This summer I saw an advertisement for a new show that looked like it might be good. I watched the first couple of episodes and decided it was a show I was going to like. Sadly, halfway through the summer, it became a show I no longer wanted to watch or wanted my girls to watch.

I watch very little television these days. Why? Because I struggle to find good programming out there that doesn’t glorify sex, conflict and crime. Even sitcoms I find very funny I have stopped watching because almost every episode glorifies the concept of sex outside of marriage. I do not want to fill my mind with that kind of breakdown of moral standards nor do I want my daughters watching it. Society condemns teen pregnancies and STDs but pushes teenagers and adults toward sexual activity through all forms of media. No wonder abortion rates are so high. Society punishes those who commit a crime against another person but ratings show that Americans love sitting and watching programming that glorifies violent crimes. Each show tries to outdo their competitors by creating a more horrible and shocking crime scene than the week before.

Our society is no different than ancient societies who were entertained by death and by the perversion of sex, which God intended as good within the marriage relationship. Paul addressed issues of sexual sin within the church as well as many other sins that would keep them from experiencing ALL that God had planned for them. Once again, I studied Paul’s letter to the Corinthians over a hot cup of my morning coffee with God.

Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive or cheat people – none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that.
But you were cleansed;
you were made holy;
you were made right with God
by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. – 1 Corinthians 6:9-20

I feel cautioned this morning. How many times have I agreed that sexual sin is wrong but then spent hours “entertained” by movies or television shows that use topics of sexual immorality or drunkenness in an attempt to make me laugh? I can argue that I would never be tempted to follow the examples of the actors or characters, but it is more about the slow fade or breakdown of our society’s moral standards – sadly both inside and outside of the church.

Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? – 1 Corinthians 3:16

Paul says, “Run away from sexual sin!” May we, as the body of Christ, heed Paul’s warning and start eliminating what the enemy intends to use to harm us. May we, as the temple of God, protect our minds from all that glorifies sin and fill our minds with what glorifies God.

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. – Philippians 4:8-9

But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.

When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. – 1 Corinthians 2:10-13

If we long to know God and grow in our relationship with Him, we spend time with Him. He fills us with His Spirit and by His Spirit we begin to understand Him and the wonderful things He has for us. God opens our minds and increases our knowledge and wisdom. God also uses those whom He has called to teach us through their writings and preaching, just as the Corinthians were learning from Paul and from other teachers.

We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building. – 1 Corinthians 3:5b-9

Paul uses two different examples of how we grow in our relationship with God. The first follows the style of Jesus, using the example of seeds being planted and growing (Matthew 13:3-9). Someone introduced us to Christ – they planted the seed in our hearts; perhaps someone else discipled us, watering the seed that had previously been planted when we accepted Christ. Still others come into our lives and continue to teach us God’s ways and we grow.

Paul’s second example is of building a house, another comparison similar to one Jesus made (Matthew 7:24-27). Someone laid a foundation of faith for us when we first heard the message of the cross. Others have taught us along the way using a variety of materials or teaching methods. For most of us, our life has been influenced by many different teachers, preachers and writers over the years in addition to our own personal study of God’s words.

I first accepted Christ as a little girl while attending the First Church of the Nazarene in Bloomington, Indiana (home of the IU Hoosiers). I remember my Sunday School teachers, those who taught our worship time and my Caravan teachers. This was the time in my life when I learned songs like “If I were a butterfly” and “Jesus loves the little children.” I remember how proud I was to finally be able to fold my hands just right to say, “This is the church, here is the steeple, open the doors, see all the people.”

The Lord called my Dad into full-time ministry and we moved to Lanett, Alabama and then to Rock Island, Illinois. A long list of teachers influenced me as I continued to grow in my understanding of the Bible. Over the years, I have grown through the preaching of Mark Barnes, David Felter, Don Tyler, Larry Fortado (my Daddy), Stephen Manley, John Bowling, Jack McCormick, Rob McDonald, Jim Kraemer, Scott Sherwood, Crawford Howe, Lloyd Brock and many more. I have read books, listened to radio programs, and learned songs with spiritual truths. So a foundation of faith was laid in my heart as a little girl and many have invested in my spiritual growth and built upon that foundation.

Human leaders, teachers and preachers have drawn close to God in an effort to spread the message of Christ. Chances are I have heard some wrong information mixed in with all the right. There have been times when I misunderstood Scripture or read ideas that missed the mark. Well-meaning followers of Christ (including myself) have at some time or another taught something they believed to be right that was not right at all. Here is what Paul has to say about this kind of building or growth.

