The Living Water Produces Faithfulness and self-control.

Galatians 5:22–23 CSB

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things.

This week we learned a lot about The Living Water that comes from a relationship with Jesus Christ. It all starts with love of God and builds from thier.

His love produces joy. His Joy produces peace. His peace produces patience. His patience produces kindness. His kindness produces goodness and gentleness.

Now there two more parts of the fruit that we still need to talk about tonight. Faithfulness and Self-control.

Now we have heard a lot of teaching this week. You had me teaching you twice a day. You had devotion time with your counselors. All of that is very good. We all need good teaching.

But look what the bible says about teaching.

James 1:21–25 CSB

21 Therefore, ridding yourselves of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent, humbly receive the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like someone looking at his own face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of person he was. 25 But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works—this person will be blessed in what he does.

What do you think it means to be a hearer and not a doer?

So this guy James who wrote that we needed to be more than hearers but doers, you know what he must have noticed? He must of noticed that there are many people who love to do Bible studies, read the bible and go to church. He must have also noticed that there are many people who who must believe that Bible study is the biggest goal of God has for you.

Did you know that God’s goal for you is not just to learn the Bible and attend as many bible studies as you can?

Did you know that some people believe because they go to lots of Bible studies and don’t do to many bad things that they are Godly?

But the Bible says that we are to be faithful to the teaching.

In other words we are to be committed to obey all that we have learned.

You see it is not enough to hear good teaching. One must commit themselves to the what they have heard.

So this is where faithfulness and self-control come in.

To be faithful means to commit yourself to obey the teaching and self-control means you develop godly habits that will help you to obey.

Now I have never played ga-ga ball before. In fact, I dont even know how the game is played. As I call on people, I want you to tell me one rule of the game.

Now that I have heard the rules and know them well. I could play the game. But what if when I go down to the ga-ga ball pit, I break one of the rules and you all correct me but I break the rule again and again.

Does it matter how well I know the rules if I don’t put them into practice.

you see this is why we need faithfulness and self control. So the things that God has put in us through the living water(holy spirit) we actually follow them.

In this way we are not hearers of the word only, but doers.