Prophet’s Reading Plan: Isaiah 1- 4
Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Read Galatians 5:16-26
This month we are taking an in-depth look at the fruit of the Spirit – the evidence of a life submitted to the work of God. These are not the gifts of the Spirit, though we have been given those as well. These are not the blessings of the Spirit, though they do indeed bless us. A gift is given and a blessing is bestowed, but fruit it grown; fruit is cultivated and nurtured and harvested. Joy and patience and self-control do not just fall onto our laps; we are not sudden masters of the fruit any more than we can snap our fingers and make an apple appear in the palm of our hand.
Perhaps the list of spiritual fruit is daunting to you or maybe one or two in particular strike a nerve. Remember that God is a God of peace and His ways are not formulated to give you anxiety. This is a joint effort. More than once Scripture parallels people to fruit-bearing trees. The psalms tell us that those who are planted in the Lord’s house will grow strong and faithfully bear fruit each season (see Ps. 92). God is the Gardener, watering, weeding and pruning. We have the responsibility to settle into the soil. We must choose where we will plant ourselves. Will we be planted in the courts of our God, pursuing Him and asking His help and relying on Him? Or will we be planted in the soils of selfishness, trying to live as independently as possible? When we are planted in Him, He will produce in us the fruit listed above. But remember – it is a process. As we follow His path, He will plant seeds in us that will grow to become the beautiful fruit of the Spirit.
PRAYER AND MEDITATION
1. Read Galatians 5:22-23. Tell God how you feel about this list. What strikes you as an area where you need to improve?
2. Which of the fruit do you know is most evident in your life? Reflect on how God has developed this in your life and thank Him for it.
3. Galatians 5:25 says “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” Meditate on what this means and ask God to help you keep in step with Him today.
