Focus: The Spirit's Fruit In The Believer's Life (Pt.3)

Text: Gal.5:22-23

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

The Spirit's presence and preeminence in the believer's life results in the beautiful harvest of a godly character. As we let the Spirit take control of our lives as the divine horticulturist, the remarkable evidence of quality character begins to manifest in our lives. He cultivates us as God's tillage or garden.

Fruit in the Christian's life is a sure sign of life, growth and maturity. It is not possible to be a Christian by way of spiritual rebirth without visible signs of spiritual and moral change. Christ always makes a difference in the lives of those who believe in Him.

The Spirit produces in us nine different tastes of one fruit, not many fruits. It is one fruit of the Holy Spirit, yielding different flavors. It's a kind diversity in unity. It is the fruit of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.

We can soundly and safely conclude that love is the fruit, while the rest are the different expressions of it. The love of the Spirit in us leaves different tastes in the mouths of those who come in contact with us. Yes, it is fruit, not fruits! It's one organic whole, springing from the Holy Spirit. The Spirit integrates our personality right from the starting point of our spiritual rebirth and continuing in our day to day spiritual walk with God.

The love that the Spirit has poured into our hearts expresses itself in diverse ways. Someone has likened the fruit of the Spirit to a beautiful floribunda rose. He says, "Many different hues and fragrant clusters of blooms…coming from the one stem, grafted on to something which would bear none of these had it been left to go its own way." By the cultivation of the Spirit, love effectively expresses itself in many facets. In fact, love is God manifesting and expressing Himself through our lives, and as John has written, "For God is love."

Leith Samuel, in his commentary on Galatians, says that joy is love exulting, peace is love resting, longsuffering is love reacting, gentleness is love's outgoing tenderness, goodness is love seeking to help others, faith is love being steadfast, constant, consistent, meekness is love being humble, self-effacing, and self-control is love's grip. Yes, we are constantly in the grips of love. 

Love is constantly and consistently putting a check on what we think, say, and do.

As believers under the influence of the Holy Spirit, love continuously floods and dominates our thoughts, attitudes, decisions and actions. Agape-love is the law of the Spirit controlling our hearts.

Love is the God-ness of God finding expression through us. 

Joy is the sweetness of the Spirit's presence in us.

Peace means having it all together. It means harmony and symphony. It means nothing is missing or broken. It is unaffected wholeness. 

Longsuffering is the attitude of non-retaliation - no room in one's heart for revenge. 

Gentleness is sweetness or loveliness of character. 

Goodness is the sweetness of an inward reality. It is not faked. 

Faith is firmness of conviction, undying confidence, and unflinching courage. 

Meekness is humble attitude - no room for vanity or boastfulness. 

Temperance is power under control - once wild, but now mild. We are being tamed by the Spirit of the Lord.

The fruit of the Spirit makes us wonderfully tasty and fragrant with sweet flavors. It makes us look like Christ. People notice changes in us. I pray for all of us to yield ourselves wholly to the Holy Spirit. It's time for us to make a godly difference in the world. Amen!

by Bishop Moses E. Peter