The Fruit of the Spirit

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is the evidence of the gift of the Spirit; the Spirit’s primary purpose is to produce godly character:

FRUIT (Gal 5:22-25)

LOVE -The Greek word for love in this instance is agape. It is the highest form of the different kinds of love expressed by distinct Greek words, including eros (romantic love), philia (friendship love) and storge (familial love). Agape is the kind of love God has for his creation. It is pure, selfless and self-sacrificing. It always seeks the best for others — even enemies —, at all costs. A beautiful description of agape love is found in the Bible verses of 1 Corinthians 13.

JOY - The joy Paul refers to in Galatians 5 is much deeper than a sense of happiness or gladness from life’s circumstances. It is a profound delight and rejoicing that comes from knowing and serving God.

PEACE - Peace is an unshakeable inner calm that can be a rare quality in turbulent times. The peace that comes from the Spirit is not just a small comfort.

LONG-SUFFERING- Also called Patience, it can be in short supply in a fast-paced world where everyone wants what they want, when they want it. But the Holy Spirit has a never-ending supply of patience to flood the Christian’s heart at those times when it is needed most.

GENTLENESS - This fruit of the Spirit is a natural result of love. When God’s Spirit begins to develop love in the Christian’s heart, treating others with kindness, compassion and forgiveness follows. In fact, once the foundational fruit of love is flowing through one’s life, not only kindness but also gentleness, forbearance, goodness and other attributes listed in Galatians 5 will naturally follow.

GOODNESS - This fruit of the Spirit is an attribute of action. It means living one’s life with good morals and motives as well as doing good things for others. Producing the fruit of goodness is a true mark of godliness.

FAITH - Trustworthy, loyal, constant, dependable. The Christian who produces the fruit of faithfulness embodies all these attributes. Faithfulness is an especially important to God. No matter what life brings, he expects his disciples to be unwavering in their faithfulness to him as well as to the people in their lives.

MEEKNESS - The way a Christian engages with others is what the fruit of gentleness is all about. The ability to discern when to use a gentle word is a valuable gift of the Spirit. Especially in tense moments, when unkind words or manners are the typical first response, the Christian who responds with gentleness is a true reflection of Jesus and the kingdom of God.

TEMPERANCE - Paul concludes his list of the fruit of the Spirit with self-control. Because of the human sin nature, everyone’s personality has negative impulses and qualities. Overcoming them can be a constant tug of war. But Christians have the power of God’s Holy Spirit in their lives to help them identify and overcome areas of weakness.

GODLY CHARACTER (2 Pet 1:3-9)

VIRTUE-The act of having or being morally excellent, behaving or showing high moral standards.

KNOWLEDGE-content of what is known

TEMPERANCE-self control

PATIENCE-(patient endurance)

GODLINESS-appropriate beliefs and devout practice of obligations relating to supernatural persons and powers

BROTHERLY KINDNESS-affection for one’s fellow believer in Christ.

LOVE- agape (having a sincere love based on sincere appreciation and high regard)

(John 15:1-8)