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Love 2/20/00 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The first fruit of the Spirit that is listed is love; however, love is usually misunderstood by society in general as well as many Christians. The following two definitions are based on the Greek word for love used in this passage. agape (ag-ah'-pay); from NT:25; love, i.e. affection or benevolence; specially (plural) a love-feast: agape-- You have probably heard Christians say that agape is an unconditional love that God has for us and that it is the kind of love that we should have in our own lives. Where did this popular definition of love come from? It certainly didn't come directly from the Greek language definition above. The key can be found in the way the word is used in other parts of the Bible. "When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?' In this verse, Jesus has asked Peter if he has an agape love for Jesus. Peter responds that he has a phileo love for Jesus. The explanation of agape is actually found in the Strong's definition for phileo. phileo (fil-eh'-o); from philos; to be a friend to (fond of [an individual or an object]), i.e. have affection for (denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling; while agape is wider, embracing especially the judgment and the deliberate assent of the will as a matter of principle, duty and propriety: the two thus stand related very much as thelo [wish] and boulomai [intend], or as thumos [passion] and nous [mind] respectively; the former being chiefly of the heart and the latter of the head); specifically, to kiss (as a mark of tenderness): If it were not for Strong's comments about the differences between these two words or a knowledge of N.T. Greek, we wouldn't be able to distinguish the difference from the passage above. As a matter of fact, it would be very confusing because Jesus asked Peter about his love three times and the last time He used the word phileo. Based on the explanation of the words above, I think Jesus was trying to get Peter to think about what kind of love he had for our Lord. Did Peter have a love that was based on a choice of his will or was his love based on feelings and emotions? Twice Jesus asked if Peter had made a willful decision to love Him and Peter answered that he had a love based on sentiment or feeling. The third time Jesus asked him if he had a love based on sentiment or feeling. Each time Peter answered, Jesus told him that he was to take care of His sheep. It is as though Jesus said "Ok, Peter, based on your feelings for me, I have a job for you and that is to take care of my sheep. With your feelings, you will be able to do that." But then, it appears that Jesus changed the subject even though it is part of the same paragraph. "'I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.' Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, 'Follow me!'" (John 21:18-19) Now it appears that Jesus told Peter "Look, these feelings will get you through the hard work but it isn't going to be enough when you will have to face death. A few days ago, you said you would die for me based on your feelings and when push came to shove, you ran. You really need to make up your mind to love me so that when the feelings aren't there, you will still follow through". "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love." (John 15:9-10) "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:12, 13) The definition of agape can be further clarified as Jesus explains the love of the Father. Think about the way that the Father has loved Jesus. It is a love that didn't spare Him from the cross. A very clear definition of agape is that it doesn't attempt to spare us from difficulties in life. The world's definition of love is one that has come from the post depression era in the United States. It is the love that says it will give good things to the loved ones and spare them from the tough times. If God had this kind of love then He would not have allowed Jesus to die for our sins on the cross. If God loved us in this way, He wouldn't let us go through trials and testing in our lives, but would make life a bed of roses. A result of that kind of love would be a bunch of very weak people who would be very self centered. However, Jesus also explains that receiving this kind of love is a two-way street. To remain in the Father's love, He obeyed the Father's commands. We must also obey Jesus' commands to remain in His love. At first this looks very much like conditional love. (If you do this then I will love you.) But when I stop to think about Jesus' command, it makes sense. To love one another the same way Jesus loves us is to be able to lay down our lives for each other and for Jesus. While we may not be perfect in doing this, if we do not love in this way we are not being like Him and in that sense we are not remaining in His love. It doesn't mean that Jesus or the Father stops loving us. Again, it is a decision we need to make to obey Jesus and love one another, especially when some of us are not very loveable. "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom 8:37-39) Paul confirms that there isn't anything that can remove us from God's love. In this sense, agape is truly unconditional. However, this still doesn't complete the meaning of agape. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." (1 Cor 13:4-7) Love that is based on feelings is usually good, but sometimes fails in being able to continue as can a love based on a choice. Agape is first of all patient. It makes the choice to wait instead of looking for an instant solution. God waited until the right time to send Jesus to die for our sins. An emotional decision very often wants to fix things now instead of waiting for the right time. Sometimes we have to wait for a loved one to hit rock bottom before they can get their act together and change. It is hard to do, but we have the example of the prodigal son's father to confirm that we need to be patient and wait for God to work in the lives of others. Agape is kind because it considers the best interests of others before it considers itself. Emotional love wants to be kind but can fail because it doesn't want to lose the feelings. It can say unkind things to manipulate in order to keep the feelings from going away if the object of the feelings decides to leave the relationship. Agape doesn't envy because envy is based on feelings that we somehow need something that someone else has. Agape considers the things that others have and decides to rejoice that the others have those things. Agape doesn't boast because it knows that boasting is an attempt to boost feelings of self worth and many times it happens at the expense of others. Love based on feelings has the ability to boost itself in order to elevate itself in the eyes of others to gain the affection and feelings it wants. Agape isn't proud since pride is based on accomplishments of self. Boasting draws attention to oneself to bolster the feelings of self worth. It looks like boasting and pride go hand in hand. Agape isn't rude because rudeness simply doesn't take into account other people's feelings or rights. Being rude can be a cultural phenomenon if a person simply doesn't know how to behave. However, agape will notice the reaction of others and will find out what is proper and adjust. Making these kinds of adjustments usually takes a decision. Agape isn't self-seeking. Most of the problems with attitudes and behaviors that are the opposite of agape are summed up in this point. Jesus demonstrated it most clearly by dying for us. He wasn't seeking His own glory, but He wanted to glorify His Father. When we are putting ourselves first, we simply can't be seeking to be benevolent to others. We may do things like giving to charity to help our own income tax situation, but the goal is self-seeking. Agape is not easily angered. Anger so often comes because we feel that we have been treated unjustly, or we feel out of control, or we feel we need something that has been denied, or we feel frustrated. Agape isn't easily angered because it isn't reacting based on feelings. Seldom is anger based on a willful decision because of the injustice done to others or dishonor to God. Agape doesn't keep a record of wrongs. It knows that whenever a person keeps track of every injury, insult or injustice, feelings of revenge and/or bitterness can only be the outcome. Feelings can be brought up by memories of past wrongs. They can be almost as intense as the original feelings or even more so if dwelt upon. Agape decides to not dwell on the wrong. Agape doesn't delight in evil. The Greek word for evil in this verse is adikia. Adikia (ad-ee-kee'-ah); from adikos; (legal) injustice (properly, the quality, by implication, the act); morally, wrongfulness (of character, life or act). It is interesting to see that agape doesn't delight in injustice. I can see how agape can get angry because of injustice. But again this has to be a decision because it takes reasoning and a good handle on God's Word to determine what is just and what isn't. Agape doesn't put up with evil in the lives of loved ones. Some times, it has to confront and suffer the consequences if that confrontation doesn't turn out the way they hope. Agape rejoices with the truth. This can be very hard for