We are all familiar with the fruit of the spirit identified in Galatians 5:22-23 NIV which state “ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Each of these characteristics are woven in scripture in such a way that makes living them out easy even when life presents a not so pretty picture.
Most people probably don’t pay attention to how the the fruit is listed. However, let’s look at the first one: love. We are commanded to love our neighbor as we love ourselves Matthew 22:9. Then, we see in 1 Peter 4:8 that love covers a multitude of sin. This part of the spirit is sacrificial along with peace, forbearance, kindness, and goodness. The second part of the nature of our spirit deals with self. How are we producing faithfulness when we live in a world that is unfaithful? Are we showing gentleness in our speech, and our attitude towards others and what is taking place in the world? Lastly, self-control. The KJV calls it temperance. The Holy Spirit does not act out, and when we heed to it, we won’t act out either. Lastly, depending on what we are faced with and what happens in our day determines which aspect of the fruit of the Spirit we reflect.
