The Fruit of the Spirit: “Two Kinds of Fruit”

Introduction:

I love fresh fruit. My Dad is usually has an awesome watermelon crop and watermelons raised right, eaten right off the vine, are the most delicious kind of watermelon you’ll ever taste. The best pineapple I’ve ever had was in Hawaii. Carina and I have had the privilege of going to Hawaii a couple times and we always look for fresh pineapple. It is the best tasting pineapple you’ll find anywhere in the world. But the most consistent and one of the most fond memories I have as a kid eating fruit was at Big Mother’s house with Uncle Earl. Everyone called my grandma on my Dad’s side Big Mother. She was an awesome godly lady, one of the best southern cooks you’d ever be blessed to find. All her kids and grandkids, along with some friends, would come over to her house every Sunday after church and have a big ole lunch together. It was great! I miss that so much. Big Mother lived out in the country and she had a bunch fruit trees in her back yard. There were apple trees, pear trees, peach trees and plum trees back there and whenever the fruit was in season, after Sunday lunch, Uncle Earl would ask me, “Jackie, do you want to go walk around in the back yard?” And I know what they meant. We were going to go sample some of that delicious fruit for some extra dessert. We’d go out there, he’d have me pick a piece of fruit that I thought looked especially delicious, and then he’d pluck it, pull out his pocket knife, and cut off a piece at a time for us to enjoy. My Uncle Earl and I probably did that about 30-40 times when I was growing up.

Today, we are starting a news series and we are going to be talking about an even better kind of fruit. The Fruit of the Spirit. Our text is Galatians 5:16-26 and as we read you will see there are two kinds of fruit. One comes from God and the other comes from us. And what we are going to do today in this first message in the series is lay a foundation for our study and go over a few key truths regarding the Fruit of the Spirit. Then we are going to examine the two kinds of fruit so that we can recognize them when we see them and that’s going to help us know what kind of fruit we are bearing in our own lives and what to look for in other people’s lives too.

[Let’s read our text]:

Galatians 5:16–26 (NASB)

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. 19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

Some key biblical truths regarding the Fruit of the Spirit.

1. God is glorified when His people bear the Fruit of the Spirit.

John 15:8 (NASB)

8 “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

2. There is only one Fruit of the Spirit.

(v. 22) “But the fruit of the Spirit is…”

It is a singular fruit. One fruit, with 9 distinct aspects.

The University of Minnesota developed the Honeycrisp apple in 1991, using traditional crossbreeding methods. Here is it’s description:

Honeycrisp apples are large, round, and juicy. They are crsip, have a firm texture and a sweet and tart flavor. This variety of apple is 60-90% red over a yellow background and may have streaks of yellow, orange and pink.

There are 9 or 10 key characteristics of a honey crisp apple. But is just one singular fruit. The Fruit of the Spirit is like that. There is one Fruit of the Spirit and its characteristics are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

Why is that important?

3. The Holy Spirit is the source of the Fruit of the Spirit.

John 15:5 (NASB)

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

4. If you are not bearing the fruit of the Spirit, it is for 1 of 2 reasons:

First, you cannot bear the fruit of the Spirit if you are a child of God living in unrepentant sin.

Hebrews 12:11 (NASB)

11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

Second reason, you cannot bear the fruit of the Spirit if you are not a child of God.

Matthew 7:16–20 (NASB)

16 “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 “So then, you will know them by their fruits.

As a Christian, pastor, disciple maker parent and counselor, one of my go-to tools to assess myself, another person or a particular situation is the Fruit of the Spirit.

For example, I am a child of God and a disciple of Jesus Christ. If I am grumpy, what am I missing? Joy! When I don’t eat right or don’t exercise like I should, what am I missing? Self-control!

As a parent, if I see my kids acting unkind toward one another and fighting with each other, what are they missing? Love? Kindness? Gentleness?

Regarding other people, if I am counseling someone that is dealing with fear or anxiety, what are they missing? Peace! That’s an aspect of the fruit of the Spirit.

Most all of our problems can be identified clearly when we examine our fruit. Even if the problem we are dealing with is being negatively impacted by someone else, a child of God living and walking in the Spirit, can and should still produce the Fruit of the Spirit in their lives.

It doesn’t come natural though. It is supernatural. It is produced by God. That said, we do produce fruit in ourselves. That’s the deeds of the flesh that Paul is talking about in our text. In stead of the “flesh”, for our purposes here today, we are going to refer to it as…

The Human Spirit

(is) Focused on the flesh.

16 ...the desire of the flesh.

Romans 7:14 (NASB)

14 …I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.

Ephesians 2:3 (NASB)

3 …we … all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath…

Rejects the things of God.

17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another...

Romans 8:7–8 (NASB)

7 …the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so…

(is) Under the Law.

18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.

Romans 8:13 (NASB)

13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die…

Romans 6:23 (NASB)

23 For the wages of sin is death…

Indulges in self-gratification.

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.

1 John 2:16–17 (NASB)

16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

(is) Treacherous.

26 Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

21 ...I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Jeremiah 17:9 (NASB)

9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?

The Holy Spirit

Fights against the flesh. (our sinful desires)

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

Acts 1:8 (NASB)

8 … you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you…

2 Timothy 1:7 (NASB)

7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

Philippians 2:13 (NASB)

13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Redirects our paths.

18 But if you are led by the Spirit...

25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Romans 8:12–14 (NASB)

12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

Undoes the curse of sin

18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.

Romans 8:16–17 (NASB)

16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

Internalizes the change.

24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Romans 8:11 (NASB)

11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

Transforms our fruit.

Originally fruit like this……

19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.

But now, through the Holy Spirit…

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control...

What kind of fruit are you producing?

The kind of fruit will tell you the source of the fruit.

When you trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, believing He died on the cross for your sins and rose from the dead, and asking Him to save you, made right with God, forgiven of your sins, promised eternal life and the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside you. Have you done that? If not do it right there where you are, right now, and give your live to Jesus and be filled with the Holy Spirit.

If you are already a child of God, are you consistent’y living in the Holy Spirit or according to your human spirit?

16 …walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Galatians 2:20 (NASB)

20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

You respond to the message as God leads…

Let’s pray!

Memory Verse of the Week:

Galatians 5:24 (NASB)

24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.