Bearing Spiritual Fruit - Galatians 5:22-23

Title: "Bearing Spiritual Fruit"
Date: August 4, 2024
Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

SCRIPTURE READING

Galatians 5:22-23 
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law."

INTRODUCTION

Many years ago my wife and I had a back yard. It was dry and dusty and rocky.
We had a vision for this to become a beautiful garden. Of course this would take hard work, and many things would have to change. 

We had to break up the hard ground.  Rocks had to be removed. The big clumps of dirt had to be broken down into soil. Fresh soil had to be brought in, which would nourish plants and grass. We planted a young fruit tree. I built wooden planters which we filled with fertile topsoil, to create raised beds to grow vegetables. Then we planted seeds in these planters. Seeds for many types of plants, including tomatoes. 

We watered these seeds. Every day we would go out and see if the seeds had sprouted. After a week we started to see green sprouts push their way through the soil. The sprouts developed and became plants. We removed weeds that sprouted up in the planters. The tomato plants grew larger and I placed supports around them These supports would protect the fruit, and hold it in the sunlight. Buds developed on the tomato plants. The buds grew, and one day they opened, and yellow flowers became visible. The flowers were beautiful, but after a while, they died. Where the flower had died, however, a tiny tomato developed. 

We continued watering the plants, and the tomatoes grew steadily larger. The sun shone its rays on the tomatoes, and they gradually turned from green to a bright red color. When a tomato was red, it was ready to be harvested. We picked the tomatoes, and they tasted really good!

Our garden had finally borne fruit.

God does a lot of work inside of us, as well.

He softens our heart so it becomes good soil to receive the knowledge of Jesus. He then waters it with the Holy Spirit and the words of the Bible. And we then bear fruit. 

Today we we are going to examine the fruit that is developed inside us, and how it reflects Jesus inside us.

UNDERSTANDING THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT

The Fruits of the Spirit are qualities that reflect Christ’s character, which are cultivated in us by the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-23 
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law."

John 15:4-5 
"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."

Matthew 7:16-17
"You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit."

It took a lot of work to prepare our garden so the plants would bear fruit. The seeds had to be planted. They had to be watered. Weeds had to be removed. The plant had to be supported.

In the same way, the Holy Spirit develops Jesus’ character inside of us. This character is seen by the fruits which become evident in our motivations and actions. This is not our doing. It is the work of God inside us.

Ephesians 2:8-10
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

We can ask the Holy Spirit to develop the qualities of Jesus inside us. Now, what are these qualities?

WHAT ARE THE FRUITS THAT GOD CULTIVATES IN US?

Each Fruit of the Spirit plays a vital role in our Christian walk and witness.
Our passage in Galatians 5 lists nine of these fruits or qualities

LOVE
1 John 4:7-8 

"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love."

JOY
Philippians 4:4 

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!"

PEACE 
Isaiah 26:3 

"You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You."

LONGSUFFERING (OR PATIENCE)
Colossians 3:12 

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering."

KINDNESS
Ephesians 4:32 

"And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."

GOODNESS
Romans 15:14 

"Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another."

FAITHFULNESS
1 Corinthians 4:2 

"Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful."

GENTLENESS
Philippians 4:5 

"Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand."

SELF-CONTROL
2 Timothy 1:7 

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."
The words ”sound mind” here, can be better translated “discipline, or self-control”.

The Holy Spirit develops these fruits in our lives. But we work in partnership with God.

James 4:8 

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

We recognize these fruits in others. I’m sure each of us knows people who perhaps overflow with love for people, or who are incredibly patient, or who treat everyone with kindness.

APPLICATION
We can ask God to show us which of these fruits are doing well inside our life, and which need more development. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. So how do these fruits impact our relationships?

THE IMPACT OF THESE FRUITS ON OUR RELATIONSHIPS

The Fruits of the Spirit enhance our relationships and witness to the world. They will be evident to others.

Matthew 5:16 
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

Galatians 6:9-10 
"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith."

John 13:35
"By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

There is a special sweetness where people are displaying these fruits. A church that is allowing these fruits to grow will be shining like a light, in the darkness of a selfish world around us. We can be intentional about allowing these fruits to be evident to others, so they can see them. It is not about us appearing to be good people. It is about allowing God to work through us, God showing his love to all we come into contact with.

SUMMARY

Daily ask the Holy Spirit in prayer to cultivate these virtues in your life. Reflect on your actions and attitudes, and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal areas needing growth. Engage in acts of kindness and service, showing the Fruits of the Spirit in tangible ways.

PERSONAL CHALLENGE

This coming week, focus on one specific fruit of the Spirit.
Pray, reflect, and act in ways that allow that fruit to flourish in your life.

CONCLUSION

So, we have seen that God is developing his characteristics inside of us. These characteristics need to be cultivated, nurtured and developed. This is God’s work inside us, through the Holy Spirit. We partner with God in this by inviting him to show us where we need to change, and then asking him to develop us in those areas. 

We may have been like a rocky, dusty wilderness at one time. But God is able and desiring to change that wilderness into the Garden of Eden. By developing his characteristics in our lives.

Isaiah 51:3
“For the LORD will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places;
He will make her wilderness like Eden, And her desert like the garden of the LORD; Joy and gladness will be found in it, Thanksgiving and the voice of melody.”

Let us pray:
“Dear Lord, thank you that you are working inside each one of us. You do not leave us the way we used to be, but you make us a new creation. You develop your characteristics inside us, so that they will be visible to all people we connect with. Please do your work inside us.
In Jesus' name. Amen”