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Discipling 12
Lesson 23
Fruit of the Spirit
Concept:
As we study what took place within us when we received
Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, it becomes
overwhelming to see the grace of God that is extended
toward each of us. Just imagine coming into a full
understanding of the fact that we are a new creation,
a joint heir with Christ, a receiver of eternal life,
sealed by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, a
full pardon from sin, right standing with the creator
of the universe, made a priest with access into the
Holy of Holies, a revelation of the predetermined plan
that the Lord has for my life, the Holy Spirit is my
partner, the Lord is about to snatch me out of this
earth to be with Him for ever, there is a mansion
prepared for me, and I have the nature of God on the
inside of me. That is just some of the grace extended
to us that I need to have some understanding about so
that I can begin to enjoy the benefits of what has
been done for me the moment I received the Lord as
my personal Lord and Savior. Isn’t it great to see
what the Lord lavished on you when you received Him
as your Lord and Savior?
The one “happening” at the new birth that we want to
address in this study is taking a look at the nature of God that is on the
inside of me and how it manifests itself through my life. II Peter 1:4 shows us
that the Lord deposits His nature inside of us at the time we became “born
again”. Romans 5:5 states that the Love of God has been poured into our hearts
when we said yes to Christ’s invitation to bring life into our dead spirit. I
John 4:8 shows us that God and Love are the same thing. Therefore, when I
receive God I receive Love. I could say that God has been poured into my heart.
Love begins to manifest itself in my life by bearing the manifestation of the
very nature of God. We commonly call these manifestations the fruit of the
spirit. Really it is Love manifesting itself as joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The Holy Spirit will
begin to gradually manifest these “fruits” through my human spirit. I become a
“tree” that the Holy Spirit uses to show off His fruit. John 15 gives us this picture by calling us
the branch and the Lord the vine. All I have to do is abide in the vine, and
then the nutrients from the Lord will produce the fruit for everyone to see.
Everything that the Lord produces through me is far superior to what the world
tries to conform me into by its standards and examples. The Lord’s desire is to
shape our character from the inside out with His grace fruit, while the world’s
system tries to conform me into their image by outside law pressure. We will
see through the word how to let the Lord do His work by His Spirit through our
reborn inner man.
Definition:
Fruit: Karpos: Man has a three fold relationship to the
universe: God, the world, and himself. The fruit comes in these three areas.
God-love, joy, and peace. Fellow man-longsuffering, gentleness, goodness,
faithfulness, and meekness. Himself-self-control. When you plant a seed, the
last thing to appear is the fruit so don’t become discouraged over slow growth.
Love: Agape: All the fruit of the human spirit is a form
of love. Love will always seek a man’s highest well being no matter what he has
done. Self-giving love that gives freely without asking anything in return is
the God kind of Love. Love involves the idea of affection, reverence, prompt
obedience, grateful appreciation for benefits, and is always given with no
though of return. Modeled in the life of Christ.
Joy: Chara: Christian joy is independent of outward
circumstances, cheerfulness and calm delight, joy springs from a clear
conscience that is free from guilt, a basic attitude that springs from out of
your recreated spirit, and joy is always based on God’s Word.
Peace: Eirene: Be at one, joined, a state of untroubled
undisturbed well being, tranquility of mind based on a consciousness of a right
relationship to God, safety and security and prosperity, quietness of the soul,
and peace is a bridge between joy and longsuffering in human relationship. The
Hebrew equivalent is Shalom. The word is also used for someone who is in
authority and runs a town or business well.
Patience: Makrothuma: Usually always applies to dealings
with people. God shows patience by bearing all of our sin and does not cast us
off. A loving, forbearing, forgiving attitude that allows patience to have a
solid base. Having a long fuse with
people before there is an explosion of emotions. Cheerful and hopeful endurance
that waits for an expectant result. Quality of self-restraint when it comes to
any retaliation for the actions of others. Patience is the quality of character
that does not surrender to circumstances or succumb under trial. It is the
opposite of despondency and is associated with hope.
Kindness: Chrestotes: Expresses itself in deeds,
attitudes and disposition, good-natured pleasantness displayed in mildness of
temper and calmness of spirit, sweetness of disposition that others at ease.
Kindness is not by natural birth but by the reborn spirit empowered human
spirit. Generosity that springs from a heart that is “good”. To be teachable
and calm, moral excellence in character and demeanor.
Goodness: Agathosume: Goodness is a clean-cut honesty of
conduct. The state of being virtuous, benevolent, generous, and godlike in
conduct. Goodness can be kind and strong, it can rebuke, correct, and
discipline where kindness will not discipline.
Faithfulness: Pistis: Conviction of the truthfulness of
God, a habit of mind which does not doubt that God is working all things
together for good, someone which can be relied upon, man’s faithfulness can
never cancel God’s faithfulness, true to his promise and faithful to his task,
a firm reliance, confidence in what we hear from God and His Word, and the
fruit of faith is trustfulness.
