But the Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22-25 (New International Version)
(22) "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,  goodness, faithfulness, (23)gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (24) Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. (25) Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit."
 
While reading the above passages, I was led to think about the opposites of the fruit listed in verse 22:

FRUIT                   OPPOSITE
Love                      Hate
Joy                        Sorrow
Peace                    Absence of harmony & serenity, fear, torment
Patience                 Intolerance
Kindness                Inconsiderate, coldhearted, unforgiving
Goodness              Absence of good, badness, evil
Faithfulness            Unreliable, undependable, untrue, treacherous
Gentleness             Unkind in disposition, untamed, rough, crude
Self-control            Selfishness, no control, no resolve
 
In Philippians 4: 8-9, Paul tells us to think on these things:

(8) "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is  right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if  anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. (9) Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."
 
The Bible teaches us that thought comes before action; sustained thought on anything will cause one to act or to be. Thought not only produces action but that particular action produces like fruit.

“Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful, and pure thoughts, By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, the director of his life. He also reveals, within himself, the laws of thought, and understands with ever-increasing accuracy, how the thought forces and mind elements operate in the shaping of his character, circumstances, and destiny”… James Allen

The Holy Spirit represents the thoughts of God the Father, who is the source of all goodness, the fruits of the spirit. This is the truth of cause and effect. In Him is all knowledge, wisdom, and love, of which supersedes their opposites… the law of sin and death.

John 16:13

13) But when He, the Spirit of Truth (the Truth-giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all the Truth (the whole, full Truth). For He will not speak His own message [on His own authority]; but He will tell whatever He hears [from the Father; He will give the message that has been given to Him], and He will announce and declare to you the things that are to come [that will happen in the future].
 
Would you rather your thoughts cause you to act or produce those things outside of the fruit of the spirit, or those from the Holy Spirit? We can be sure of the outcome if we "think on" the things of the Spirit, for there is "no law against them.” However, the opposite is true of those things that are outside of the Spirit.

“The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors; that which it loves, and also that which it fears. It reaches the height of its cherished aspirations. It falls to the level of its un-chastened desires - and circumstances are the means by which the soul receives its own. Every thought seed sown or allowed to fall into the mind, and to take root there, produces its own, blossoming sooner or later into act, and bearing its own fruitage of opportunity and circumstance. Good thoughts bear good fruit, bad thoughts bad fruit.

The outer world of circumstance shapes itself to the inner world of thought, and both pleasant and unpleasant external conditions are factors which make for the ultimate good of the individual. As the reaper of his own harvest, man learns both by suffering and bliss…” James Allen

So then, we have a choice, “think on such things”, or, think on unpleasant things, negative things, or let our thoughts run rampant, never controlling them. If we allow God, the Holy Spirit, be the center of our thought process, we are sure to see success and victory in our lives.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones.  Proverbs 3:5-8

I believe today that you have chosen to live and walk in the Spirit, the Holy Spirit. It is easy to make the choice when you know and understand that the blessings of God await those who choose His thoughts.
 
I choose God! I choose the fruit of the Spirit!!
 
I pray that you will receive this message as an encouragement, knowing that someone cares enough to think about you and your relationship with our Father God.
 
Let us praise Him, and think on Him with all our being!

That You May Have Peace

In the 14th chapter of John, Jesus knows that the time has come for His greatest work. He knows that he was going to be betrayed and handed over to His enemies for His crucifixion. He and His disciples were at supper in the evening, when He rose and began to wash His disciples’ feet. Afterwards, He began to speak to them, about the  Father, answered prayer, The Helper in the Holy Spirit, and the gift of peace. During this time of turmoil in His own soul, He speaks to them and us about "His gift of peace".

John 14: 27    Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]

Then again in Chapter 16:33 Jesus says:  I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]

Also in Luke 10:19:

Behold! I have given you authority and power to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and [physical and mental strength and ability] over all the power that the enemy [possesses]; and nothing shall in any way harm you.

Spoken from the heart and mind of Jesus, the son of God who only speaks what the Father speaks, tells us that He has given all of us peace. It is the will of God, that we know He has provided everything for us. Then we have freedom to seek His Kingdom and His Righteousness.  Even our ancient enemy is defeated, and if he rears up to challenge us, Jesus has given us authority over him by using His name. It is by faith we take a stand (in peace) and use that authority.

So as one writer said years ago, (paraphrase)
"If God's Will for you is complete peace and joy, unless you experience only this, you must be refusing to acknowledge His Will. His Will is changeless; it is eternal; it does not vacillate. If or when you are not at peace, it can only be because you do not believe you are in Him. Yet, He is “All in All”. His peace is complete, and as His child, you are included; you must be included in it."

Being born again means that your spirit has become new – a new creation, created by God Himself. Your sinful past has been done away with, and that old self has been cast away, never to be remembered by God. All your sins have been washed away by the blood of Jesus. So, your newborn “will” is “God’s will”, even though your mind hasn’t been re-born, it now has to be transformed. Paul tells in in his letter to Rome.

Romans 12:2

Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

Father God, the activities of the day seem to overwhelm us at times, and we forget that in your peace is where we belong, and where all answers lay. We seek your peace, and may the reality of that peace permeate us so that we are totally saturated by its very essence, every moment of every day. As we hold fast to that confession of truth, we receive unspeakable peace and joy. Therefore, we are able to share it with the world around us… In Jesus’ name… Amen.