But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have – Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials – gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. IF the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames…

So don’t boast about following a particular human leader. For everything belongs to you – whether Paul or Apollos or Peter, or the world, or life or death, or the present or the future. Everything belongs to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God. – 1 Corinthians 3:10-15, 21-23

As we learn and grow in our understanding of God, it is vital to take all of that new information directly to God in our quiet times. By drawing near to Him and spending time in His presence, His Spirit can help us sort through all we have learned. He promises to give us wisdom and understanding as we seek His truth. All that we have heard, all that we have read, all that we struggle to understand – He wants us to come to Him with all of it and then live by His power. Dear God, thank you for being the source of all wisdom and all power for us!

For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power. – 1 Corinthians 4:20

The next letter that Paul wrote was to the church in Corinth. In this letter, Paul takes the gospel that they have received beforehand and applies it, making it a very useful letter for us to study today. The letter is built on this foundational idea – now that you have a relationship with Christ, this is what your life should look like. This is NOT a new set of rules or law to oppress the people but holy living born out of a marriage with Christ and an outflowing of the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

I am writing to God’s church in Corinth, to you who have been called by God to be HIS own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours…

I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you BELONG to Christ Jesus. Through him, God has enriched your church in every way – with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge. This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true. Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Corinthians 1:2-7

We belong to the Christ who died on a cross so that we can be forgiven of our sins and freed from our sinful nature. This is the message of the cross that Paul preached and the message we believe. Our faith in Christ and the forgiveness of our sins brings us into a relationship with Him that forever changes our lives. We now belong to Christ, we have been united with Him.

God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin (1 Corin. 1:30).

So, since I belong to Christ and am united with Him, and you belong to Christ and are united with Him, it is not too much for God to ask us to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose (1 Corin. 1:10). How do we do this? We rely on the power of the Holy Spirit (2:4).

The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God (1 Corin. 1:18).

United in Christ, we know with confidence that He was crucified and raised to life and that He now reigns in our hearts, but the world around us does not understand our faith. They call it a CRUTCH and see it as a weakness or craziness. Those who call our faith in Christ foolish do not see that they are the ones who are foolish. We know the message of the cross is the definition of the power of God!

It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it is nonsense.

God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose the things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. – 1 Corinthians 1:22-25,27

We have the power of God! So why do we feel inadequate? Why do we pull back and wait for someone else to do the work of God? We buy into the criticisms of the enemy and the world and think of ourselves as incapable of doing anything great for God. But that is not what Paul is saying in his letter to the church of Corinth. It is not about how simple we are but about how committed we are. It is not about how strong a vessel we are for God to fill, but about how strong He is and how capable He is to do something great even in and through us!

My message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God (2:4-5).

Father God, thank you for the message of the cross – the message that frees us from our bondage to sin and gives us new life in You, Lord. Please shut out all of the discouragement of the world around us and of the enemy so that we can hear only you today, cheering us on and calling us to do great things. Remind us that we only need to rely on the power of the Spirit and not on our own wisdom or abilities. Remind us that you have equipped us with every spiritual gift we need and graciously poured out your Spirit on us. As we are united in you, help us to be united with each other, living in harmony – being of one mind, united in thought and purpose. Amen.

Faith, hope and love – Paul opens up his letter to the church in Thessalonica praising God and commending the church on their faithful work, their loving deeds and their enduring hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). So far we have looked at the faithful work and loving deeds. Today, let’s consider the enduring hope we have in Christ.

In the midst of suffering and persecution, God’s Church stays strong in their faith and continues living a life characterized by loving deeds, all the while hanging on to the hope that keeps them looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven – Jesus, whom God raised from the dead (1 Thess. 1:10). Paul’s prayer for them is that God continues to make their love grow and overflow, making their hearts strong, blameless, and holy as they stand before God when Jesus comes again with all his holy people (3:12-13). Paul is referring to those believers who have already died.

And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.

We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

For centuries, we have been encouraging each other with these words, finding hope in the midst of our grief and goodbyes when we lose a loved one. We find hope we will see them again, and also hope we will be together with the Lord forever. Spending eternity with Christ Jesus – now that produces hope! Paul goes on to describe to them how this will happen.

…the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. When people are saying, “Everything is peaceful and secure,” then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains. And there will be no escape.

For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. Christ died for us so that, whether we are dead or alive when he returns, we can live with him forever. So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11).

So what our hope goes back to is love – the love of a God who chose to save us instead of pouring out his anger on us; and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us. It gets better. His plan is for us to live with Him FOREVER! So…

Remain strong in your faith even in the midst of persecution, criticism and suffering.

