who sin and make mistakes. The circumstances are not always favorable.

James 1:2 -- "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy."

James does not say "if" trouble comes your way, he says "when." Trouble will come your way. Hard times hit. But those are the times that show your character. Those are the times we need the Holy Spirit to impart the Fruits of the Spirit to us.

Joy does not mean times are always good. It means even while a midst times of struggle, you know who can handle the uncertainty. You know that God has everything under control and that He will take care of you. He will guide and guard you through uncertainties. And He will grant you even more wisdom and experience along the way that will serve the purpose of helping other and advancing God's Kingdom.

Day 1 - Introduction  

Day 2 - Love            

Day 3 - Joy              

Day 4 - Peace          

Day 5 - Patience       

Day 6 - Kindness      

Day 7 - Goodness     

Day 8 - Faithfulness   

Day 9 - Gentleness    

Day 10 - Self-Control

  

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