Gentleness: Praotes: Meekness, submissive to the will of
God; teachable and not too proud to learn, considerate to fellowman. An animal
that has been tamed and brought under control is called meek. Enduring all
things with an even temper free from self-sufficiency, one who has mastered
their desire for pleasure, meekness desire to forgive instead of inflect
vengeance, meekness isn’t depressed by rejection or elated at accolades, and
meekness is able to adjust because it know the resources of God are available.
Self-controlled: Egkrateia: temperance. Self-mastery.
Never let self-interest influence decision about people. Master of self so I
can serve others, within dominion, opposite of self-indulgence, guard against
all sins of personal excess, ability to empower the Holy Spirit to bring all
desires and actions under control, cover all aspects of human appetites, an
athlete in training, and self-control prevents desires from being the dictator
of our lives.
Scripture Application:
1. Luke 6:35
2. John 10:17
3. John 14:15
4. John 15:9
5. Romans 8:35
6. Numbers 14:18
7. Psalms 86:15
8. Galatians 5:13
9. Ephesians 3:17-21
10. I Thessalonians 3:12
11. I John 3:23
12. I John 4:8
13. I John 4:12
14. I Peter 1:22
15. Philemon 1:5
16. Luke 7:50
17. Luke 10:6
18. John 14:27
19. John 16:33
20. Romans 5:1
21. Romans 8:6
22. Romans 14:17-19
23. Romans 15:13
24. Romans 16:20
25. I Corinthians 14:33
26. Ephesians 2:14,15
27. Ephesians 6:15
28. Colossians 1:20
29. Colossians 3:15
30. I Thessalonians 5:23
31. II Thessalonians 3:16
32. II Timothy 2:22
33. Hebrews 12:14
34. James 3:18
35. John 16:20-24
36. John 17:13
37. Acts 2:28
38. Acts 13:52
39. Romans 5:11
40. Romans 14:17
41. Romans 15:13
42. II Corinthians 8:2
43. Philippians 1:4,5
44. Philippians 2:2,17,18
45. I Thessalonians 1:6
46. Hebrews 12:2
47. Hebrews 13:17
48. I Peter 1:8
49. I John 1:4
50. III John 1:4
51. Exodus 34:6
52. Ephesians 4:2
53. I Timothy 1:16,18
54. I Peter 3:20
55. Romans 9:22
56. II Peter 3:9
57. II Peter 3:15
58. II Corinthians 6:6
59. Colossians 3:12
60. Matthew 11:30
61. Luke 5:39
62. Romans 2:4
63. Luke 6:35
64. I Corinthians 15:33
65. I Peter 2:3
66. Matthew 5:45
67. Luke 6:45
68. Acts 23:1
69. Romans 9:11
70. Romans 13:3
71. Galatians 6:6,10
72. Ephesians 5:9
73. Matthew 25:23
74. II Thessalonians 1:11
75. Matthew 8:10, 26
76. Matthew 15:28
77. Matthew 21:21
78. Mark 10:52
79. Luke 17:5,6
80. Luke 22:32
81. Acts 3:16
82. Romans 1:8,17
83. Romans 3:3
84. Romans 4:16
85. Matthew 5:5
86. James 1:21
87. James 3:13
88. I Peter 3:4
89. Matthew 11:29
90. Matthew 21:5
91. I Corinthians 4:21
92. II Corinthians 10:1
93. Galatians 6:1
94. Ephesians 4:2
95. Colossians 3:12
96. I Timothy 6:11
97. Titus 3:2
98. I Peter 3:15
99. Proverbs 25:28
100. Acts 24:25
101. I Corinthians 7:5
102. I Corinthians 9:25-27
103. Galatians 5:23
104. II Timothy 3:3
105. Titus 1:8
Summary:
It is God’s desire to manifest His nature in all of our
daily lives. We are predestined to be conformed into His image, but how does
that take place. Even after you have read all of these scriptures you may be
wondering how the word is going to become flesh in you. What we have to see is
that at the “New Birth” God puts His nature in all of your recreated spirits.
Then the Holy Spirit comes to draw that nature out of us, we call that the work
of sanctification. But the Holy Spirit doesn’t work on all of the fruit with
equal intensity. The picture I like to think about is a person with a rope.
Whatever scripture we are meditation on becomes the rope, as we meditate on a
scripture that is pertaining to a specific fruit of the spirit then the Holy
Spirit uses that word to hook on to the hidden fruit in our spirit and pull it
into manifestation. If I am meditating on joy, then the Holy Spirit hooks a
rope on joy and begins to pull it up out of my well of salvation, which is in
my inner man. What I give my attention to in the Word allows the Holy Spirit to
use that substance of the Word to manifest that very Word in my life. If you
want joy, then meditate scriptures on joy and you will see more joy begin to
happen in your life. God wants to bring the fullness of His Nature out of my
recreated human spirit and manifest His fruit on my branches.
Action:
What Fruit of the Spirit do you need to manifest, so that
people can see Christ in you. Find a scripture from the ones above and begin to
speak it out. Think on it day and night and say that is what you are going to
look like. The Word is a mirror that wants to reflect the Word into your lives.
I want my personality to reflect what the Lord looks like not what my flesh
looks like. Let’s show the world Christ.
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