Continue to let God perform loving deeds through you.

Endure with a hope that knows what our tomorrow holds and who holds our tomorrow.

Faith, hope and love – Paul opens up his letter to the church in Thessalonica praising God and commending the church on their faithful work, their loving deeds and their enduring hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). Friday, I focused in on the faithful work the church continued even though they were experienced persecution and criticism from those around them. Today, I reread both letters focusing in on the loving deeds Paul referred to in his letter.

Notice Paul is not just referring to their “love” but to their “loving deeds” – not just an emotion but an expression of the emotion of love in their actions. So is Paul changing his view on works? No, Paul sticks with the same theology we have heard in the letters we have studied so far. These verses explain what I mean.

May God our Father and our Lord Jesus bring us to you very soon. And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen. – 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13

Paul is not referring to a love of human efforts or loving deeds produced of our own strength. He is referring to a love that the Lord grows inside of us for other people – not just grows but overflows if we will open up our hearts and allow Him to produce this kind of love. He, then, makes our hearts strong, blameless and holy. It is not something we can do on our own. We need the righteousness of our Savior and the love He gives us in order to live a holy life and produce the kind of “loving deeds” that Paul is referring to in his letter to the Church in Thessalonica. Keep this in mind as you read the verses that come next.

Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God, as we have taught you…

But we don’t need to write to you about the importance of loving each other, for God himself has taught you to love one another. Indeed, you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more (4:1-10).

Paul went on with several more short instructions:
– honor your leaders; work hard and show respect and wholehearted love them.
– live peacefully with each other
– warn those who are lazy
– encourage those who are timid
– take tender care of those who are weak
– be patient with everyone
– try to do good instead of seeking revenge
– always be joyful
– never stop praying
– be thankful in all circumstances
– do not stifle the Holy Spirit
– test everything that is taught, holding on to what is good
– stay away from every kind of evil (5:12-22)

And I close today with the same prayer for you and for me that Paul spoke for the Thessalonians.

So we keep on praying…, asking our God to enable [us] to live a life worthy of his call. May he give [us] the power to accomplish all the good things [our] faith prompts [us] to do. Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way [we] live, and [we] will be honored along with him. This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ (2 Thess. 1:11-12).

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, comfort [us] and strengthen [us] in every good thing [we] do and say (2 Thess. 2:16-17).

May the Lord lead [our] hearts into a full understanding and express of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ (2 Thess. 3:5). Amen.

Around the same time that Paul was writing a letter to the churches in Galatia, he was also writing a letter to the church in Thessalonica. It’s not surprise, then, that he covers a similar topic – faith, hope and love. Paul opens up his letter praising God and commending the church on their faithful work, their loving deeds and their enduring hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). In both of his letters to this church he goes into detail about their faithful work in the midst of suffering and persecution. He encourages them to continue to live a lifestyle of love expressed in holy living. He also speaks of the hope we have in the day in which Jesus will return for us.

This morning my focus is on the faithful work God calls us to in spite of the difficulties that lay ahead of us, the persecution we experience from others or the suffering we endure for the cause of Christ. Here are some of the verses that jump out as an encouragement to us when we are going through a hard time.

Joy in spite of…

So you received the message with joy from the Holy Spirit in spite of the severe suffering it brought you…As a result, you have become an example to all the believers in Greece – throughout Macedonia and Achaia. And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God (1 Thessalonians 1:6-8).

How can we have joy in spite of the suffering we are experiencing? Paul explains that this joy is from the Holy Spirit living within us. It is not something we have to create on our own or pretend to be. It is a gift from God that brings Him glory when others see our joy in spite of our suffering and recognize our joy as a product of our faith in God. Paul had set an example to the church in Thessalonica of how he continued to joyfully praise God in the midst of persecution and now they, too, are examples to others who themselves are going through a hard time.

In addition to this, the faith of the Thessalonians was an encouragement to Paul and the other apostles who had invested in their spiritual growth. They had sent Timothy back to the Church to see if they were being shaken by their troubles or to see if their faith was still strong.

So we have been greatly encouraged in the midst of our troubles and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life to know that you are standing firm in the Lord. How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy as we enter God’s presence. Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill the gaps in your faith (1 Thess. 3:7-10).

Please God, not people…

For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts…As for human praise, we have never sought it from you or from anyone else (1 Thess. 2:4,6).

How can we endure the persecutions and criticisms of others? Paul makes it very clear that we are to live to please God and not others. Then when other people express their disapproval of us, it falls on deaf ears because we are only listening for the approval of our God. We don’t seek out human praise but the approval of our Heavenly Father, who calls us to follow Him and who knows our hearts.

