Fruit of the Spirit - Part 1

IMPERATIVES:

#1 Determine Your Goal;

#2 Pick A Point (It’s important to have a one point message. That way you only have one thing to remember.);

#3 Create A Map (Me-We-God-You-We);

#4 Internalize The Message (Tell a story that takes them on a journey) (Whether it’s a journey to your childhood home or a journey to a life-changing truth, it’s a story that will take you there.) (People make it difficult when they try to communicate points instead of telling a story.) (When you stand up and speak without notes and without having to read your sermon, you’re saying, “This is so important that it’s a part of me — and I think you should make it a part of you, too!”);

#5 Engage The Audience;

#6 Find Your Voice;

#7 Find Some Traction (Prayer, Checklist Questions: What do they need to know? Why do they need to know it? What do they need to do? Why do they need to do it?)

MAP:

ME - Explain who you are and what you’re all about. Pastor in his church uses as introduction of idea or topic.

WE - It takes me from what I’m thinking or feeling to what WE are thinking and feeling. I have to find an emotional common ground with them around the topic or idea of the message. My goal is to raise a felt need with as many people in the audience as I can

GOD - where I take this emotional common ground I’ve established and introduce biblical truth into the discussion. Now I’m providing a solution to the need I just raised. Remember, we are not teaching the Bible to people; we’re teaching people the Bible. First, we connect with the people; then we move to the Bible.

YOU - Once I’ve introduced God’s view on the subject as the answer to the need, it makes it easy for me to then ask, ‘What are you going to do about it? This becomes the application segment, and if I’ve followed my map well, instead of having to stir up interest in making the application, the application comes as a relief or it’s always the answer to a question they’re already asking. Communicate the challenge at a personal level because life-change is going to come when people apply the truth to their lives. You just go back, and everywhere you raised a need, now you make an application and make sure you don’t raise a felt need that you aren’t going to cover from God’s Word and answer with an application. The worst thing a communicator can do is overpromise and under-deliver. You’re building trust with your listeners. Not just trust in the information, but trust in the relationship.

WE - the place to cast a common vision. A vision of what our lives, our church, and even our world would look like if only we would apply the truth of God’s Word. It’s the inspirational part of the message. My goal at this point is to inspire people to make a change. Sometimes being faced with God’s Word can leave the listener feeling defeated, if all they think about is how far they have to go. But, if I can give them a picture of what life will be like once they apply the truth, then they have a little hope.

GOAL: To help people understand that the Bible speaks of a “fruit” of our love that is produced as we live/walk by the Spirit.

POINT: To Live by the Spirit and produce fruit!

INTRODUCTION

(ME)

This last year my wife and I planted a garden (a small one) but the first one we’ve been able to have in a long time. I don’t know about you, but I when I put time and effort into something I really want a return on my time, effort, and money. So, when we plant a garden we hope that the work we put into it is going to produce something of good . . . especially that we can eat . . . RIGHT! LOL! I think that way about a lot (if not all) of the things I invest my resources into.

(WE)

I’m almost positive you are the same way. Whether it is a garden, your house, your car/truck, a hobby/craft, or can I go as far as even raising children, or even pouring into something that you deeply care about. Whatever it is . . . I would almost guarantee you want a good return for your effort. We all do! I believe that is because that is the way God made us to live . . . we live to produce fruit in one way or another in a number of different things like I mentioned.

Now, I know that sometimes we run into difficulties and we don’t always come out on the better end of things. Just think, not every time that you plant a garden does it always produce the way you wanted it to; or when we’ve poured into some hobby/craft desiring it to be more than what it has become . . . and it just doesn’t pan out. Truly, there are probably a list of unlimited examples that we could use to prove this point . . . but when it does work out it is sic! LOL! That’s a term I’ve learned from these younger generations that doesn’t mean what we’ve always know it to mean . . . but it means that it is awesomely good! Anyways . . .

And where I’m leading us to is this . . . there is a “fruit of our love.” What does that mean? What I mean is that, when we love something there is fruit that comes from that. Paul even talks about a fruit of our love; and I’m not talking about “LOVE”, one of the Fruit of the Spirit, but I’m talking about when we love something that we give a gift out of the fruit of our love . . . and that gift of course can be shown in many different ways . . . but it always comes from us at the core of our being! That is key!

