The Development of the Fruits of the Spirit
Dear Friend, This morning while I was on a prayer walk, I came across a man who was taking his cat for a walk. He had a leash on this cat the same way that a person with a small dog would have. The problem was this cat would just sit down at times and refuse to move. Its owner would then stop and patiently wait for the cat to get up even though the man had the power to just drag the cat. Later I encountered the cat and its owner on the trail, I saw the cat walking right along with its master.
As I continued my walk, I couldn’t help but reflect on how I was frequently like this cat as the Holy Spirit tried to lead me on my journey of faith. Instead of letting the Holy Spirit bring forth faith, the fruits of the Spirit in my life I would just sit down and insist on doing things my way. Even when I did such, instead of dragging me through life the Holy Spirit would wait and then gently nudge me to get up and go in the right direction.
In order to get a better understanding of how the Spirit of God guides and directs us in the development of the fruits of the Spirit, let’s begin by examining who the Holy Spirit is. The Bible tells us the Holy Spirit is not just an influence or a force. The Spirit, our Helper, is shown in the Scripture as the third person of the Trinity with an individuality of His own (2 Corinthians 3:17-18; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:2 NIV). Our Helper thinks, wills (1 Corinthians 12:11 NIV) and has the capacity to love (Romans 15:30 NIV). He is sent by the Father to bring us into fellowship with Jesus the Son of God (John 14:16-18:26 NIV).
There is no limit to what the Holy Spirit can and will do in our lives, if we will let Him do it. In order to experience this power both now and for all eternity, we must first let our Helper, the Holy Spirit, be our agent of salvation. He will then show us our guilt (John 16:7-8 NIV) and our need for a Savior. The Holy Spirit reveals to us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Through His resurrection power we are more than conquerors.
As the Helper puts to death the misdeeds of the body, we are able to receive the Helper’s gifts described in 1 Corinthians 12:4. There we see “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries but the same Lord” (1 Corinthians 12:5 NIV).
As we let the power of the Holy Spirit, our Helper, work in us we will see the fruit of the Spirit springing forth. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23).
Jesus said by their fruits you will know them. The fruits of the Spirit is what a person is, not what he or she does. The gifts of the Spirit are external, but the fruit is internal. The fruit of the Spirit molds us into the image of Christ.
The fruit of the Spirit begins with love. This love is the kind God showed when He sent His Son to die for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8 NIV). The fruit of love is described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NIV) as patient, kind, not jealous, humble, freed from selfimportance, never rude, selfish, irritable, and not mindful of evil done to it. True love hears all things, believes all things, endures all things, and never fails.
Archeological discoveries of letters written by martyrs during the first three centuries uncovered the following one that was written just before the writer was executed for their faith. “I’m a dark hole, I have found cheerfulness; in a place of bitterness and death, I have found rest while others weep. I have found laughter, where others fear. I have found strength, who would believe in a state of misery I have had great pleasure; that in a lonely corner I have glorious company, and in the hardest bonds perfect repose. All these things Jesus has granted me, He is with me, comforts me and fills me with joy. He drives bitterness from me and fills me with strength and consolation.” That letter shows how the fruit of joy gives us the strength to be more than conquerors through Jesus Christ.
It is Jesus Christ who makes it possible for us to live in the presence of God and experience the Holy Spirit’s fruit of joy. Psalms 16:11 (NIV) speaks of, “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”
Not only is the fruit of the Spirit love and joy but it is also peace. It could be said that personal peace is the absence of anxiety. For that reason, Paul says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding. Will guard your hears and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Paul goes on to explain in Philippians 4:8-9 (NIV), “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received, or heard from me, or seen in me put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. ” This fruit of the Spirit peace, assures you that “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 NIV)
It is practicing the presence of God which allows us not only to experience peace but also benefit from another fruit of the Spirit known as patience are long suffering. Two hundred and fifty years ago a monk who washed pots and pans in a monastery, Brother Lawrence wrote a booklet called, ‘The Practice of The Presence of God.” He wrote, “The time of busyness does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great a tranquility as if I were on my knees in blessed sacrament.”
This practice of the presence of God could be referred to as abiding in the vine. In John 15:1-9 (NIV) Jesus explains it this way, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ”
It is daily abiding in the vine, Jesus Christ that allows us to experience the fruit of the Spirit of love, joy, peace, and patience. Knowing that, “All things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28 NIV) Allows us to be patient even in the midst of adversity.
Kindness like the other fruits of the Spirit will grow in us daily as we abide in Christ, we don’t just decide to be kind. This is a work of the Spirit and the more mature spiritually we become, the kinder we will be. Paul declares, “If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:15-16 NIV)
In addition to kindness the Holy Spirit brings forth as we abide in Christ the fruit of goodness for “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:24 NIV) The ones who receive the fruit of goodness know that life is a donation not a duration. They do their giving while they are living so they are knowing where it’s going as they strive to let the goodness of God flow through them.
“Faith working through love.” (Galatians 5:6 NIV) is the basis for a life of goodness. For that reason faithfulness is such an important fruit of the Spirit. Jesus tells us, “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.” (Revelations 2:10 NIV)
The fruit of faithfulness is shown not merely toward God, but toward others as well. This fruit of the Spirit involving faithfulness to our calling and those God has brought unto our lives.
As Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) lists the fruits of the Spirit it also includes the fruit of gentleness. Some translations refer to this as meekness. The fact is gentleness, and meekness is not weakness but a humble submission to God who is the source of all strength. It is a love causing us to stand steadfast and do the will of God.
Numbers 12:3 (NIV) tells us that, “Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.” It was this humility which allowed Moses to be faithful to what God had called him to do in a spirit of gentleness and meekness even when facing opposition.
Isaiah 29:19 (NIV) declares, “Once more the humble will rejoice in the Lord; the needy will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.” This is true because the one who is gentile or meek abiding in Christ comes with absolute submission before the throne of God. This takes place as we realize true worship is God-centered, not self-centered.
The final fruit of the Spirit, resulting from daily submitting to Chris, the true vine, is the fruit of self-control. Greatness lies in self-control. Lincoln was great because while he had the power in 1865 to crush the south he practiced, “malice toward no one, and charity for all.” Washington had the power to be a dictator, but he practiced self-control and worked for democracy.
David revealed his desire for self-control when he cried out, “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14 NIV)
Daily obedience to Christ or abiding in Him through the Holy Spirit brings out our best. Giving into our lower malice, known as the flesh results in “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, 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.”
(Galatians 5:19-21 NIV)
Jack Wurm was a broken failure in business as he walked along that California beach between job interviews, it was then his eyes fell on a bottle half concealed with sand. When he kicked it he noticed a note inside which read, “To avoid confusion I leave my entire estate to the lucky person who finds this bottle and to my attorney Barry Cohen, share and share alike.”
This note was signed by Daisy Alexander who was heiress to the vast Singer Sewing Machine fortune. Fifty-five-year-old Jack Wurm had found a fortune in a bottle.
In Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) you and I have found a fortune in a bottle. The fruit of the Spirit can and will grow in us as we abide in Christ daily, actively seeking His cultivation and pruning. Remember it is, “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” (Zachariah 4:6 NIV)
Yours in Christ,
Larry Rice