2. Enhancing Spiritual Productivity

DE T A IL S

L OVE JOY P EA CE L ONG S UF FE RI N G KI N DNE S S GO DL I NE SS F AI TH FU LN ES S

SelfControlled Perseverance Persevered Godliness

Godly Kindness Brotherly Love

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X X X

(With God)

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X X X X

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3.III-DIMENSIONALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF GOD’s FRUIT

GO D

GE NT L E N ES S S EL F CON T ROL

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X

SE LF

OT HE -RS

Fig.11: III-DIMENSIONALITY OF GOD’S FRUIT

For effective working of God’s fruit (Fig.11), a person needs a good relation with three primary parameters namely: Relation with God followed by relation with Others and then with self. Relation with God will refresh every person when he/she is in weariness either spiritual or physical means. It can be rectified by God alone. The second factor is to have a good relation with others will provide a good social experience. It will provide skill sets such as: How to lead a team, How to have a family/friends, How to solve a problem and on. Relation with self will helps an individual to rectify: self-pity, jealousy, proudness and on.

CHAPTER-2 ENHANCHING SPRITUAL PRODUCTIVITY

2.1 To be Productive in the sight of GOD

Walking with God is a pleasant experience. A creator who knows all things, walks with His own creation, is an exploring life for individual. These relationships too have several seasons, as like 4-climatic reasons in earth. Sometimes, it seems to be pleasant sunny day (Summer day), with storms (winter seasons) and it could be a downtime (discouraging situations) followed by budding of new hopes. To be consistent and productive we need following attributes of God.

a) FAITHFUL VIRTUE:

 To fulfill God’s command in the perfect way/ without deviating it.

George -muller from Germany, rebellious son of his respectful father was joined in a boarding school after several drop-outs. There he was trained by a teacher on how to rely on God’s word faithfully and on belief. This brief interaction on every evening have provided a life changing attitude. Thereafter he applied for visa in

Britain through English missionary society. He learnt English during his waiting period and he got visa after 6-months. After he reached Britain, he joined with a senior missionary for helping poor street kids. During the first phase of mission life,

God provided a mission to start a orphanage home for street kids in London.

But he made an agreement with God, that he won’t ask any donation for operation expenses. His faithful agreement was honored by God. For everyday provision, he will ask God in his private chamber named “Treasure House of God”. God will supply it supernaturally. One day for a breakfast, orphanage students set in the dining table. They

Fig.-12 DAIRY TRUCK B EFORE ORPHANAGE H OUS E

started their morning prayer before God. George muller ran to his private chamber and prayed to God. God responded his prayer in an unexpected way. Muller thought the response to prayer will be from donations or through money orders. But this time, he heard a knocking sound from a truck driver stating that, “His Lorry (Fig.12) carrying milk to got punctured on the way and the tyre can’t be removed without unloading the milk. So, driver wants to offer the milk for orphanage.

 These faithful responses of God became a daily chore for George muller. Muller had a habit of writing his prayer petitions in a diary and to find how many are fulfilled? in the frequency of once in every week. Based on the table (Table-1), faithful virtue provides Love, Joy & faithful with God. Moreover, virtue is defined as high moral standard (or) discipline. Therefore, faithful virtue is the process of exhibiting faith on God even in His absence (or) at the hard times.

b. VIRTUE OF KNOWLEDGE

Knowledge is the process of gaining information (about a person/place/things). The prioritization and choosing the right knowledge is vital for a believer to have sustained relation with God. In the beginning, God created a man within a garden with a limited and chosen knowledge. God’s provided knowledge helps Adam to nurture the garden, naming the animals (won’t bother about his dress & nature), Free will to speak with God as a son. Moreover, the God’s given knowledge, helped him to access God without fear but at higher obedience level (not to gather fruit of tree of knowledge-Genesis 2:17).

But through eve, Adam (Fig.13) tasted forbidden fruit. As a result, tree of knowledge produces disobedience, fear to access God, selfish attitudes (as no animals have dressed themselves). Curse of God,

Fig.13 Eve pic king a forbidde n f rui t

murder, birth pain and loosing of God’s allotted blessing (Promise Land). These evil attributes are not taught by any tutors. But it is a ready package of devil attributes kept into the forbidden fruit. But God left the choices (Fig.14) to the Adam and Eve. God wants to know the choices of Adam. If Adam succeeded in the first

challenge, he would have gained the eternal life for his children. But due to his fall, Jesus reworked on the history and gained the eternal life f or mankind.

