Fruiting!

Fruiting!

But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. GALATIANS 5:22‭-‬23 AMP

Paul, writing through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, outlines the outward proof of a life's inner contents, looking at both the good and bad outcomes. For every situation discussed in the Bible, you have both sides present: the good and the not so good; the decision to follow God or to heed the dictates of the devil. There is really no middle ground. You are always under the control of a spiritual power: the lie that I am in charge is just what it is: a lie.

Whoever is in charge of your life detemines what your life will produce. If it is the flesh, the verses just before today's extract talks about the natural outcome. If God is in charge, then today's extract is the expected outcome. And fruitfulness is both a natural and a spiritual law: whatever I sow or feed will always grow. I do not get the exact quantity I sowed, but I will reap the same quality of what I sowed, and a geometric increase of what I sowed.

I note that the nine attributes listed here are referred to as fruit, not in the plural form. I cannot pick and choose which ones I would exhibit and ignore the others; it is not a matter of choice but of content. If indeed God lives in me, my life will be headed in the direction of the expression of the fruit. If I am struggling with the expected output, I need to cry out to God for his help. Perfection will not happen overnight; but there will be no doubt as to the sincerity of my heart in pursuing the course set out by God.

None of the fruit-expressions is negotiable; none of them can be bought with money; none of them can be inherited or willed down to children; none can be passed down to other generations through a book. It can only be learned by a personal encounter with God, and a daily dependence on his grace. No earthly law can make any of them a crime, and the world cannot resist a life that has the fruit. You can kill the shell, but the contents have eternal value. Where do I stand? Where do you stand? His time of favour is here.