Seven Fabulous Facts About the Fruit of the Spirit
- The Producer of the fruit – the Holy Spirit only.
- The Portrait of the fruit – Jesus Christ in His incarnation.
- The Preciousness of the fruit – Heavenly, eternal, supernatural.
- The Particulars of the fruit – 1 cluster with 9 pieces.
- The Purpose of the fruit – to make believers into the image of Christ.
- The Proof of the fruit – that one is a disciple of Christ – John 13:35.
- The Power of the fruit – to turn people to Jesus – Matthew 5:16.
“The fruit of the Spirit is:
- Love, Joy, Peace – Our personal experience with God.
- Longsuffering, Gentleness (kindness) and Goodness – Our personal experience with others.
- Meekness, Faithfulness and Self-Control.” – Our personal development of character.
Paul divides the fruit into three triads of characteristics to describe who the fruit bearing person is in Christ. Fruit is singular and yet 9 virtues are listed. Should it not say “fruits?” No, the Greek shows the singular. Why? By using the singular the Holy Spirit is showing that all believers should possess all of these traits, unlike the gifts. Not, “I have love” and “you have kindness.”
Our Personal Experience With God – 3 traits:
- Love (agape) – the sacrificial giving of ourselves, our possessions, all we have for the welfare of another with no return expected in contrast to phileo, storge, eros love, which is self-centered.
Love is the primary commandment God has given us – Matthew 23:37-39.
Love is the perfect gift – “the more excellent way” (1 Cor. 12:31; 1 Cor. 13:13).
Love is the permanent virtue – “Love never faileth” (1 Cor. 13:8).
Loving is the proving virtue – that one is a true disciple of Jesus (John 13:35).
- Joy – Joy is not conditional, not based on our circumstances (not happenings) but on our relation to Jesus – “Rejoice in your relationship in the Lord” (Phil. 4:4a). Our joy is in Jesus and is FULL – John 15:11. Our joy can’t be put in words. It is inexpressible – 1 Peter 1:8 –“joy unspeakable and full of glory.” Illus: David Jeremiah, “I had joy in the midst of life-threatening cancer just as much as I have joy right now, “knowing I am cancer free. I was not happy about my illness, but I had a deep sense of well being that kept welling up in my soul.”
- Peace – Peace (Irene) means to have peace with God with whom you were once separated, knowing you are forever joined with Christ (Romans 5:1). Whose peace is it? Jesus’ peace – John 14:27. David described it like this, “I will lie down in peace and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Note Isaiah 26:3. Jesus promises peace in the midst of the deepest sufferings – John 16:33. Why? Because our Lord is bigger than any circumstances. There is a close connection between joy and peace. Joy is often more outward and expressive. Someone said “joy is peace gone to a camp meeting.” My grandmother enjoyed peace during the week, but shouted on Sunday as she was overflowed with joy.
Our Personal Relationships with Other People:
- Longsuffering (macro-long +thumia) – temper of explosion. So longsuffering means “to have a long temper.” What is the opposite of long tempered? Uh-huh. Short tempered. Do you know anybody with a short temper? The Bible says that a person who is filled with the Spirit has a long temper. They’re not like nitroglycerin that tends to explode if it’s jostled. These people have self-control over their emotions.
“When you are filled with the Spirit of God, you relate to other people. You don’t just blow your stack every time something doesn’t go your way. Yes, you may have a little trigger that goes off inside of you, but the Spirit of God gets control of it every time before it releases. You start to say something but the words die in your throat. You write that hot letter then throw it in the fireplace and never send it. You plan that sharp-worded speech, and you never deliver it.
The Spirit of God keeps you in control of that situation. There are times when we will find ourselves in very volatile situations, with sparks flying every which way. But the Spirit of God can give us the strength to display this virtue in our lives. And when you are keeping your cool at the very moment when everybody else is losing theirs, believe me, the spiritual fruit of longsuffering will be very, very evident.”[1]
- Gentle or kind – We live in an angry world. 12,828 persons were killed from road rage between 1990-1996 – Aggressive drivers kill 4 times more people than drunk drivers. The word kindness is chrestes, meaning to behave like Jesus. God commands us to be “kind to one another.” : Little girl prayed, “O Lord, make the bad people good and the good people nice.” Few people have had the influence of John Wesley. He lived by this rule: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” Personal: I have asked God to forgive me for not being more kind in my younger years. My deepest desire is to be kind, kind, kind to all, especially the hurting, the ignorant, the poor, children and elderly people.
- Goodness – While kindness is an attitude, goodness is the translation of that attitude into practical acts of love and service and good deeds. The word “good” is a powerful adjective in the New Testament. My favorite church member in the New Testament is Barnabas, and his life is summed up in these words in Acts 11:24, “for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith and many people were added to the Lord.” : These words appear on my father’s grave marker because he was full of the Holy Spirit, faith, and always was good to others.
Our Personal Development of our Own Character:
- Faithfulness – Faithfulness is fidelity produced in your life by the Holy Spirit. It describes the person of whom it is said “He’s a faithful guy.” When he says something, you can put it into the bank. When she says she’ll do it, she gets it done, no matter what it takes. I have often said, “The greatest ability in the Kingdom of God is dependability.” Frankly, I question a person’s salvation, and certainly his call to ministry, if he does not keep his word, meet his appointments, nor answer his mail and email. The Holy Spirit makes us people of integrity.
- Meekness – Meekness (prautes) is power under control. The Greeks said they had “meeked” an animal when he had been tamed and was manageable and helpful to carry burdens and plow the fields. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” Meekness is not weakness. The two strongest men in the Bible, Moses and Jesus, are described as meek in the Bible.
- Self-control. The word “self-control” in the Greek means, “to grab hold.” So to be self-controlled means to take hold of your life by the power of the Holy Spirit. I know of some people who are constantly being chewed up and beat up in the same places because they won’t let the Holy Spirit control their lives. : Have you ever heard someone say, “I have an uncontrollable temper?” Not true. You may have an “uncontrolled” temper but not an “uncontrollable temper.” The Holy Spirit can control any Spirit if you will yield to Him. Illus.: Did you ever hear someone say, “I can’t control my temper because my mother had red hair or I am Irish?” No, that person’s problem was not weakness inherited from her mother or racial background, but it was wickedness produced by the devil. If you are out of control, don’t excuse it. Admit it, confess it, and ask the Holy Spirit to enable you to get over it.
The big question for us is how can we appropriate the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our own lives? Then ask yourself two questions:
- Do I have the presence of the Holy Spirit indwelling me because I belong to Jesus?
- And am I surrendering daily to the Holy Spirit so He can fill me (control) me and enable me to walk in the power. Remember the fruit of the Holy Spirit is the real evidence if you have been born again and are filled with the Holy Spirit. Jesus said “By their fruit, you shall know them” (Matthew 7:20). And the fruit of the true Christian is, Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness, Meekness, Faithfulness and Self-Control.
Conclusion:
An old hymn went like this, “Let others see Jesus in you.” We obey these words, “When our lives are reflecting the “Fruit of the Spirit.”-
[1] David Jeremiah, God In You, Sisters, Oregon : Multnomah Publishers, 1998, pp 133-134.