The Fruit of the Spirit
So often I’ve seen Christians tell others to be joyful, kind, patient, and the list goes on. As if doing good things was the goal God had for us when He the scriptures described what the fruit of the Spirit were. Does God want us to do things and treat others well? Absolutely. But doing the right things with the wrong heart was never God’s intention. God desires for us to have a heart that is one with His and from that foundation to go out and share with others. The human heart has no other option but to share love with others when that’s what it’s been exposed to. And what better way to experience love than to experience God Himself?
Within these words I pray that your eyes would begin to see the value of having the character of Christ and how that affects your treatment of other people. Blessings to you.
WHO YOU MUST BECOME
The greatest gift that God gives each His children is not marriage, a job, or financial stability, but a new heart. Because what good are earthly blessings if the person we’ve become can’t even enjoy the good gifts God has given us? There is no way to truly enjoy and savor blessings from God unless we realize that God is better than anything He could give us.
Our hearts will never fully enjoy God’s goodness until we see Him face to face, but we can cultivate a lifestyle that aligns with God’s intentions for us.
When we take a look at Galatians 5, we get a glance at the type of characteristics that a person who follows God begins to embody. “ ..the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Gal 5:22-23).
When I take a look at this, I quickly become overwhelmed and start making excuses. I begin to think of all the reasons I can't live up to this. But when I began to talk to the older saints that have followed God for decades, I saw that there's hope. Over time a heart begins to embody these characteristics like it’s second nature. Not simply because they're old and have years of experience (which certainly doesn’t hurt), but because they were intentionally carving out time for God to shape and mold their heart to become more attuned to His care and love for them.
This doesn’t mean every moment of every day will be perfectly lived out or that you’ll never have an off day, it simply means that the direction of your life will be guided towards life with Christ rather than a life with the world. This is possible for you too, no matter where you’re at in your walk with God.
Whether you’ve been following God for decades or you’ve literally become a Christian within the past week, God can move in your life and begin to shape you into who He desires you to be. A joyful person who has love that marks their life, patience that is able to withstand the winds of the world, peace that surpasses all understanding, goodness that flies in the face of adversity, and faith to believe that God will do all that He says He will do.
This is possible because what God promises to do will always come to fruition.
THE LIFE YOU LIVE
What we see when we look at the life of Jesus is a man who never seperate what he knew from what he did. Jesus knew that it was better to serve others, so he spent His life washing the feet of others, proclaiming the kingdom of God, healing the sick, and befriending the outcast of society.
Jesus was often found seeking solitude so that He could go and have uninterrupted time with the Father. We see this happen in Luke 4, Mark 6, Matthew 14, and more passages in the Gospels. But why would he do this? What was the purpose of Him having solitude? So that he could delight in God and to rest his soul so that He could go serve the world. I know that Jesus was the God-Man, but to deny His earthly limitations is to deny a part of what makes Jesus, Jesus.
I mention solitude and delight because two of the main things I hear when talking with friends and loved ones is a lack of satisfaction and an unending need for more rest. No matter how much sleep you get per night, the cycle of weekly fatigue always seems to catch up to you. No matter how many of your favorite movies, shows, foods, or even people you interact with, satisfaction never seems to last for more than a few days.
That’s because our hearts were meant to be filled by God. God fills our longings with His infinite grace and the life we want is now found in the pleasures of God. When we have a heart that has met its maker, serving others begins to become natural. You’re no longer looking to find what satisfies you or makes you happy, your time is now occupied with how you can best serve the people around you so that they too can experience what you have with God.
The shape of your life is bound by commitment to others and looking for ways in which you can best be a light to them in the same way someone was for you. This doesn’t happen overnight or necessarily become an easy thing all at once, but allow God to take His proper place in your life and see what He will do.
There are no limits to what God can do with a servant whose sole aim is to bring Him glory, serve others, and delight in Him. The question is, will you allow God to do this work in you? If not now, when? If not you, then who? The kingdom of God is at hand and waiting for you to take your part.
PRAYER
God, will you make my heart look more like yours? Would your spirit guide me to shed my flesh and put to death the pleasures of this world so that I could know you? I’ve seen what the world gives and I’ve had enough. God, would you please make my heart like yours and allow me to serve your people? I know it won’t be easy, I may even be slandered. But if it means that it will push me closer to you, please send it my way. It’s by the power of your Spirit that I pray, Amen.