Spiritual Fruit

November 1, 2013 by The Soaring Eagle 6 Comments

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. “

(Galatians 5:22-23)

Reflection:

The fruit of the Spirit is made up of different segments but is one fruit, rather like an orange. Unlike the gifts which are separate, and where different gifts may be given to different people, each believer is intended to have the complete fruit of the Spirit become a reality in his or her life.

 We were created in the image of God. Our salvation in Jesus Christ is a part of God’s plan to restore us to that image, not to create a new one. So the fruit that the Spirit creates within us will be the same fruit that we see in God. Just as the defining aspect of God’s character is that “God is love”, so we would expect that it would also become the one thing that stands out most in our new and God-given identity. This is highlighted by the fact that the two Great Commandments, and the new commandments given by Jesus to His disciples, have love as their foundation.

 We cannot create love within ourselves, certainly not of the depth, height, width and breadth of God’s love. So, God has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit to transform our lives. One of the things that He has as a priority is to develop within us, and to show through us, the great love of God.

“because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:5)

 Note that it is not just love that is poured into our hearts, but “His Love” – God’s love. We receive God’s love for ourselves and the love of God for others as well. And, just as a tree or vine bears fruit that is seen by and is received by others, so our fruit is expected to be perceived by and become a blessing to others. This was the model of Jesus and is to be ours as well. He made that clear when He told us to be the light of the world.

“In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”  (Matthew 5:16)

 The fruit that the Spirit brings is not something that we can manufacture ourselves – like hanging baubles on a Christmas tree. No matter how hard we might try they would tend to fall and shatter at times. This fruit is produced deep within us and appears from there with a real and transparent beauty when the Spirit is embraced and allowed to do His transforming work.

Response:

Pray that the Holy Spirit will bear fruit from within you – and persevere even when you act like the world!

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, please keep pouring the love of God into me and in that love create the fruit that is real and holy. Amen.

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