To walk with God is to walk in the divine nature of God which is Love, the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is the eternal life of God; it can be compared to the sap or life force in a tree. It is as we are abiding in the Spirit or the vine that the life flow of the Spirit moves in our heart, influencing our thoughts, emotions, words and actions.
In order to walk in the fruit of the Spirit, we must learn how to abide in the Spirit. To abide in the Spirit we must be looking to the Spirit. This requires a focused attitude of listening and seeking to be led by the Spirit. We are looking to the Lord continually in order to walk with Him. What should I do? What should I Say? We are looking to the Lord to respond in Him to our life-circumstances. To walk with God means we are allowing His Spirit to live through us.
To walk with God we need to learn how to activate the fruit of the Spirit, so that it starts flowing in our lives. When our spirit is communing with God, the fruit of the spirit is manifested in our life.
We need to learn how to be aware of our spirit, when our spirit is awake or activated our soul will become aware of these different qualities of God’s nature in it.
To walk in the fruit of the Spirit, means that our spirit is in fellowship with God’s Spirit and this becomes the new motivation of our life. Instead of living from our soul, we are living from our spirit. We make decisions based on our spirit in fellowship with God instead of decisions based on self.
The fruit of the Spirit is manifested in our relating to God and other people. The fruit of the spirit comes out of our spirit towards others.
Gal 5: 22But the fruit (that which originates or comes from someone) of the Spirit is love
The divine nature is basically the Love of God which is on a higher level than the human love we have experienced. As we begin to experience the divine nature of God all the other aspects of His love are manifested with it. We experience the other eight aspects of His nature listed in Galatians, and whatever other aspect the Lord reveals describing his nature or glory.
His nature is basically his love and all the other fruit that comes out of it, and no human word can describe this glory that we have the privilege to partake of. God shares His glory with His beloved; we are the crown of His creation and get to participate in His nature.
This love is the exact opposite of being self-centered. It is all about Him, He is the reason we exist. We were created to glorify Him and worship Him and in so doing-partake of His nature.
The love of God is what is to move us and motivate us and control us, because this is what we willing desire. We Hunger and thirst for this, to be filled with all the fullness of God.
The Love of God starts flowing in our heart as we learn how to focus on God. The reason we have difficulty during the day is because our focus was distracted from the Lord on to something else. As we learn how to keep our spirit focused on God pressing into Him, then with the mind we can do what we need to do while our spirit is still in active fellowship with God. As long as our spirit is connecting with God, then we have control over what we are thinking and can bring our thoughts into harmony with the Spirit of Christ in us.
To walk in the fruit of the Spirit we have to learn how to tune into the Love of God. We can feel the love of God in our heart when we learn how to look with compassion on people. Our spirit is directly related to our will, and as we will to love someone then our spirit responds drawing upon the Love of God, where our soul can feel the flow of it.
We put God first and acknowledge Him, and then we love others as if they were our self. We make our self available for God’s Spirit to use, because He has chosen to work through us and then we focus on His family and those who are being called into it. In the losing of our life (soul) by focusing on the Father and His family we find our life.
We need to realize that the fruit of the Spirit is to be directed to someone. The fruit of the Spirit has to do with relationships. When our spirit is right with God the fruit of his Spirit is manifested in it.
Joy (great happiness), the joy of the Lord comes from being aware of His presence. The joy of the Lord strengthens us for what he has called us to do. When our spirit is fellowshipping with God we will be aware of this joy which is manifested in degrees, but we can tell it is there.
Peace (peace between individuals), harmony, agreement, unity , friendship ,oneness, a state of peace, tranquility, health, wealth and prosperity, security, safety, endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance, forbearance, slowness in avenging wrongs,
In learning how to walk with God, the peace of God is like an umpire in our heart. This peace is a fruit of our spirit in fellowship with God and can be felt in our soul, but down deep it will be there. This peace is like a witness of the spirit, and we should not move or do something, unless we can discern that the peace of God is in our spirit about it.
When our soul is troubled we must pause and try and discern our spirit so that we can receive God’s direction.
Longsuffering, (a self restraint of the mind before it gives room to passion or action; it is patience in respect to persons)
We know that we have come into a walk in the fruit of the Spirit when this fruit is being manifest in our life. Longsuffering is always directed towards people.
In our dealings with other people we do not focus on their flesh, but realize that any manifestation of the flesh in them is a result of their spirit not being enlightened or their not being in contact with God’s Spirit.
When someone crosses us, we tune into the love of God which wants to beautify them, and not focus on their flesh which is a result of not being in tune with God’s wisdom.
The end of all flesh is at hand, these manifestations will not exist in the kingdom once it is established in the natural realm, so instead of responding in our self and getting upset, we respond in the spirit knowing the judgment of God rests upon these manifestations and we desire the person to be free from it through the gift of repentance. We need God’s wisdom and love in dealing with people because we represent Him, and it manifests in the fruit of longsuffering.
Gentleness (it is a grace which persuades the whole nature, mellowing all which would be harsh and austere, it is descriptive of one’s disposition, kindness, it is the harmlessness of the dove).
In dealing with people our spirit needs to be filled with this gentleness. A fruit of the wisdom of God’s nature is the gentleness of His wisdom. In correcting people they need to really know that we love them, and are trying to help them. Their soul had a built in ego, and gets easily offended, and we need the gentleness of wisdom to win their souls. The gentleness of God makes us great.
Goodness is active benevolence. Our character is energized through the fruit of the Spirit expressing active good, uprightness of heart and life.
In dealing with people we do not just want to speak in the Spirit, but give in the Spirit. We need to actively show them how good God is in meeting needs in active service.
faith -the root of the word means to win over, persuade . Not only is it the conviction of the truth, but the faithfulness of God operating in our lives, the character of one who can be relied on.
In dealing with people our faith needs to be active in our believing for them and our actions toward them, it is as they see our faithfulness that they begin to open up to us. The new creation is faith working by love.
23Meekness (it is a fruit of power, a condition of mind and heart, it is the opposite of self-assertiveness and self-interest, it is not occupied with self at all, submissive of injury with patience-without resentment).
In our walking in the fruit of the Spirit we learn how to totally depend upon the Spirit of God and it manifests in this spirit of meekness. When we are continually looking to the Lord, we don’t speak out of our self or lean upon our knowledge.
Temperance (self-control, the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions, esp. his sensual appetites, temperance-moderation in action, thought, feeling)
It is in the outworking of the nature of God in us, the maintaining of a right spirit with Him, a spiritual condition, that we have the power of the Spirit to bring the whole of our life into submission to Him.
: Against (“in accordance with”) such there is no law (restraint).
The law was made for the unrighteous, as we grow in the divine nature we enter into a oneness with the Spirit where no law is necessary because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, and our only desire is to please God, and see other people’s needs met.
As we become God centered, He is able to fill us with Himself. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus is the law of the divine nature producing the fruit of the Spirit of God in us which abides forever. There is no law against having too much of God in our lives. We cannot have too much of God’s love, joy and peace because what we cannot contain will flow out to others.