God provides justice and rest…

We proudly tell God’s other churches about your endurance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and hardships you are suffering. And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you.

And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven (2 Thessalonians 1:4-7a).

It is not for us to get even or to return suffering back to those who cause us to suffer. We can let go of all of the hurt and bitterness and need for revenge. We can simply have faith in our true and just God, who is the only Judge needed. We can also trust that someday our trials will end. At that time and even now while we are hurting, God will provide comfort and rest for His children.

Lord, I know of so many people who are going through a difficult time right now. I pray that you would be a source of strength for them today. I pray that the presence of your Spirit will give them a peace and joy that cannot be explained. Please give them the faith they need to believe, the hope they need to endure, and the love they need to forgive. Amen.

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. – Galatians 4:4-7

God sent His Son to buy us freedom. We are no longer slaves…so why do we so often let our own sinful nature control our actions and our words? God sent His Son so that we could be free from sin and He gave us His Spirit to live in our hearts. This freedom that comes from a Spirit-filled life should look like love and not harsh words or bitter attitudes. The presence of the Holy Spirit should be evidenced by the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and SELF-CONTROL.

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another. – Galatians 5:13-15

This is where Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia sounds so much like James’ letter to the Christians scattered across the region. When do I need self-control? Pretty much every time I open my mouth. Here’s the tricky part: Self-control is really not about SELF-control but about allowing the Spirit to be in control. If I put myself in charge of controlling the words I say and the tone with which I say them, I cannot sustain holiness. But when I give in to the urgings of God’s Spirit and allow “self-control” to simply be a fruit of His presence in my life, my tongue is put under HIS control.

This is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can’t tame a tongue—it’s never been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth!

Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor. – James 3:7-18 (The Message)

So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under the obligation to the law of Moses.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. There is no law against these things! – Galatians 5:16-23

Abba Father, thank you for your gift of the Spirit living within me. I am so thankful that is not up to me to produce holiness but to simply submit to your Spirit and let your fruit be evident in my life: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Because I belong to Christ Jesus, the passions and desires of my sinful nature have been nailed to his cross and crucified there. It is my desire to live by the Spirit’s leading in every area of my life – never conceited or jealous of others, never provoking or injuring someone with my words (Gal. 5:24-26). I want my walk with you to be characterized by getting along with others, loving others because I love you. Feel me anew this morning with your Spirit and may you be glorified in my life today. Amen.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness…

It seems to me that the word FAITHFULNESS is reserved for God Himself. If God is the definition of faithfulness, then is it even possible for man to be defined as faithful? This was the question I asked myself when I went to study the fruit of faithfulness this morning. I found out of the 68 times the word “faithfulness” appears in the Bible, almost every time it is referring to God and His faithfulness. How then can we be faithful? Then I found this Scripture in Isaiah that seems to explain it all:

A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
“All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” – Isaiah 40:6-8

In Texas, I had these plants growing in my backyard with these big, beautiful leaves. I watered them “faithfully” but I was losing the battle against the sun, which browned the edges and caused them to quickly lose their beauty. One day, the plants starting producing these beautiful tropical flowers – flowers that would be beautiful for a day and then would start wilting. Only one bloom sustained its beauty for more than a day.
We are like grass and our faithfulness is like the flowers – the potential for beauty is there but it cannot sustain itself. Without nourishment, it will wither and fall. No matter how hard I try of my own strength to be faithful, it will not be sustained. It will wilt and the petals will drop. It is the faithfulness of God that endures forever. But here is the good news – although we cannot truly be faithful, the Spirit living within us can produce faithfulness. Therefore, if our lives can be described as faithful, it is not to our glory but to the glory of the God who gave us the Spirit whose fruit is faithfulness.

Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. – Proverbs 3:3

Oh that the Holy Spirit would use my heart as a tapestry! And as long as the Spirit is producing the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and faithfulness, it would be great if He could soften up this heart of mine and tame this tongue so that gentleness would be the fruit of my walk with Christ.

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. – Proverbs 15:1

Oh, the power of a gentle response – so powerful that it can break a bone (Prov. 25:15)! Gentleness is not weakness. Remember when God responded gently?

The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” – 1 Kings 19:11-13

Jesus describes himself as gentle and is described by others as gentle.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. – Matthew 11:28-30

Say to Daughter Zion, “See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” – Matthew 21:5 and Zechariah 9:9

So if God is found in a gentle whisper and Jesus is gentle and humble in heart, it is no surprise that the fruit of the Spirit living within us is gentleness – that God’s plan for our life is to produce gentleness.

