But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there is no law. And they that are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts thereof. If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk. Galatians 5:22–25.
We need to see the fruit of the Spirit as it really is. The fruit of the Spirit is not vague emotions or qualities that are worked within an individual. It isn’t just a love that is there or a joy that is there.
The fruit of the Spirit is always directed toward someone. Can there be the fruit of a long-suffering unless there is someone that you’re long-suffering about? Can there be any kindness unless that kindness is directed toward someone?
Where the fruit of the Spirit is, there is love—and that love is directed towards someone. There is joy—and that joy is towards someone.
Paul, in writing to the Philippians, called them his joy and crown. Do you know what he really meant? Nothing on this earth was to him the expression of the joy that Jesus had put within him like rejoicing over those Philippians. They were a crown of rejoicing to him.
We often say, “I want inward peace.” We always think of peace in relationship to ourselves, but do you ever think of peace in what you’re ministering?
Longsuffering has to be directed towards someone; God always has a few in the church who so very much need His longsuffering shinned toward them. If there are none, God will bring in a few so that you can show His longsuffering.
We can’t give up on anyone; we can’t be discouraged; because God sends them so that He can show His longsuffering and kindness through us toward them.
It’s easy to be friendly and kind to someone who will be that way to you, but within this new nature that God is bringing forth is a response that is not provocative, but instead brings forth kindness from you instead.
When people put up icy walls to one another you melt them with the warmth of that kindness of the Lord that is beamed toward them.
It works better than one of Buck Roger’s ray guns that could beam at solid walls and bring them down. When that kindness of the Lord is beamed toward the people who are isolated within themselves, yearning and needing so much, you melt the walls with the kindness and goodness of the Holy Spirit.
People confuse all of the fruit of the Spirit. They don’t say, “I’m seeing Jesus.” They say, “Oh, he’s such a good man.” They said that of Barnabas when he went to Antioch—that he was a good man—but you know where that goodness came from.
Goodness is always beamed towards someone. Goodness is not a vague quality for then you’re good for nothing. But you’re good because the goodness of the Lord comes through you.
What is the faithfulness of the Lord worked in us? It is responsibility. When we say a brother is a faithful elder, it means he carries the people in his heart. He has the sense of responsibility and he performs it in the Spirit. He’s responsible for them. In that stewardship he doesn’t forget his responsibilities.
God gives us a description of His faithfulness in Isaiah 49:15. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.
One of the most responsible duties we know on the human level is a mother caring for her little one—that is faithfulness.
But God says, “My faithfulness, My responsibility for you is greater than a mother’s love. They can forget but I’ll not forget you.”
When God starts working that same faithfulness in the elders, you feel their responsibility toward you when you go to them in your need.
Faithfulness involves more than a sense of duty, for there may be reluctance in that or a drawing back at the total involvement—but not so with responsibility. Faithfulness means that I give my heart to the Lord to serve His people. This is the fruit of the Spirit.
Meekness—that which never rises up against another person; for in every encounter between two people there can be that temperamental thing that reaches out to see if it will encounter hostility or what the reaction will be.
The fruit of the Spirit, meekness, is that which enables you, without defensiveness, without aggressiveness, in the meekness of Christ, to meet a person and disarm them of all hostility and aggressiveness because they find nothing in your spirit to fight or overcome. The meekness of Christ comes through and wins them over. This is the fruit of the Spirit.
Self-control—that which puts a rein upon all of our weaknesses, harnesses us to a divine nature and a force greater than ourselves, enables us to live by a power and an acquired spiritual instinct that comes from the Holy Spirit, that controls us in every situation where our flesh no longer rises up.
When you see a person exercising self-control you say, “I don’t know how they could take it. I don’t know how they were able to bear it.” But the Spirit gave them control.
We need to see the fruit of the Spirit as it really is.