some because they don't want to know the truth. Many people are in denial about what is happening to their loved ones. They don't want to know the truth and therefore can't help. Even though the truth can hurt very much, agape desires to know and reveal the truth. Agape always protects. This protection is in subjection to the other attributes of agape. Out of strong emotional attachment, some would argue that agape would always shield others from harm. However, in context with what has been said above that protection can't include covering up the truth or getting in the way when God works in others' lives. It does seek to act when there is injustice and it is in that person's ability to do something. Agape always trusts. Think about the trust that Jesus had to have in the Father. He was going to die and He had to trust that the Father would be able to preserve His Spirit through the crucifixion as well as give Him a glorified body and pay for the sins of the world. He knew the Father loved Him and had power to do it. Agape makes a decision to trust not based on feelings. If Jesus had to make His decision to go to the cross based on feelings, I think He would have ran. Agape always hopes. Agape can look at all the circumstances that can easily depress and discourage yet still expect the best to come out of it. This is especially important for those with wandering loved ones. Agape always perseveres. When the going gets rough and emotions are at the lowest point, agape doesn't give up. Feelings would have said long ago to give up and look for a new spouse or disown a wayward child. However, agape says that the decision and commitment to love has been made and it won't quit. "How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!" (1 John 3:1a) This is the kind of love that the Father has for us. It is much, much more than unconditional love. Let's bask in His love and let that love flow from Him through us to others. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The second fruit of the Spirit that is listed is joy. chara (khar-ah'); from chairo; cheerfulness, i.e. calm delight: I looked up the words chara and chairo in the book of Matthew and I was startled to see how it was used in this one book alone. Other than when it was used in a greeting, it was used exclusively in relationship to things of the kingdom of God. "When they saw the star, they were overjoyed." (Matt 2:10) The first use of the word was when the three kings were about to find our Savior. The star reappeared to them and led them to the house where Jesus was living with Joseph and Mary. They had never seen Jesus and knew very little about Him, except that He was born King of the Jews and that they had come from a long distance to worship Him. As a fruit of the Spirit, we have joy when we come to worship Jesus. The joy found in worship can only come from the Holy Spirit. Do you joyfully come to church to worship or do you come out of a sense of duty? "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matt 5:11-12) Having joy in the middle of persecution is one of the contradictory ideas that is presented in the Word of God. James repeats this idea in James 1:2 when he tells us to consider it pure joy when we face trials. What is there about the fruit of the Spirit that enables us to have joy in the presence of trouble? It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can have joy in tough times. One way that He gives us this joy is to help focus on our rewards in heaven. It is the reason that Jesus could face the cross. "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Heb 12:2) We often don't consider the rewards of heaven as a source of joy because we somehow have the idea that it wouldn't be spiritual enough. However, Paul emphasized that these are some of the things that get us through the tough times. "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." (2 Cor 4:16-18) Do you have joy in the midst of your difficulties? "The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy." (Matt 13:20) The Holy Spirit gives us joy when we hear the Word of God. This includes the times when the Word convicts us of sin as well as when it encourages us to continue. It becomes a joy for us to hear the Word preached at church, on the radio, on the street or at any other time. It gives us joy when we hear the truth proclaimed in any place, and especially when it isn't expected. The Spirit also gives us joy when we are able to share the truth of the Word of God with others. Do you joyfully receive the Word of God or is it a chore to read the Bible or listen to a sermon? "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." (Matt 13:44) The Holy Spirit gives us joy knowing that we are members of the kingdom of God. It is so much of a joy that the riches of this world can't compare with it. Are we willing to give up everything to gain the kingdom of heaven? In a very real sense we already have when we turn our lives over to Jesus and accept Him as our Lord and Savior. When we become Christians, we deed over all that we have to Jesus. (It was His to start with anyway, but we didn't know it before we accepted Jesus.) In return, the Holy Spirit gives us joy. Many people have to give up much to become Christians; others barely see any change in their circumstances. The fruit of the Spirit can gives us joy even when it costs us materially. "And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off." (Matt 18:13-14) The word happier is the same Greek word that is used for joy in these other verses. The Holy Spirit will also give us joy when we see sinners come to Christ or when we see backsliders repent and their relationship with the Lord restored. This is a contradiction for the world. The world would much rather see the sinner pay his dues. I am reminded of the stark contrast between people who rejoice at the conversion of a convicted heinous criminal and those who are angered at his conversion. The latter feel somehow cheated of justice because the person has the peace of God when he is executed. They would rather see him "squirm on the chair." The former have joy that there will be one more person to sing praise to the Lamb in eternity. It is only by the fruit of the Holy Spirit that there can be joy, especially when the crimes were committed against them. How do you react when you hear of someone repenting and surrendering his or her life to Jesus? "His master replied, `Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'" (Matt 25:21) We have joy from the Holy Spirit when we are engaged in the things that the Lord wants us to be doing. We receive joy now, but there will also be a day when we will experience it along with Jesus. There are times when our work is hard and difficult. We may not be rewarded or recognized by our boss, by the church board or even family members. The Holy Spirit enables us to continue to have joy when we are doing our work "unto the Lord" because we are not focusing on the earthly rewards but the heavenly ones. That reward is to share in the joy that Jesus has when we are being the servants He wants us to be. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." (Col 3:23-24) Do you have joy in your work? "So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples." (Matt 28:8-9) Joy from the Holy Spirit comes even when we are afraid. Were the women afraid because they didn't understand what they had seen, or were they afraid because they thought the disciples wouldn't believe them? It is a thought to ponder. Many of us are afraid to run and tell others about the resurrection of Jesus and His forgiveness for our sins. We also know that we have joy when we do it. We may be afraid of the circumstances that are surrounding us, like news that we have cancer or a loved one has wandered too far and is in danger of physical and spiritual harm. Yet the resurrection of Jesus is convincing proof that He is in control of all circumstances. There may be reasons for legitimate fear, but the Holy Spirit gives us joy as well. Do you experience joy even in fearful moments? Outside of the book of Matthew the words chara and chairo are also used for joy or happiness in different contexts as well as for the following things that pertain to the kingdom of God. "But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.'" (Luke 2:10) The purpose of the good news of Jesus Christ, His birth, death for our sins, burial and resurrection is to bring great joy to all people. It isn't limited to a few, however it must be accepted and become a part of us before it brings lasting joy. In the verse discussed above (Matt 13:20), a man received the word with joy, but later fell away because "he had no root." "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." (John 15:11) Our joy can only be complete in Jesus. The world has continually offered its version of joy for thousands of years, starting with the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. When Jesus said that our joy would be complete, it was in the context of obeying His commandments and remaining in His love. It is possible for a Christian to wander from Jesus and lose the joy of the Holy Spirit. When we wander, it is usually to seek the false joy of the world. It is good to know that He is always there so that when we turn back, He will forgive us and restore the joy of our