If you don't mind me making this comparison, we have available to us a "Spiritual Juicer"...the Holy Word of God. Inside it contains everything that we need to make us spiritually strong and healthy...but do we avail ourselves of it? Or does it sit, untouched except on Sundays and Wednesday nights? Do we only open it when we are going through hard times? Is it like that forgotten juicer, able to provide sustenance, but instead sits unused and neglected?
Galatians 5:22 & 23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:"
As children of God we have available to us the precious fruit of the Spirit. When we are walking in close fellowship with our Heavenly Father we will produce these fruits in our lives. In Matthew chapter 7 we find the "Sermon on the Mount," Jesus tells his listeners in verse 20, "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." He is speaking about being able to tell the difference between the saved and unsaved. What a man produces in his life comes from what is inhabiting his heart. What are you producing? Does the product of your heart point to God or Satan? You cannot serve them both! Is your life producing "spiritual juice" fit for the Master?
Matthew 6:24 "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."
So lets take a closer look at what fruits you should be producing in your life. These fruits will be evident in the life of a believer who is trusting and walking with the Lord every day, one who is faithfully studying and applying the Word of God to their heart. These fruits of the Spirit are just some of the characteristics of God.
LOVE:
Jeremiah 31:3 "The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee."
Matthew 5:44 & 45 "But I say unto you, love your enemies..."
Is it easy to love everyone? No! Indeed there are some people who just seem to rub you the wrong way aren't there. The only way to be able to love the unlovable is through the Lord of Love. If we can learn to see others through the eyes of Jesus, we will find that we can love them with the love of Jesus. We were drawn by love, and it's that same love that should flow from us to others.
JOY:
Romans 15:13 "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost."
I've learned that joy and happiness are two different things. Happiness comes from your surrounding, it's influenced by outward things. Joy comes from the heart and is influenced by your inner man. This is how people that are going through difficult situations can still have joy in their hearts, it is there through the peace that comes only from the Lord. There is a little chorus that has been running through my mind all day, "The joy of the Lord is my strength."
PEACE:
Jeremiah 26:3 "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee."
Psalms 29:11 "The LORD will give strength unto His people: the LORD will bless His people with peace."
There is nothing in this life that can even come close to duplicating the peace that comes from the Lord. This is the one thing that I pray for everyday, that no matter what happens, the peace of the Lord will remain in my heart. When we keep our eyes and minds focused on Him, we are promised that precious peace from the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) "...and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
LONGSUFFERING:
Romans 15:5 "Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus."
With some people it's hard to keep your cool. But seeing them, and the situations that arise through the eyes of the Lord can give us a whole new perspective on the problems. In this day and age, losing ones temper seems to be an acceptable occurrence! For the child of God it should be something that is not tolerated or permitted, we should be known for our spirit of longsuffering!
GENTLENESS:
2 Timothy 2:24 "And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient"
James 3:17 "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."
Certain people just exude certain characteristics. As Christians these all should be evident in our lives, but some seem to stand out more then others. I've mentioned my good friend David that passed away last year in a previous devotional. When I think of David, gentleness just comes to my mind. David was a "gentle" man. This fruit of the spirit was very much evident in his life. Jesus showed gentleness to all those whom He ministered too as well. This should be said of us.
GOODNESS:
Ephesians 5:9 "For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth"
Romans 2:4b "...the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance."
Psalms 25:8a "Good and upright is the LORD."
God's goodness to us goes beyond what we can comprehend with our finite minds. We receive blessings because of the goodness of God everyday. Passing along this goodness should be something that we do on a regular basis. People understand more of what they see then what they hear, demonstrate to them the goodness of God! This is one of the fruits that should been evident in our lives!
FAITH:
Hebrews 12:2a "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith:"
Hebrews 11:1, 6a "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But without faith, it is impossible to please Him:"
Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ should be the most precious, important thing to us. Our faith is what the unsaved world should witness in us. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." The way we walk in this world is by faith. Faith in the Lord and His unwavering love and care for us. Faith in the finished work that He did on the cross to pay the price for our sins. Faith in the promise that He is coming again.
MEEKNESS:
Psalms 25:9 "The meek will He guide in judgement: and the meek will He teach His way."
Matthew 11:29 "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."
Do not mistake meekness for weakness. The dictionary defines meekness as being submissive, humble and mild. Jesus was meek, He was submissive to His Fathers will. He was also humble and mild. We are to have this same spirit, submissive to our Fathers will, and humble and mild with our interactions with others.
TEMPERANCE:
2 Peter 1:5 - 8 "And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
We should be known for our self control. This does not only apply to food, but to every area of our lives. We should maintain a lifestyle of temperance before the world.
How are you doing with these fruits in your life? If you're not in your Bible daily and communing with the Lord on a regular basis these fruits will not be evident in your life. The fruits in your life will be those of the world. In Matthew 7:19 we read, "Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire."
Get your Spiritual Juicer working in your life and start making use of the fruit of the Spirit.
I want to be a grape for my Lord,
To inside His vineyard be;
And to cling real tight to the Vine,
The lovingly nourishes me.
To soak up all that comes from the "Son",
To become as strong as I can,
So to become the purest juice,
That can be squeezed by His kind hand.
To pour out all at my Savior's feet,
Is the prayer that flows from my heart.
Please prune and cut as You see fit,
So impurities will depart.
Make me the purest juice to be found,
The only kind fit for Thee.
Put my life into Your winepress,
And squeeze the best out of me.
CLK
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