MESSAGE

(GOD)

The Bible talks about this in the book of Galatians . . . and he refers to the churches and the lives involved as a metaphor . . . and you’ll never guess what metaphor . . . that’s right . . . as fields and gardens from which the owner who has spent love and time and expects positive results, “fruit unto God” (; )

Romans 1:13 NIV84

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

Romans 7:4 NIV84

So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.

As I mentioned earlier, Galatians is where Paul talks about this and very specifically in where he talks about the tension between the Law and the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22–23 NIV84

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

This is one of the main points that Paul dealt with because he (Paul) knew they wanted to produce fruit . . . but just like in a garden . . . if it is going to produce fruit it must be done the right way or the end product is not going to be satisfying.

That’s why Paul had to deal with this. He had to deal with those that thought everything had to be dictated by the Law or on the other side . . . those that believed they were so totally free from the law that they went out of bounds with their ethical living.

So, just to review . . .

there were those that believed in Jesus but thought the law still dictated certain things to them that they must do . . . in other words . . . Jesus + circumcision and so forth.

and

there were those that believed in Jesus and thought that they were so free they could do anything without consequences.

So, Paul basically summed it all up in , where he says . . .

Galatians 5:16 NIV84

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

Galatians 5:18 NIV84

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

The two ideas are very similar when one is illuminated by the other.

“Walking by the Spirit” means not to gratify the desires of the flesh, while “being led by the Spirit” is the opposite of being under the Law.

So, what does that mean? is setting healthy boundaries for life in the Spirit by stating that we can’t just do whatever we want to do in the “flesh”. Now remember that when we use the word “flesh” we are talking about the carnal, fleshly, sinful nature within all of us.

On the other hand, speaks about legalism not being something that we as believing Christians use as a guide either.

You see, the Spirit of God living within every believer enables us while at the same time it excludes, or says no to both legalism and the “freedom license”. We could take it further with the list of vices that Paul gives in on the negative side and the list of virtuous things in .

The “key” thing to remember in our desire to bear fruit is that the Power of the Spirit of God living in us motivates and enables us in our living for God. The virtues (or the fruit of the Spirit) are genuine examples of that which is produced in those who walk by the Spirit.

A great example of one of us living by the power of the Spirit of God living in us would naturally be demonstrated by one of us demonstrating love by loving our enemies as and speak about.

Romans 12:14 NIV84

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

Matthew 5:44 NIV84

But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

You see, the evidence of this happening in our lives demonstrates the work of the spirit in us as believers.

(YOU)

So, what about you? As we think about how we are living our lives for God . . . does it match up with what Paul was talking about here?

Do we see the natural flow of the Spirit of God enabling us to even go beyond the lists that Paul gave us in natural things like loving our enemies; or as we examine and meditate on this . . . is it more like we are trying to follow the list of the law and produce it ourselves?

Or, maybe, are you on the other end of the spectrum, and you are expressing your freedom to live however and whenever?

CONCLUSION

(WE)

I can see a bright future for all of us as believers because God (as the gardener) really wants us to bear some great fruit; and He has done everything that He can do to ensure that for us. It really comes down to us having this close relationship with the Father, God Himself and praying and listening to Him through the Word and in our spirit.

I know that when we follow the law that we can more often than not feel beat up, and much of the time it’s not someone else beating us up but we beat ourselves up badly enough; and the enemy, Satan, will do his bidding in time also! But, when it comes to the law . . . that’s what happens! God gave us the law to show us that we couldn’t do it . . . not to use the law as a guide for our lives that we would never be able to fulfill.

When it comes to complete and total freedom, just picture a clean toilet bowl being flushed . . . what happens? The water is quickly pulled downward . . . and that’s a picture of what happens to us when we have no healthy and ethical boundaries to help us. God’s Word and Spirit help us in this.

You may even say . . . it’s too late for me because I’ve already done so many terrible things that God would never accept me; and God’s answer to that would be “there is nothing too difficult or impossible for me” and “this is why I did what I did . . . why I died on the cross . . . it was/is for you and the situation you are in.”