salvation. "I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy." (John 16:20) One of the joys of the world is when Christ is put down and hidden. I look at some of the editorials and letters to the editor in the newspapers and it is grievous to see the people of Jesus being criticized and put down as "Puritanical" or having "17th Century" morals. It grieved the disciples when the world crucified Jesus, but His promise to them was true. Their grief turned to joy at the resurrection and ours will remain when we focus on Him as well. "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men." (Rom 14:17-18) A reoccurring theme of the joy of the Holy Spirit is its contrast to the world's ideas of joy. The world keeps telling us it is achieved by living it up and self indulgence. Serving Christ and living a holy life will produce the longer lasting joy that is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. "Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!" (Phil 4:1) "For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy." (1 Thess 2:19-20) One last theme about joy is that it comes from working with people and watching them grow in their walk with Jesus. Paul led many to salvation and then helped them grow and get firmly established in their faith. He spent time with them and loved them. There are many ways to serve Christ and one way that produces joy is to help people to grow and mature. May you be filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit as you walk with Jesus. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The third fruit of the Spirit is peace. eirene (i-ray'-nay); probably from a primary verb eiro (to join); peace (literally or figuratively); by implication, prosperity: Peace Comes With Salvation "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." (Luke 2:29-32) The Holy Spirit gives us peace in the face of death. Simeon was near the end of his life when Jesus was just born. Having seen Jesus and knowing that He is the Savior of the world gave him peace as he faced the end of his life. Without the salvation that we have in Jesus, we can't be assured that we will have life after death. With Jesus, we can have perfect assurance that we will live with Him forever. (1 Jn 4:13). "Jesus said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'" (Luke 7:50) This woman was a notorious sinner who washed Jesus' feet with her tears. He forgave her sins and told her that she was saved. He also told her to go in peace. Even though she had lived a life that was so outwardly sinful that all who knew her called her a sinner, Jesus gave her the ability to live her life in peace. When we come to the cross of Jesus seeking salvation and His forgiveness, the Holy Spirit will give us peace to live our lives without condemnation regardless of what we have done. Others may try to take that away by reminding us of our past but we can have peace knowing that Jesus doesn't condemn us. "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace-but now it is hidden from your eyes.'" (Luke 19:41-42) Israel was seeking peace in the world. When the people saw the miracles Jesus performed, they thought that He would be able to overthrow the Roman government and establish peace in the land. What they didn't understand was that Jesus was going to give them a peace that would reach beyond circumstances. He knew that without the salvation that His death on the cross would bring, they wouldn't be able to experience true peace even if everything in the world was going their way. That is the same for us today. We may be free from war and oppression, but until our souls have been freed from sin, we will never know true peace. "You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all." (Acts 10:36) Jesus came to provide salvation first for the Jews then for the Gentiles. (Rom 1:16) When the message was first spoken to the Gentile world, it was a message of peace. This must have been very surprising to the Gentiles since the Jewish community had little respect for them. When the Jewish officials wanted to have Jesus crucified they wouldn't even come into the house of the governor because that would make them "unclean". The Gentiles knew all too well what the Jews thought of them, yet they were also aware of the awesome power of the God of Israel. Can you imagine what they thought when they first heard the words of Peter saying that this peace was also available to them? Paul reiterated this message to the Ephesians. "He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near." (Eph 2:17) Paul went on to explain that the dividing wall of hostility between Jews and Gentiles is destroyed when people are saved because we are all members of Christ's Church. Through salvation, the Holy Spirit gives us peace between races. "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God." (Rom 5:1-2) We can have all these manifestations of peace in our lives only because we have peace with God. Paul explained quite clearly that peace is only a result of salvation, which means we are justified by faith (not by our good deeds.) When we have peace with God we have access to His grace (God's Riches At Christ's Expense). God's Peace Vs The World's Peace "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27) Jesus was about to be crucified and He was preparing His disciples for that time. He was also preparing us for the troubles we will find in the world. The world would expect to be relieved from all troubles to achieve peace. Instead of an absence of strife, He gives us the ability to go through troubles without our hearts being troubled or being afraid. This is the primary difference between the world's definition of peace and God's. Later, He repeated this because it was such a sharp contrast to what the world expected. "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) We must always seek peace in Jesus. If we seek it elsewhere, we won't find it because He told us that we would have trouble in the world. He didn't say IF we have trouble, but that we WILL have trouble. Knowing this, we need to turn to Jesus for our peace. "Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division." (Luke 12:51) This is the clincher. Jesus didn't come to give us all we want - a rose garden - so to speak. When we follow Him, we are going to find divisions because he called us to be separated from the world. We are called to live holy lives that fly in the face of the world. This inevitably causes division when we make choice to follow our Lord or follow the world. We Have Peace Doing His Will "Again Jesus said, 'Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.'" (John 20:21) After His resurrection, Jesus greeted His disciples several times with the same words, "Peace be with you!" He was reassuring them that they would have peace. In this instance, He gave them a charge to spread the gospel just as the Father had sent Him. When we are following His commands and doing what He wants, we will experience His peace. When we avoid what He wants or are acting contrary to His commands, we will not experience peace. "There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." (Rom 2:9-10) This offers quite a contrast between those who are doing God's will (good) and those who are doing evil. God has guaranteed that those who do evil will have trouble and I'm sure He is ultimately referring to the judgment. This really takes us back to salvation. For only those who are saved can truly do good. Anyone who has not turned to Jesus for salvation and thinks that his good deed will help him find favor in God's eyes will have a big surprise. "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away." (Isa 64:6) Those who are not saved may be doing well from a human viewpoint, however their good deeds don't count with the Lord. "The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." (Rom 8:5-8) One of the things that He wants us to do is to be controlled by the Holy Spirit. This takes place first of all in our minds and it is an attitude of our heart and soul. There is a contrast between peace and hostility. Anyone who claims to know Jesus and doesn't submit to Him has got a basic problem and will not find peace because they are in continual rebellion against Him. "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Rom 15:13) Doing God's will is trusting in Him. When troubles of the world come, the only way we can have peace is to trust that our Lord is in control of all things and that His will is being carried out. We trust that He will work all things for the good of those that love Him and are called according to His purpose. As we trust in Him we will find peace. "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." (Phil 4:9) When we put Biblical teaching into practice we will have God's peace. This emphasizes the importance of knowing God's Word and doing it. It takes more than just knowing it to have God's peace; it requires putting it into practice. "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful." (Col 3:15-16) There is also an aspect of letting God's peace come into our hearts. We can resist it by trusting in ourselves, not practicing what we know to be right or by resisting His call on our lives. We can also miss out on the peace of God when we aren't thankful. Jesus is our Peace "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility." (Eph 2:14) How can Jesus be our peace? Above, we have seen how we have peace because of what Jesus has done on the cross. We have seen how Jesus gives us peace as we trust in God. But this verse tells us that Jesus Himself is our peace. Long before Jesus came, we were told that He would be called the Prince of Peace. (Isa 9:6) "I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." (Eph 3:16-17a) The key to Jesus being our peace is if He dwells in our hearts. Jesus can only be peace for those who have invited Him into their hearts to be their Lord and Savior. There is peace in knowing that He is now in control of our lives and the we no longer have to strive to please God based on our own good work. We please God because Jesus is in us. We do those good works because Jesus is in us. "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you." (2 Thess 3:16) His desire for us is to have His peace at all times and in every way. He doesn't want us to be peaceful only after we have received a spiritual high, because of a wonderful worship or encouraging sermon. He wants to be in us and give us His peace all the time. Benefits of Peace "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:6-7) As we take everything to Jesus in our prayers, a miracle occurs. We don't necessarily get the things we are asking for, but we receive the peace of God. We don't understand exactly how it works (because we really don't understand how God works), but the anxiety is replaced by a peace that only is found in our Lord Jesus. That peace then guards our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. When we fail to take our request to God (with thanksgiving), we will strive and sweat out the details of our problems in our own strength. That strength will sooner or later fail. But after we take it to Him, that peace will start working. It first of all keeps us from becoming even more anxious as He guards our hearts and minds. Sometimes we take things to our Lord and the anxiety is still there. That's why Paul continued with these verses. "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. 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." (Phil 4:8-9) Part of letting Christ rule in our hearts is making the effort to think about things from His viewpoint. When we want God's peace but are unwilling to discipline our thinking and instead focus on negative things, we are likely to forfeit the benefit that is His peace. "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you." (2 Thess 3:16) In Jesus, Ray Ruppert "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The fourth fruit of the Spirit is patience. makrothumia (mak-roth-oo-mee'-ah); from the same as makrothumos; longanimity, i.e. (objectively) forbearance or (subjectively) fortitude: Don't you just love it when someone defines a word with another word that you don't understand? Anyone know what longanimity means? My spell checker didn't even think it's a real word. Fortunately, I have a dictionary that explains that it means a disposition to endure patiently. I was a bit surprised to find out that this particular Greek word wasn't used in the gospels and was only used a few times in the epistles. Makrothumeo, which means to be patient, is used only three times in the gospels. These Greek words are made up of two root words, makro (long) and thumos (passion). These words show me why the King James translates the word more often as longsuffering. God Is Our Example Several of the uses of this word give us a picture of our Lord's longsuffering with the evils of people and His reluctance to vent His wrath on them. "Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance? But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed." (Rom 2:4) When I think of the fact that our sins caused Jesus to suffer on the cross and that they grieve our Father, the concept of longsuffering again is born out in the idea of being patient. Kindness and tolerance accompany our Father's patience. Even though He is kind to all people, providing all things for our physical lives as well as the opportunity to have eternal life, many are living lives that grieve Him. He is tolerant of this which means that He is putting up with it for now. This is totally different from the world's definition of tolerance, which is to condone and not speak against evil. In the face of these attributes, we can see that patience in our lives needs to model the Father's. When we are involved with people who cause us to suffer because of their sins, we need to continue to be kind to them and tolerate them. We need to remember that there is also a limit to patience. Our goal is the repentance of the sinner, not their punishment. If they don't repent, then they will suffer God's wrath. "What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath-prepared for destruction?" (Rom 9:22) Some people will see God's wrath and be destroyed. Even so, God is patient with them as well. We need to remember that we don't know who will or will not come to Jesus. We can't write anyone off or treat him differently, saying that he will never become a Christian. "But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life." (1 Tim 1:16-17) When we get to the point that we are about to lose our patience, we need to understand that Jesus has unlimited patience. This is hard for me to understand. How could Jesus have unlimited patience for someone who was so opposed to Him and His Church as Paul was? Paul said that the patience Jesus showed him was an example for all of us who would believe on Him and receive eternal life. When we show patience for people we are demonstrating to them the mercy that Jesus showed to Paul. Again, our incentive for patience is to see them come to Christ. "...who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water..." (1 Peter 3:20) The Lord was patient waiting for Noah to finish the ark so that He could then destroy the wicked on the earth. He put up with the wickedness for just a little while longer so that He could preserve the human race and send the Messiah so that others could be saved. Even today, He is waiting for just the right time before He comes again to rid the world of sin and rule in person over us. "Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him." (2 Peter 3:15) He is waiting so that many more can come to repentance and have eternal life with Him. Our Patience With Circumstances "We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love." (2 Cor 6:3-6) Paul suffered many physical problems when he was ministering the gospel. Almost everywhere he went he was opposed physically as well as politically. He made it a goal that his reaction to these things would not become a stumbling block to others. When we are simply trying to live a Christian life we can face some of the same things that Paul did. The work can get hard and we may have to put in some long hours on the job and/or in ministry. If we lose our cool and become impatient we can discredit the name of Christ. Non-Christians are watching us to see how we handle difficulty. Weak Christians may also stumble if we lose it. They may become discouraged or even succumb more easily because they think it is ok to blow off steam once in a while. We can't be perfect, but we can let the Holy Spirit give us patience by considering the influence we have on others. When we do blow it, we need to apologize and admit our wrong in order to maintain an atmosphere of kindness and love. "And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light." (Col 1:9-12) Two things are on either side of having endurance and patience, growing in the knowledge of God and giving thanks. As we learn more and more about our Lord, we can see His patience with us and we can demonstrate that to others as well. As we joyfully give Him thanks in all things we realize that He is in control of all the circumstances. If He has controlled the circumstance so that we get in the checkout line that suddenly has the longest wait time, we can be patient because we are trusting Him for all things. If we can learn to be patient in the small things (in the checkout line, on the freeway) then we can be patient in the areas that have eternal importance such as living a life worth of the Lord. We have to look at a bigger picture. If we have a car breakdown that blocks traffic, He isn't teaching us patience, He is teaching the five thousand people behind us patience. "You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings-what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them." (2 Tim 3:10-11) Again, Paul emphasizes that people could see in his way of life the fruit of the Holy Spirit in his sufferings. Patience is right there in the middle again. This reiterates that Paul walked the walk and not just talked the talk. He could point people to his life as an example. The end result of patience is that we are trusting in God for the outcome. We aren't always rescued the way Paul was at these locations. We may be rescued in other ways. Consider that Paul was ultimately beheaded for His faith in Jesus. He patiently awaited the final victory over death and is with our Lord. "We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised." (Heb 6:12) We need to imitate Paul and His way of life. Through faith and patience, he has inherited the