Fruit of the Spirit

 March 7, 2024

Thursday

I have heard many people say that they have trouble with one of the fruits of the Spirit. I wonder about that. The word "fruit" in that verse is singular. The verb is singular. How do we get plural out of this? Easy. We count the characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit and call them the "fruits."

Let's say we have a peach. We can say the peach is fuzzy, juicy, orange, yellow, white, seeded and soft. We can say that of one peach singularly. Thus, we should be able to understand that the singular fruit of the Spirit has nine characteristics.

Receiving the Holy Spirit does not come in parts. We either received the Spirit or we did not. No place in the Bible says that people received only part of the Holy Spirit. 

There are, however, admonitions to be filled with the Spirit. This is not a different Spirit but the filling of the Spirit. This comes when we are fully compliant and obedient to the Spirit. This comes with the nine characteristics of the Spirit. We are filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Saying that we only received some of the characteristics is short-changing the Holy Spirit.

Being filled with the Spirit is the same Spirit we received when we received Christ. This is why repentance is such evidence of receiving Christ. The Spirit will not come in while you are still keeping Him out. Being filled with the Spirit is not acting like a Christian without it becoming who we are. If we say we lack a couple of the characteristics of the Spirit, we are not filled with the Spirit. Thus, we become patient when filled with the Spirit when that isn't who we would be without the Spirit.

Christ didn't come to make us simply better people of the same sort of people. He came to make us new creations. That new creation is begun by the Spirit coming to be with us continually and filling us so that others will note that we are not like we used to be.

The scripture also commands that we are filled with the Spirit but many people don't know if that has ever happened to them. The fruit of the Spirit should be evident in those moments. Possessing this fruit should pique our desire to continue in the filling. The problem is that the flesh seeks to quench the Spirit. Quenching the Spirit leaves us without the fruit.

So note the fruit of the Spirit and honestly evaluate if you have it. The nine characteristics will be there if you do. And when you do, you will be filled with the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22–23 (NASB 2020) ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.