Fruit of the Spirit Introduction

Galatians 5:22–23 (NIV) — 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Aren’t these the qualities we want in our lives. Imagine if this fully described me – at home, at work, at school, in church … all the places we live, work, and play!

Talk about these over the course of the year but I think it’s critical we talk about why the term fruit?

John 15:1–8 (NIV)

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples

So what does Jesus mean when He says those who abide in Him bear much fruit? You might think this word means “to produce,” yet it actually means “to carry.” There’s quite a difference between these two! As the Vine, Jesus is the only one who can produce the fruit. That’s not our responsibility—we just carry it. Think about a fruit tree. If you cut off a single branch, it stops producing fruit, and eventually, it dies. But when that branch remains connected to the rest of the tree, it eventually bears fruit.

Similarly, those who stay connected to Jesus—to the Vine—bear fruit, while those who don’t abide in Him “can do nothing.” That’s pretty clear language, right? Yet we so often think that if we just try hard enough and use all our might, we can somehow produce fruit on a broken branch! No, Jesus says the key to bearing the fruit of His Spirit is the word abide. But what does this really mean? The word abide means to “stay in one place for a long time.” And the root of the word implies staying through struggle or adversity.

It’s interesting to note that when a grapevine goes through a struggle or experiences adversity, such as extreme weather conditions, the vine produces heartier and healthier grapes, which in turn result in a higher quality of wine. The same is true of people. People who bear really good fruit are the ones who remain in a committed relationship with Christ when they’re pressed or go through a struggle.

So why is it important to stay connected to the Vine when we face challenges in life? It doesn’t matter whether the challenge is relational, financial, mental, or physical—whatever it is, it’s vital to stay connected to Jesus because He alone is the source of all life. When we aren’t connected to Him, we wither up and die.

However, when we do abide in Jesus, pressing in and staying connected to Him when things are good and when things are bad, we bear sweet, appealing fruit. This serves two incredible purposes. The first is to display God’s nature to the world. And the second is so people can eat it! In other words, simply by encountering you or being in relationship with you, people can “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (See Psalm 34:8.) They can see the fruit of the Spirit in your life.

Have you ever tried to produce the fruit of the Spirit in your own strength? How did that go? What could you do differently next time?

Think about a time you stayed close to God during adversity. What fruit came out of that season? Did people notice? What did you learn?

What can you do to abide in the vine that you are not doing now?

Matthew 7:16–20 (NIV) — 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.