THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
The word of god tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These reveal nine characteristics of Jesus. God the Father calls us to be holy as He is holy. He is the Potter, we are the clay. It is His desire to mold and shape us into the image and likeness of His Son Jesus. He does this through the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Remember, fruit takes time to develop and grow. It must be watered and given good care. In the same way the fruit of the Spirit develops and grows in our lives when we study the word of God and come ino a deep, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The Fruit grows in spiritually healthy Christians and centers around the three major virtues of faith, hope and love.
When we give our lives to Jesus, with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, we become more like him. We begin to follow him and to act like Him. The Spirit reveals our sins and weaknesses and enables us to have the desire and grace to change. The manifestation of the Fruit of the spirit in our lives is the tangible evidence that we are being changes into the nature of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
Read Galatians 5:13-26 – St. Paul’s Exhortation of Christian Living
LOVE
Our love must be freely given, without conditions, I will be all-forgiving, unselfish and forever. (1 Cor. 13)
JOY
Joy is the sign of the presence of god in our lives. It never wavers in bad times: it is the source of our strength. (Lk 1:39-45)
PEACE
Peace is a quiet conscience, knowing that we have a correct relationship with God. We know that He is with us always (Lk 7:1-10)
PATIENCE
Patience is the quality of endurance without complaint. We must be willing to accept difficulties and persevere. (Rom 8: 31-37)
KINDNESS
Kindness is demonstrated in our willingness to be available and useful to each other. (John 21: 15-17)
GOODNESS
The fruit of Goodness gives us the strength to carry out our good intentions. (Mark 12: 41-44 )
FAITHFULNESS
Faithfulness is the ability to persevere through hardships. It is the willingness to accept new challenges. (Mark 6: 7-10)
GENTLENESS
Gentleness if power under control. We temper our strength with prudence. (John 18: 19-38)
SELF CONTROL (CHASTITY)
Self-control allows us to follow the direction of the Spirit of God and ignore our selfish desires. (Rom 6: 12-14)
When we give our lives to Jesus, with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, we become more like him. We begin to follow him and to act like Him. The Spirit reveals our sins and weaknesses and enables us to have the desire and grace to change. The manifestation of the Fruit of the spirit in our lives is the tangible evidence that we are being changes into the nature of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
Read Galatians 5:13-26 – St. Paul’s Exhortation of Christian Living
LOVE
Our love must be freely given, without conditions, I will be all-forgiving, unselfish and forever. (1 Cor. 13)
JOY
Joy is the sign of the presence of god in our lives. It never wavers in bad times: it is the source of our strength. (Lk 1:39-45)
PEACE
Peace is a quiet conscience, knowing that we have a correct relationship with God. We know that He is with us always (Lk 7:1-10)
PATIENCE
Patience is the quality of endurance without complaint. We must be willing to accept difficulties and persevere. (Rom 8: 31-37)
KINDNESS
Kindness is demonstrated in our willingness to be available and useful to each other. (John 21: 15-17)
GOODNESS
The fruit of Goodness gives us the strength to carry out our good intentions. (Mark 12: 41-44 )
FAITHFULNESS
Faithfulness is the ability to persevere through hardships. It is the willingness to accept new challenges. (Mark 6: 7-10)
GENTLENESS
Gentleness if power under control. We temper our strength with prudence. (John 18: 19-38)
SELF CONTROL (CHASTITY)
Self-control allows us to follow the direction of the Spirit of God and ignore our selfish desires. (Rom 6: 12-14)