Fig.-14 Tr ee of Knowledge & Tree of wisdom

c. SELF-CONTROLLED PERSEVERANCE:

Perseverance is defined as the “process of continuing steadily in a course of action or purpose in spite of difficulties”, according to the Macmillan school of dictionary. Self-control is the act of taming one’s emotions. According to the Mathew 5:11,12, “Blessed are you, when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for Great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”. When Jesus was criticized for His good works by pharisees and labelled His works as works of Beelzebub [Mathew 12.24]. But Jesus responded politely about His works with references without getting offended. Moreover, after 40 days of seamless fasting Jesus was walking back to His home in Galilee. He was facing with hungry and loss of energy. He was pushing himself hard, for every forward’s step in the wilderness. His fleshy nature, would have craves for food, for His body. During these times, devil came to test His

perseverance. Perseverance on what quality? The quality of using the God’s gift for serving others but not for His hungry. Because devil knows, few days from now, Jesus was going to do be used supernaturally by heavenly father for ministering others [Multiplying 5-bread & 2-fish for 5000 families]. To retard the future supernatural plan, devil tempts Jesus to utilize His gifts (Holy Spirit) for serving His hunger (Mathew 4:3,4). But Jesus implies denied it. The Lord Jesus was very focused on self-controlled perseverance.

d. TO PERSEVERED GODLINESS:

Godliness is defined as the process of obeying God’s laws and faithful to God; according to the Macmillan dictionary. As Paul advises to his disciple Timothy, he specified, “Godliness with contentment is great gain”-I Timothy 6:6. In the previous verses, he mentioned few non-contentment attributes namely: Disputes, arguments & wrangling which produces: envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions (I Timothy 6:2).

Contentment attributes

mentioned in the same chapter are: able to adapt to situations without any demands of an individual (physical need/ spiritual need) and it is considered as Godliness. Job a righteous person before God, lost his property, sons and daughters, Honor, health in a day. But Job (Fig.15) didn’t spoke ill of God. Though his situation demands lot of comfort for him. His friends, and his wife criticized him. But Job’s response is: The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord. Job:1:21.

Fig.15: Job’ s Tr ibulat ion

But Job confessed, For I know that my redeemer lives and He shall stand at last on the earth…That in my flesh I shall see God. Based on his persevered godly

confession, helped him to hear and listen to redeemer at the end of his tribulation period. As the Hebrew author said, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the Joy that was set faith before Him endured the cross, despising the shame and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”.

Another example from the holy scripture is Joseph. Joseph, a handsome teen age boy (in his 17) worked in Potiphar’s house. He is all alone in Egypt. Joseph (Fig.16) didn’t have written scriptures in his hand. Mrs. Potiphar, seducing Joseph by a week-long, month-long activities through a secret smile, gestures, glamorous styles and on. But Joseph, persist in godliness. One day, situations became conducive. Joseph entered the Mr. Potiphar house as usual. Parallelly, Mrs. Potiphar sent her servants away, waiting to honey trap the Joseph. Joseph sensed the situation and told “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God”. He disregards his honor but prioritize God’s will as primary in his life. He left his dress, legacy but he was great in the sight of God. These quoted examples (Job, Jesus & Joseph) testimonies of persevered Godliness.

Fig.16: Jose ph’s lif e

Godly Empathy

Sym pathy

In d iv idu al with C apacity to h elp In d iv idu al d eserv ed to h elp

Fig.17 a- Humanly Kind ness

In d iv idu al with ou t h elpin g capacity o r h e h imself is in n eed Un deserv ed per so n /n o t fit fo r receiv ing h elp

Fig.17 b- Godly Kindnes s

e. GODLY KINDNESS:

Human Kindness (Fig.17a) is expressed as an sympathy by an individual towards others who are in need. But Godly kindness is expressed to an individual who is underserved (or) unqualified individuals.

Humanly Kindness Godly Kindness (Fig.17b) produces ripple effect in the recipient’s life and into the society whereas humanly kindness is a end-effect reaction focused on an individual. It was witnessed in many situations in the life of our savior Jesus & New testament saints.

(i) In Gethsamane:

Lord Jesus after his exhaustive

prayer in gethsemane garden (Fig.18), He strive hard to get up from His kneeling position. The clocks in Jerusalem, ticks 12’O clock in night. Moreover, snoring sounds of His disciples were breaking the midnight silence. Amidst the blanket of darkness, Lord Jesus witnessed the sparkling of light moving towards Gethsamane garden. As the minute hand of clock moves, the denseness of light grows with the rumbling sounds of boot shoes. Through the wept eyes of Him, he pondered the high priest officers walking with majestic rhythm towers Him.