promises of our God and Savior, Jesus. "Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord." (James 5:10) This reminds me that God's timing isn't the same as ours. The prophets often didn't see the results of their work in their lifetime. The same may be true with us. Patience tells us to keep doing what the Lord desires regardless whether we think it is successful or not. Our Patience With People "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." (Eph 4:1-2) There are some people whom we label as "difficult" people. They are the ones that test every ounce of patience that we have. Paul exhorts us to manifest the gift of patience with them as well by bearing with them in love. Sometimes the reason these people are difficult isn't so much their problem as it is ours. Paul says to be completely humble and gentle. When I have difficulty being patient with someone, I'm usually feeling that I'm better than they are in one way or another. I feel I'm smarter and they are clueless; I'm more coordinated and they are clumsy; I'm more spiritual and they aren't discerning. If I were to think of each time that I've been impatient with someone I could make this list a lot longer. Gentleness is another key to keeping your cool and being patient. In my work, I've had many opportunities to help people when they are trying to learn new computer skills, as well as many times that I've been on the receiving end. Patience and gentleness work together so well that it is amazing to see what people can do. The worst thing I could do is to move the person out of the way and "show" them, wowing them with how much I know. That isn't being gentle and they don't learn. It is telling them that they are dumb and can't do it. Another thing is to let them know that it's ok to not get it the first time, but quietly and calmly go over it again and again, even asking them to slow down so that we can follow what they are doing. It's really tough to be patient with someone if you don't know how to be gentle. "Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction." (2 Tim 4:2-3) Being patient or tolerant doesn't mean that we compromise God's Word. Rather it means that our style of correction, rebuke and encouragement must come with patience and careful instruction. Careful instruction may mean that we need to adjust our teaching techniques to adapt to the person's leaning methods. We have all been created differently. One person may learn and apply the Word simply from hearing it preached. Another may need explicit examples. Some learn well by listening, others require visual aids and others can't learn until they've done it themselves over and over. It takes patience to adapt to different people's learning styles. May the Lord work His will in our lives as He develops the gift of patience in us. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The fifth fruit of the Spirit is kindness. chrestotes (khray-stot'-ace); from chrestos; usefulness, i.e. moral excellence (in character or demeanor): Oops, I thought the Greek would have come up with something a little bit closer to kindness. Usefulness, as in moral excellence, doesn't seem to point me to kindness. The King James actually translates it as gentleness even though all the other versions I checked came up with kindness. Looks like I'll just have to see how it was used in other places to get an idea of what kindness is. This Greek word is only used seven other verses in the Bible. The English dictionary defines kindness as the quality of being kind; good will; kindly disposition. It defines kind as having gentleness, tenderness, or goodness of heart; humane; kindly; also, proceeding from or expressing goodheartedness: kind words. God's Kindness "Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?" (Rom 2:4) Previously, while discussing God's patience, this same verse came up. I used kindness to help understand God's patience. I mentioned how He is kind to us providing for our physical needs. That doesn't seem to be the meaning of the Greek word for kindness in this verse. The kindness I previously mentioned is described by the Greek word philanthropia (fil-an-thro-pee'-ah); fondness of mankind, i.e. benevolence ("philanthropy") as it is used in the following verse. " The islanders showed us unusual kindness." (Acts 28:2) Philanthropia is actually used in Titus 3:4 (below) and is translated as love. Chrestotes is also used in Titus 3:4 and is again translated as kindness. About this time you are probably asking "So what?" What I'm learning is that there is a distinction between God's kindness in the sense of being benevolent and His kindness. Kindness is one of His attributes but it doesn't mean providing for us even though we don't deserve it. His kindness is related to His moral excellence and is closer to the English definition. What is most important is that His kindness leads us to repentance. Perhaps it means that He is so morally correct that He doesn't give us what we deserve and in that sense, it is similar to mercy. In the Old Testament, the word that we translate as kindness is also translated as mercy supporting the idea that His kindness is more closely related to mercy and not benevolence. "Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off." (Rom 11:22) Three times God's kindness is used in this verse. It is contrasted to His sternness. The Greek for sternness is apotomia, means decisiveness or severity. When Paul wrote this he was talking about the difference between the Jews who didn't believe in Jesus and Gentiles who have responded to God by accepting Jesus as their Savior. Even though the Jews were God's chosen people, He doesn't provide kindness (or mercy) toward those who have not repented but who have rejected Jesus. This was because of their unbelief. (Rom 11:23) Again, God's kindness is described in terms relating to salvation, not physical provision or favor. "And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." (Eph 2:5-8) For a moment, imagine what it will be like to be seated with Christ in the heavenly realms. Being seated with Jesus could mean that we are at a fabulous banquet with Him (the wedding supper of the Lamb) or it could mean that we are ruling with Him. Whatever it means, we will be in a position of favor and honor that we don't deserve. There isn't anything we can do on this earth to earn the right to be seated with Jesus. God's kindness in Jesus is the only reason we will be there. "In Jesus" tells me that we have His grace and kindness only because Jesus came and died in our place, paying the penalty for our sins. There is nothing on earth that can compare to the riches in the heavenly realms that He has lavished on us because of His kindness. "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven." (Matt 10:32-33) Jesus made us this promise. His moral character (kindness) is such that He will honor that promise when we are seated with Him in heaven. "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life." (Titus 3:3-7) In these verses, Paul wraps it all together and relates that we are saved because of His kindness and love. (Love in this verse is philanthropia.) When we are saved it doesn't have anything to do with our efforts. We are reborn by the Holy Spirit because we have believed in Jesus. This rebirth and renewal is poured out on us though Jesus' death because He has taken away all of our sins. His kindness is culminated in the fact that we have eternal life. We will be seated with Him in heaven; we can count on it if we have believed that Jesus has taken our sins and we have turned to Him in faith and repentance. Our Natural Kindness "All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." (Rom 3:12) When Paul quoted Psalm 14:3, he used the word chrestotes for "good". No one has the same moral character of goodness or kindness that can compare to God. This is really important to understand when we are talking about our ability to earn the right to enter heaven. Most people do good things throughout their lives. They give generously to beneficial causes and may be very loving people. However, the Bible clearly says they haven't done good and this is because the Bible is using God's kindness as the standard for goodness. In contrast to His desire to see people saved, our generosity and love is worthless. Isa 64:6 says that our righteous acts are like filthy rags. When we are separated from God because we haven't accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior nothing that we do counts as kindness in God's eyes. This is a hard fact to face, but we need to understand it to understand that we desperately need a Savior. One who can fulfill the kindness or goodness that we can't and who can then impart the results to us. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." (Rom 3:21-24) We have all sinned either in large or small ways, which occurs because we can't come anywhere close to the goodness and kindness of God. But the good news is that God our Savior gives us His righteousness though faith in Jesus. Spirit Filled Kindness "Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love." (2 Cor 6:4-7) Once we have turned to faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes into our lives so that we can exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. It is interesting to note that the kindness Paul is talking about comes in the middle of suffering, pain and long hard work. These are the times when we are most likely to be unkind to others. There aren't any formulas here to develop kindness. That's because it involves a change of heart that only is accompanied by salvation and is developed as we seek to walk by the power of the Holy Spirit and not our own power. There isn't any way we can pull ourselves up by the boot straps and produce kindness that can compare with God's. "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." (Col 3:12) If there aren't any formulas for developing kindness, then how can we clothe ourselves with kindness? It comes when we submit ourselves fully and completely to the Holy Spirit and God's purpose for us. When we desire to become more and more like Jesus, we begin to clothe ourselves with all of His qualities. This isn't a formula that will cause us to be kind, but a way of life that is guided by the Holy Spirit. When we are kind, we are also very much concerned with the eternal life of others. That is because it is the way that God's kindness is expressed. You can see that in 2 Cor 6:4-7 because the troubles that Paul faced were a direct result of His desire to bring people to Jesus. That kindness can be expressed in the direct or indirect action in the lives of others. We may be on the front lines of evangelism, supporting those who are on the front lines, praying for those who need Jesus or even equipping other to walk even closer to the Lord. May your kindness be evident to all and may they know why you are kind. May they see the kindness of God in you. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The sixth fruit of the Spirit is goodness. agathosune (ag-ath-o-soo'-nay); from agathos; goodness, i.e. virtue or beneficence: I looked in the dictionary to see what it said about good, specifically looking to see if it would mention God. It didn't. The dictionary had fifteen definitions, seven idioms, and seventy-one synonyms. It even went on to say that good may at some time be a synonym of almost any adjective in the language. While good does imply high quality, it stops short of meaning perfection. A good grade on a test is not necessarily a perfect score and may be a lot lower for one person vs. another. If we are to have a fruit of the Spirit that is goodness, the English language doesn't present a very clear picture of what we should be looking for in our lives. Agathosune is only used four times in the New Testament. Unlike the previous fruits of the Spirit, goodness is not directly used in reference to God. Its root word, agathos, is used over 100 times and it is used by Jesus to describe God. "'Why do you call me good?' Jesus answered. 'No one is good-except God alone.'" (Mark 10:18) When Jesus said that only God is good, He really zeroed in on the definitions of good as it relates to moral character, worth, behavior, reliability and many of the other definitions of good. If we want to know what is really good, we only need to look at our heavenly Father and we can understand what true goodness is. If we describe a man (or ourselves) as being a good man, then we need to compare his moral quality to the Lord. It is only after we become Christians that we can indeed be called good. When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior He imparts His goodness to us. As we live by the Spirit others can see that goodness. Apart from having Jesus in our lives, we can't be called good. "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord." (Eph 5:8-10) Paul described the fruit of light as having all goodness. Considering the broad range that "good" can describe (anything from a horse to a meal and anything in between), we need to apply goodness to every part of our lives. When it comes to doing good, there can only be one true test. Does it please the Lord? "I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another." (Rom 15:14) With the power of the Holy Spirit we can become full of goodness. A step to exhibiting goodness is to aquire knowledge. A person can go on his merry way thinking that he is doing good and pleasing the Lord, when in fact he may be doing something quite against the Lord's will. Anyone who thinks that he can achieve goodness without growing in the knowledge of God is sadly mistaken. We may be counted as good in God's eyes because of Jesus' redeeming sacrifice, but when we ignore His Word and don't learn what pleases Him, we can't be full of goodness because we won't know what is required of us. Those who rely on doing what feels right rather than on what the Word declares as right can't demonstrate the fruit of goodness. One of the qualifications to being competent to counsel others is knowing what is right as well as a demonstration of living by that knowledge. "With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." (2 Thess 1:11) Like the other fruit of the Spirit, goodness relies on God working in us. Note that it is by His power that our good purposes are accomplished, not by our power. Not only that, but the good that we do must be prompted by faith. "But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin." (Rom 14:22-23) In Romans, Paul spoke about the fact that there are things that we can do that some consider good, others bad. When we aren't doing something by faith, Paul says that it is sin. A friend of mine often comments that many people don't see their secular work as a calling from God. These people only consider full time Christian employment in a church, mission society or parachurch organization as a call from God. If we believe this is true, then all of us who work for secular organizations or are self employed are sinning because we aren't doing our jobs out of faith that this is where God has called us and placed us. If we are sinning by working outside of a Christian organization then our purposes can't be good either. Whew! What a bummer! In actuality, our Lord calls most of us to secular work and when we believe that we are where He wants us our purposes in our secular work is good. The work is no longer "secular" because it is being done for the Lord. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." (Col 3:22-25) When we are doing our work for the Lord, it is good and we are exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit. Yeah! What a joy! "`Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. `Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'" (Luke 19:17) When Jesus comes again and calls us His good servants, it will be because we have been working according to His will and that makes whatever we do worth while. It may have been a small matter in the view of the world or maybe in our own. It will be a demonstration of how He has worked in us by the power of His Holy Spirit. "'The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.'" (Luke 6:45) Jesus made it very clear that a good man is good because he has good in his heart. Of course the only way to get good into our hearts is by receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior and letting His Holy Spirit rule our lives. One of the ways that you can identify a person who has the fruit of goodness is by listening to them. How a person talks reveals what is in his heart. This especially applies when we are alone or think we are alone. The last time you smashed your finger with a hammer, what came out of your mouth? How do we speak to those at work or those at home? Do we speak words that heal or words that grieve? The fruit of the Spirit will bring forth good words. Let's demonstrate this fruit of the Spirit by bring forth good from our hearts and doing all that we do for Jesus. Then we will hear Him say to us "Well done, my good servant!" In Jesus, Ray Ruppert Faithulness - Galatians 5:22, 23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The seventh fruit of the Spirit is faithfulness. pistis (pis'-tis); from peitho; persuasion, i.e. credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly, constancy in such profession; by extension, the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself: Pistis is used over 250 times in the New Testament. With this many references it is evident that faith is an elementary subject in the Bible. As explained in the definition above, it is the fundamental requirement for salvation when faith is in Jesus. This is an important distinction because many say they have faith in faith, angels, the economy or even in people. The words "trust" and "believe" in the New Testament are the Greek word pisteuo, which means to have faith. "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." (Ps 20:7) "Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save." (Ps 146:3) As evidenced by these verses we are directed to have faith only in God. The primary reason for faith is salvation. "But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished- he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus." (Rom 3:21-26) No one is going to get to heaven based on his own righteousness. (We've covered that ground many times before and it is explained in these verses as well.) However, we need to be righteous to get into heaven. As explained here, that righteousness comes from God and is given to those who have faith in Jesus Christ. We need to have faith that the blood of Jesus