Let your gentleness be evident to all. – Philippians 4:5

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. – Colossians 3:12

Thank you, God, for these truths this morning. I woke up still soaking in yesterday’s truths – that you are good and that you are kind. And now I praise you for being a faithful God and a gentle God of grace, mercy and compassion. Lord, fill me with your Spirit and make me into the child of God you want me to be. I love you. Amen.

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness…

It is good for me to take time to review Galatians 5:22-23. I need to ask myself if the fruit of the Spirit living within me is evident in my life. I need the Spirit to point out moments in my week when I am neither displaying patience nor self-control. There is still work to do in my life – a dying to self and submission to the Spirit living within me.

This morning I look at KINDNESS and GOODNESS. What better example of kindness than to look at the grace of God that Paul spoke about in his letter to the Galatians. That we are called children of God; that we are forgiven for our sins; that we have been “grafted in” and given life through a relationship with the God who created us – these are all signs that we serve a KIND God.

Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree! – Romans 11:22-24

And if we, by grace, have been shown kindness by God, and if we are truly grafted into the one true Vine, kindness should be a natural outflow of the Spirit living within us.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. – Colossians 3:12-13

Not only is God kind, He is good – all the time! We serve a good God. In the midst of the most difficult of circumstances, it is necessary to be reminded that God is loving, that He is kind and that He is good. One of my favorite references to the goodness of God can be found in a conversation with Moses:

Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.” – Exodus 33:18-20

The glory of God is defined by God as goodness, mercy and compassion. So as God desires to be glorified through our lives, He places His Spirit in us to produce the kind of fruit that brings God glory – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. And He adds to that list: grace, compassion, humility, forgiveness, mercy and deeds prompted by faith – All of this BY His power and FOR His glory!

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

Oh Lord, you are SO good. You are a kind and merciful God and I am humbled in your presence. Thank you for your grace – for your mercy and compassion towards us. Father, I give you permission to make me worthy of your calling. I cannot be consistently good and kind on my own. By your power, bring to fruition the desire of my heart to be kind and to live a good life. Fill me with your Spirit so that every good thing coming out of my life is a result of the work of the Spirit, my time in your presence and my faith in you. May the name of the Lord Jesus be glorified in me, and me in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! – Galatians 5:22-23

So, as I draw close to God and spend time in His presence, He fills me with the Holy Spirit and the result of this indwelling is fruit. My roots grow deeper and wider, and the result of that growth is increased fruit. As we talked about on Friday, agape LOVE is the result of the Holy Spirit doing a work in my life. Another fruit of the Spirit living within me is JOY.

You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. – Psalm 16:11

At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.” – Luke 10:21

While recently studying James’ letter, he encouraged us to consider it pure joy whenever we face trials of many kinds (1:2). This is the kind of joy he was referring to – not a false joy we have to create on our own or a happy face we need to paint on to fool people, but joy that is fruit from the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives. Then, not only will we experience joy in the midst of trials, we will also experience PEACE.

Yesterday in our small group time, the youth group looked at Mark 4:35-41. Jesus was out in the boat with his disciples and had laid down to rest. A fierce storm came up, causing waves to break over the boat and the boat to fill with water. Consumed by their circumstances, the disciples reacted in fear. Their focus was on the storm instead of the reality that Jesus was with them and His presence is enough to help us through any storm. It’s that presence in our lives that brings peace, even in the midst of trials.

Always be full of JOY in the Lord. I say it again – rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s PEACE, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:4-7

As we dwell in the presence of God and live in Christ Jesus, we begin to grow because our roots are growing deeper and deeper in Him. The presence of the Spirit in our lives produces fruit out of this growth. In difficult situations, we remember the words of our Savior:

“I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” – John 14:27

The fruit of the Holy Spirit that helps us persevere and not give into our circumstances is PATIENCE – to focus on the hope that is before us so that we can endure the moment we are living in today.

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. – Hebrews 10:35-36

We live in expectation or hope of what we will receive, confidence that persevering through difficult times is worth it. Hope is not a focus on what MIGHT happen but what must happen. Patience based on hope helps us to bear difficult circumstances because we are inspired by an expectation of what is to come. This kind of hope is inspired by our Lord Jesus and this kind of patience is a gift from the Spirit.

We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Thessalonians 1:3

It is the filling of the Holy Spirit that releases the power of the peace that Christ gives us through the Holy Spirit. Lord, fill me with your Spirit today – give me a new and fresh infilling of your presence. And may the evidence of your Spirit in my life be characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Amen.