Fruits of the Spirit

The Fruits of the Spirit should be our main concern:

• Love – affection, unconditional concern, benevolence
• Joy – cheerfulness in all situations
• Peace – worry-less-ness, quietness with confidence
• Patience – not with things as to endure, but with people as interruptions; for handling interruptions is life
• Kindness – attitude, disposition, tenderness
• Goodness – not attitude but energized nature towards good works and godly deeds
• Faithfulness – trust, fidelity, assurance, belief, loyalty
• Gentleness – responsibility with power, inward grace
• Self-control – wall of protection to reduce vulnerability

Because all the Fruits of the Spirit are God’s by nature.  Since we are of God’s nature, these fruits belong to each one of us all the time.

What would you accept in trade for the fruit of the Spirit?  What material possession, or amount of money, or position on the ladder of success would you exchange for Love, Joy, Peace, or any of them? 

How can you know if you are being led by the Spirit?  If you respond to any situation by exercising any one of these gifts, then you are following the Spirit’s lead.  Walking by the Spirit is a moment-by-moment / day-by-day experience.  If you are trying to keep up a front of Christian Perfection in order to encourage saints and win sinners – forget it!  That will never happen.  But when you openly admit and ask for forgiveness for fleshly choices, you model the kind of spiritual growth which will touch both saints and sinners alike.

 How do we walk by the Spirit?  If I answered by giving a rigid formula, you would be back under another law.  Walking by the Spirit is a relationship issue, not a legal issue or a ritualistic exercise.  Relationships are more important to God than achievements.  After all, Jesus declared the two greatest commandments are to love God and people.  We can actually stand our ground on moral issues without violate Spirit fruits!  If you cannot do something with love and self-control, maybe it is better left undone.  Don’t lose control over the only person you can control!

The following sections contain God’s words on the various fruits of the Spirit.  Where applicable, I used the Amplified Bible version of the verse to clarify some of the wordage used in hopes that it would help in the study.  In other places, the Amplified seemed to muddy the waters instead, so I used a simplified version in those instances.  And I tried to place the verses in an orderly fashion, after praying for wisdom of course.  Now I pray that these verses and choices and sections provide some comfort and peace and, if possible, zeal for those reading them.  May our God bless you on your journey to understand His Word and His ways.