Fruits of the Spirit

Attributes of the Fruits of the Spirit in Scriptures

There are some attributes about a person who has the Spirit  of God.  In Galatians the 5th Chapter, I love what the writer was talking to us about.  He was giving us an explanation of what our life should be, such as how we should act.

If you have the spirit about you...if you have got the Holy Ghost, and you really are a Christian, you will have a difference in your life.  You will have a life changing experience.  

If you have the fruit of the Spirit and you really are that Christian that you claim to be, then these things will be a part of your attributes.  Your life will show it, and people will see that.   

FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT BIBLE VERSES

In Galatians 5:22, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. KJV

If you will read up above there in the 19 - 21st verses, Paul talked about the works of the flesh, and they are in our church.  In our church, we call it the "catalog of crime".  

I'll just go ahead and read it for you: "19: Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleaness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkeness, revellings, and such like: 

THEY WHICH DO SUCH THINGS

These are the things that you should not want to be a part of your life.  If you are doing these things, you don't have what's under there in the 22nd - 23rd verses.  

Matter of fact, he said in the 21st verse, "of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

So, if you fall in any one of those categories you need to stop that.  You need to change your life...you need to be different.  I know there are people that tell you to just go ahead and accept the Lord Jesus Christ.  And, that is all you have to do.  No!  

When you truly accept Jesus Christ and you repent of your sins, you will change.  You will turn...you won't be doing those things anymore but you will be bringing forth fruit meat for repentance. 

FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT VERSE

You will be bringing forth these fruits that he talked about in the 22nd verse:  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Listen to the 24th verse, "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."  So if we are living in the spirit...if we live after the spirit, the Bible said, "if we mortify the deeds of the body, we shall live but if we live after the flesh, we're going to die. 

If our whole concept of life is: what are we going to be in the end...what is going to happen in the end of time for us, then that's why this is so important.  It is what you do today that will determine where you are going to be in eternity.  

LIVING AFTER THE FLESH

If you live after the flesh you are going to die.  If you do the things that are above (the works of the flesh), you are going to die eternally.  But, if you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body...if you get that Spirit, you will have the fruits of the Spirit.  

If we through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, we can have life.  Well, what is that?  It is bringing these attributes about.  There will be something different about you.  You won't walk the way you used to walk.  You won't talk the way you used to talk.  When you truly get into the faith of God, there will be a change about you.  

Now, I want to go over these fruits of the Spirit.  I am going to touch on each one just a little bit.

THE FIRST FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

The first fruit of the Spirit is "love".  Let's go to 1 John 4:16 verse in Little John's writings: "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us.  God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

It didn't say that love was God.  It said God is love.  There is a difference there.  If you truly dwell in the love of God then God is in you.  If you truly have the love of God then God is in you.  When we have God in our life, that will shine...it will showforth.  People will see a difference in you.  

In the 14th verse, "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.  15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.  16  And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us.  God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

So, this love that we are talking about that God has put in our hearts, it will change our lives. We will be different people.  

WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DON'T HAVE CHARITY?

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13: 1, "THOUGH I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.  

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.  3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.  So, this love of God...this charity...it is important that we have it.

You can say that I have all the wisdom.  I have the knowledge.  I give my life for this or to be burned but it you have all of that  and you don't have the love of God (that fruit of the Spirit), you are nothing.  So, let's see what happens if we do have that love in our life. 

CHARITY SUFFERETH LONG

Charity suffereth long, (Man, I've had to learn that through life.  You know, everything that we want to do and maybe not have to deal with reminds me of Apostle Paul when he had the thorn in the flesh. Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient."

So, if we have the love of God, we can suffer.  4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; (well there is a lot of that that goes on in the world today.  You see somebody going down the street in a really nice, expensive car, and  thieves out there want to go and take it.  They steal because they envy what somebody else has.)  

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not;  charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, (Wow!  That is a big one there).  5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, (If we truly have a love of God, we want to help our fellow man). thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.  8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail;

LET OUR LIGHT SHINE  

We could go on into that but charity never fails. The fruit of the Spirit is love.  That is the first thing we need to really focus on here.  We want that love of God in our life.  If you want God to show himself in you...if you really want to give God glory...let's do like the book said.  Let's let our light so shine that men may see our good deeds and glorify the Father which is in heaven.

LET THIS YEAR BE THE BEST YOU HAVE EVER HAD

I hope that this will be a blessing.  Let this year be a year of giving, love, joy and peace.  And have long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith and temperance...all of these different works of the Spirit.  Let's have them in our life.  Let's do what God wants us to do. 

Let this year be the best year you have ever had.

This subject - "The Fruits of the Spirit" with Pastor Stoney Kiser is in parts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7, & 8 on YouTube.