Then Jesus shook His favorite disciples: Peter & John to stop snoring. With the half-opened blood red eyes, Peter understood that soldiers are there to take Jesus for the enquiry. Peter got sudden burst of anger after Judas deceitful kiss. He opened his blade from the cover and sliced the ear of High priest’s servant who bleeds through his sweat pores, ignoring His physical ailments but

Fig.18: Je sus Pra ying in Gethse ma ne

concerned on the hot blood drops of Malchus on His cold hands. Immediately He started His healing action for Malchus.

Godly kindness is quoted by Lord Jesus in a verse [Mathew 5: 44,45]. Bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you…For He makes His sunrise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

(ii) In Golgotha:

Lord Jesus with sleepless eyes arrested on the midnight of the day prior to sabbath, endured enquiries in three courts (high priests’ bungalow, Pilate’s Court and in Herod’s Palace). With the Zealot priest’s perseverance, the Pilate sentenced Jesus for crucifixion. His

journey to crucifixion started on 9’O clock in morning through the broken roads of Jerusalem (Fig.19) after the soldier’s harassment and the torn-open backs by who’s heart pumps the blood only to oozing it through the broken veins of the Lord Jesus. The beautiful seamless white tunic was decorated with red

stripes, without ant weaving hands. Through the breathless trekking along with a luggage of 30 Kg cross on His broken shoulder, He reached the top of Golgotha at 0930 am.

Soldiers stripped Him and stretched the knees and wrists to the four ends of cross and fixed it with a 5-inch rivets. Rivets pierced the beautiful arms which created heaven and earth. Then the cross is erected for the visiblity of crucifixion of the passers-by. During His agony, Lord Jesus is not focused o torn shoulders or His shame before the crying ladies or the laughing sounds of priests, but He advocated with father on forgiveness of the cruel crowd who didn’t even pray

Fig.19: Jesus in Golgotha

for their mercy. On Mt.Golgotha, Lord Jesus manifested godly kindness to the people surrounds Him, Father forgive them, for they do not know what they doLuke 23.34.

(iii) Paul with Jail Warden:

Paul and his companion Silas in an Asian city (Lydia) preaching Jesus life. A girl in this town, known for her fortune telling gift, trumpeting to the people about God’s servant continuously. It continued for week long. Initially it creates small happiness within the hearts of God’s servants (Mr. Paul and Mr. Silas) as they thought she is marketing them. But later they sensed her as disturber. It increases God’s anger within Paul. Paul rebuked the divine spirit of the girl and to go out of her flesh. Immediately the spirit ran away but these spirits went and seek the dry places for its dwelling. Its attempt failed. It seeks the help of seven more spirits to attack the person who rebuked them. It led to the mass complaints against Paul and Silas. Judges of these Asian city (Lydia) ordered to punish them with beatings and to house them in dark rooms (Fig. 20,21) of Lydia. During the midnight, with the pain on their backs and the mosquitoes jab on their back, these evangelical companions filled the dark room with God’s melody. As they started worshipping God, God executed marvelous miracles. These city experienced earthquakes. During these tremors, Paul and Silas dark room doors were opened. All prisoners are freed along with Paul and Silas without any mercy petitions. Jail warden rushed to the dark room to understand

Fig.20: P aul a nd Sil as i n Jail

Fig.21: P ri son Loc at ion in Lydia

the condition of prisoners. He could not find anyone as doors are opened. The fear grips his heart, as his life has to be given for the lost prisoners. He removed His blade from envelope, to slit his throat. But a majestic voice, dissipates darkness and says Don’t harm yourself [Acts 16:28]. It rises the confidence level of the jail warden. He asked him, “What must I have to do, to be saved?”. It’s a post reaction of Goldy kindness [Acts 16:31] displayed in Paul’s life.

(f) LOVING BROTHERLY KINDNESS:

In the last topic, we focused on Godly kindness where a righteous person manifested His love to an undeserved person. What way the last topic named “Loving Brotherly Kindness” differs from the previous one. Brotherly Kindness (Fig.22) is the link established between two bornagain brothers or sisters irrespective of any discretion on religion, race, birthplace (Jewish/ Gentiles) and on. This quality is more important to sustain friendly relationship with God.

B rotherly Kindness

Holy S pirit

Godly Kindness

Fig.22 – Gra phic illust ra tion of Godl y & Br other ly Kindne ss