The Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22–23 describes attributes of the Spirit that should be reflected in the life of a follower of Christ: the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Let’s reflect on a few of them and how to develop them in our lives.

One way that we can learn to bear fruit is to abide in God and in His Word. We can also abide in His love and keep His commandments. Merriam-Webster.com defines abide as “to continue in,” also to “accept without objection.”[1] Jesus admonishes us in John 15:10, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love” (NASB). Stay in a relationship with Jesus, continue to read and live by your Bible, and you will bear fruit.

One fruit that I want to reflect on is peace. Who doesn’t need more peace in life? Peace is a wonderful fruit. One of the names of God is Jehovah Shalom or The Lord Our Peace. Peace is inner contentment, a state of tranquility. People turn to many things to calm their nerves, but only God is the giver of true peace. We get peace by keeping our minds on the God of peace. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You because he trusts in You” (NKJV).

Peace is the opposite of anxiety. The Bible says to be anxious for nothing, pray about everything and God’s peace will guard your heart and mind! (Phil. 4:6-7), that is my paraphrase! When you get anxious about anything, just stop and pray, trust God, and ask Him to give you peace. Colossians 3:15 says “Let peace rule in your hearts” (NKJV). The word letindicates a choice. You have to choose to trust God and be at peace. Choose to have faith and not to fear because you trust God to come through. Paul tells us that “to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6 NKJV). Psalms 34:14 also says, to “seek peace and pursue it” (NKJV). Go after peace, make a decision to have peace. Let it rule in your heart and trust God!

Goodness is another attribute of the fruit of the Spirit that is much needed today. Goodness is the act of being good to others. It is a selfless generosity. When we bear the fruit of goodness, we choose not to be selfish but to put others above ourselves, giving them preference (Phil. 2:4. To take time out to help someone else can be an inconvenience, but Jesus said, “What you do for the least of these you do for Me” (Matt.25:40). I am so glad that God is good and that His goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life (Ps. 23:6). I can show God my gratitude for His goodness by being good to others.

Self-control is another fruit that is much needed in the body of Christ. One definition of self-control is “restraint exercised over one’s own impulses, emotions or desires.”[2] It is exactly what the word implies—to control yourself. Self-control is choosing to do God’s will, not living just for yourself and for self-gratification. Paul exemplifies this in Galatians 2:20: “It is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me” (NKJV). When we don’t exercise self-control we are at great risk and leave ourselves wide open for attacks. Proverbs 25:28 warns, “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls” (NKJV). This is a perfect picture of a person without boundaries; they cannot deny their own desires. This is a recipe for disaster. One of the best things we can teach our children and learn ourselves is to develop self-control so that when no one is watching, we operate according to the Spirit.

It is possible to have the fruit of the Spirit operating in your life. Pray every day and ask God to help you by His Spirit to walk in the fruit of the Spirit. Memorize Scripture passages on each of the attributes of the fruit mentioned in Galatians 5:22–23 and meditate on them until they become a part of your character. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit for His help and guidance; don’t try to manufacture the Spirit’s fruit in your own strength. For the Lord says that it’s “‘not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.” (Zech. 4:6 NKJV).

[1] Merriam Webster Online Dictionary, s.v. “abide,” accessed March 6, 2019, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abide.

[2] Merriam Webster Online Dictionary, s.v. “self-control,” accessed March 6, 2019, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-control.