shed on the cross is a sacrifice that pays for our sins. There is no other way into heaven except by the blood of Jesus. That is why He said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) If we believe that we have to do something in addition to Jesus' death on the cross for salvation, then we really don't have faith in Jesus. We are in essence saying that Jesus' death on the cross wasn't enough. If we have even a smidgen of faith that we have done something to help get us into heaven, then we would be able to stand before the Father and state "Jesus and my efforts have earned me the right to heaven." If that were the case, then we would have an ever-so-tiny reason to boast about how good we were. It is for this reason that the apostle Paul wrote "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast." (Eph 2:8-9) Faith must be in Jesus Christ alone - otherwise God doesn't receive all the glory. Faith is based on knowledge. "The centurion replied, 'Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, `Go,' and he goes; and that one, `Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, `Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, 'I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.'" (Matt 8:8-10) The centurion demonstrated the meaning of faith so clearly that Jesus was astonished. Can you imagine the Son of God being astonished by anything? What did the centurion do to exhibit his faith? The first thing was to express verbally what he knew to be true about Jesus. He knew that Jesus had the authority to heal his servant. He also knew that Jesus had the power to heal without being present. These attributes of Jesus are the same as God's. He knew that Jesus is God. The second thing he did was to act upon his faith. He did this by sending another servant to express his faith. Had he waited until after Jesus arrived and healed the servant to say these things, he would not have demonstrated faith. We don't have to know everything about Jesus and God to have faith in God. But we certainly need to know some basics and act on what we know. Minimum Knowledge Requirements What is the minimum knowledge that must be heard and believed before salvation can occur? Because the Holy Spirit works in ways we don't always understand, this may be a bit different for each person. However, the following points should be more than enough to qualify a person to have "heard the word" and to have a faith that will save them.
Faith comes by hearing. "Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." (Rom 10:17) Faith is a fruit of the Spirit but it is imparted only after someone has heard (or read) the word of Christ. This supports the idea that we can't have a nebulous faith in some unknown God and expect it to produce salvation. Salvation comes because we have heard about the message of salvation that comes through Jesus and Him alone. Some people argue that they don't know enough about Jesus to make a decision to trust Him as Lord and Savior. I would have to agree with them if they had not heard enough of the message. Many people hear a few things about Jesus and want to "accept" Him as their Savior because they have some feeling that this is what they should do. Later, when they learn more, they drift away from faith because they really didn't know what they were getting into and don't want to follow through with the Christian life. Giving up their sin is too high a price. Others learn more and confirm their commitment to Christ. The Catholic Church has a tradition that demonstrates the way faith without complete knowledge should work. When first graders partake in their First Communion, if they know what they are doing, they are accepting Christ as their Savior. They have some knowledge of Jesus, but often don't fully understand the concepts of their sinfulness and the sacrifice that Jesus paid to take away the penalty for their sin. In their teen years, the same kids are asked to go through the sacrament of Confirmation. Like a Bar Mitzvah, they are at an age when they should be able to speak and reason for themselves about their faith. This is the time when they should be more knowledgeable and confirm that the decision they made as a six-year-old is still the way they want to go. Unfortunately, for many, including myself, these were only rituals that didn't impart salvation because there was no real understanding of what it really meant. Any faith I had was in the rituals, not in Jesus. Hearing is not enough to produce salvation, especially if not enough has been heard. Faith is proven by actions Like the centurion, we need to demonstrate our faith. If we say that we believe in Jesus and it doesn't make a difference in our lives, then there is something wrong. "What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?" (James 2:14) James asks us if a faith that isn't backed up by actions can actually save us. He then answers his own question a few verses later. "In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." (James 2:17) Having faith doesn't guarantee salvation. "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that-and shudder." (James 2:19) The demons' faith in God didn't result in their salvation. At some point in time, they rebelled against God and became what they are today - demons. They also know that God still has authority and power over them, which is why they shudder. They know that their rebellion will cause them to end up in eternal punishment. Their act of rebellion was done with full knowledge of who God is and their responsibility to Him. Their actions proved that their faith wasn't a saving faith. Once we have enough knowledge about God to make a decision based on faith, we are responsible for any lack of action that proceed from our faith. There are two primary actions of faith. We need to tell others that Jesus as our Lord (that means we are willing to do anything He says.) "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Rom 10:9) We need to repent. "In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead." (Acts 17:30-31) Repent means to make a 180-degree turn. It starts by changing our minds about who God is and our need for a Savior. It is followed by a change in behavior that is consistent with Christian living. It is important to understand that repentance isn't cleaning up our act in order to gain acceptance by God, but it is the result of a change of mind. Implications of Faith Obviously, if someone were to believe the points above, he must believe some other things as well. He would first of all have to believe that God exists and that He has power and authority over us. He has this power and authority because He created the universe and us as individuals so that we can have a personal relationship with Him. These concepts are demonstrated in the following verses. "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." (Heb 11:1-3) "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Heb 11:6) Many people stumble in having faith because the modern world insists that either there is no God or that He is impersonal and has no interaction with people. They like the big bang theory and the theory of evolution because these theories relegate God to an impersonal position. If God is impersonal, then there is no moral responsibility toward Him on our part and He has no authority over us. These verses state exactly the opposite about God. Since God did create in the way described in Genesis, it establishes not only how the universe came into being but establishes His authority over us as the Creator. Genesis establishes the reason that we are in a moral dilemma and need a Savior. Many people state that they don't have to believe the Genesis account to be a Christian. While they may not need to believe it to become a Christian, they will certainly have a difficult time in believing other things in the Bible if they continue to reject it after they become Christians. They will be out of kilter with God because they will not believe what He has said. Benefits of Faith Salvation is the primary benefit of faith and it brings with it something that most never expected before they became a Christian. It brings a personal relationship with God the Father and Jesus. "In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." (Eph 3:12) Many people believe that God is out to get us. If we step out of line, He will zap us. The opposite is true. He wants everyone to come to a knowledge of the truth and to be saved. (1 Tim 2:4) Once salvation occurs we gain a personal relationship with Him where we can walk with Him and talk with Him because He calls us His own. "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (John 17:20-21) Jesus prayed for each one of us long before we were born. He wants us to be one with Him and in Him. Does this sound to you like a God that wants to zap us at every turn? No, it is the invitation to an eternal loving relationship with the Creator of the universe. It is an awesome thought that the Creator of the universe is in us and we are in Him! If you haven't surrendered your life to Jesus, do it now by telling Him this is your desire. You have all the knowledge you need to place your faith in Him. If you have already done this, then rejoice that He is working in you and has given you the fruit of faith by His Holy Spirit. May you demonstrate your faith this week, as you believe God and His promises to us. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert Gentleness - Galatians 5:22, 23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The seventh fruit of the Spirit is gentleness. praiotes (prah-ot'-ace); from praios; gentleness, by implication, humility: KJV-meekness. prautes (prah-oo'-tace); from praus; mildness, i.e. (by implication) humility: KJV-meekness. I have a little confusion factor to throw in here because there are two different words used for gentleness, depending on which Greek text you use. Both words have similar definitions, and rather than trying to determine which of the two Greek texts is more accurate, I decided to look them both up. Where you see humility in the verses below, it is prautes, and gentleness is the word praiotes. Jesus is our example "By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you-I, Paul, who am 'timid' when face to face with you, but 'bold' when away!" (2 Cor 10:1-2) Paul was having quite a time with the Corinthians. The church had formed after Paul brought the Gospel to them, but Paul moved on as the Lord led him on his missionary journeys. In the meantime, the Corinthians got off track in their newfound faith in Jesus. Paul had a lot of concern for them and when he heard about the problems, he wrote them a letter that we know as 1 Corinthians. In it, he alternately encouraged them and got tough with them. As I read his appeal to them after having to write a second letter, I get a feeling for his deep concern for them that translates into gentleness. Paul was both timid and bold in his counsel with the Corinthians. I think he learned this from Jesus, since he is appealing to them by the meekness and gentleness of Christ. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matt 11:28-30) This is probably one of the best-known verses describing Jesus' gentleness and humility. It shows how He is willing to care for us and support us. It includes learning from and working alongside Him. The implication is that He won't ask us to do anything that He won't help us accomplish. That means that He understands our weakness and has a deep compassion for us and won't hurt us. But, notice that He first asks us to come to Him. "A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out." (Isa 42:3a) Before Jesus came, Isaiah spoke of His gentleness. Again, His care for us when we are in trouble or hurting stands out. In both of these pictures I can see people on the brink of despair. Our Lord is gentle and won't push anyone over the edge. There are many people who feel that God is out there just waiting for them to screw up so that He can zap them. That is so far from the truth. Gentleness doesn't mean condoning evil or being afraid of confrontations when there is a need. "You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?" (Matt 23:33-34) Jesus wasn't talking to the bruised reed when He said this. Rather, He was speaking to those who had hardened themselves to the point that they ascribed the moving of God in Jesus to the work of Satan. Gentleness has been described as power under control. It doesn't mean the lack of power nor does it mean that it can't be exerted when needed. There is a contrast between the gentleness that God has for us when we are His people versus the wrath that He will demonstrate when His patience runs out. "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'" (Rev 21:3-4) When it is all said and done, when the last chapter of mankind has been written, His people will be living in the very presence of God. His gentleness will be evident in His comfort for each person. There won't be much of a reason to cry in heaven because there won't be any death, mourning or pain in the new order that He will establish. Even though these verses says that there won't be any crying, there may be tears for friends and relatives who chose a different direction instead of heeding Jesus' call to come to Him. His wrath will certainly be shown to those who have not had a personal relationship with Jesus. Anyone who thinks he can wait as long as he wants to before coming to Jesus will also be out in the cold. Jesus said, "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, `Sir, open the door for us.' But he will answer, `I don't know you or where you come from.' Then you will say, `We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.' But he will reply, `I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!' There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out." (Luke 13:23-29) In this parable Jesus is obviously the owner and the message is clear for all. There are many people who go to church and do good deeds in the name of Jesus. They may even know the Bible but they haven't had a personal relationship with Jesus. Jesus clearly says that He didn't know them. He said the same thing in the parable of the Ten Virgins to those who showed up at the door late. (Matt 25:12) There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth and none of God's gentleness or comfort for them. Their tears will not be wiped away by Jesus. Our Call To Gentleness To Those In Sin "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently." (Gal 6:1) This one is probably tough for many, including myself. When we see someone caught in some blatant sin, we are very likely to hope for the worst and that he will get his just due. Paul encourages us that we should seek the restoration of the person and when we do, we shouldn't go in with a baseball bat to convince them of how sinful they are. We shouldn't be acting like we are much better than they are either. The truth is that we all sin and may be in a similar situation some day. How would we like to be treated? "What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a whip, or in love and with a gentle spirit?" (1 Cor 4:20-21) It seems like there are times when even gentle rebuke must give way to a sterner approach. Paul had been doing everything he could think of to get the Corinthian church in shape. His choice was to be gentle with them, but they hadn't been responding. He gave them the choice to see his sternness or his gentleness. This is a good lesson to learn with kids. The desired approach is always gentleness, however, there are times when a more forceful approach is needed. The same is true in the spiritual realm. In Gal 6:1, Paul stated that those who were spiritual should be the ones to do the restoring. This is with good reason because, without spiritual discernment, it is difficult to know how long gentleness should be used before it's time to get tough. To Other Believers "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." (Eph 4:2) In our normal every day relationships with believers, our command is to be gentle. There isn't any room for rudeness and harsh treatment. Paul added a qualifier to gentleness - completely. That means that we don't have an option to be gentle only when we feel like it and to be rude at other times. "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." (Col 3:12) Our gentleness (and other character traits) should be so complete that it covers us like clothes. Like clothes, though, we need to make a conscious effort to be gentle. When we get dressed, we normally think about what we are going to wear. When we are in contact with other people we should be making a conscious effort to be gentle. That takes effort, especially thinking before talking or acting. In General "But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." (1 Tim 6:11) Paul told Timothy that he needed to pursue gentleness. This tells me that it isn't something that comes overnight either. We usually pursue things that are elusive yet very valuable. The road to becoming gentle may have a lot of failures, but the command is to keep on trying. The achievement of gentleness will be well worth the work. "Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men." (Titus 3:1-2) We need to extend our gentleness to all people. Hmmm, I wonder if I am exhibiting gentleness when I tailgate others on the freeway or speed up to make sure someone can't get around me. Surely when Paul said to show humility toward all men, he didn't mean total strangers who we see but don't know and never talk to - like others on the freeway. Or did he? To Those In Opposition "Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will." (2 Tim 2:25-26) Isn't there a saying that you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar? (Who wants honey with a bunch of flies in it anyway?) Jesus told us to love our enemies and to turn the other cheek (Luke 6:27-29). If we aren't gentle with those who oppose us in the spiritual realms, then we may lose our opportunity to reach them with the message of salvation. This is tough because sometimes it just seems easier to tell someone they are the devil's tool and let them go to hell. After all, didn't Jesus tell that to the brood of vipers above? Well, not quite and beside, He knew the true state of their heart. That's something we can't know. So, be gentle and try to instruct. But be warned that it doesn't always work. Paul said that the hope was that they would repent, not that it was a sure thing. To Unbelievers "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander." (1 Peter 3:15-16) When we speak to others about Jesus are we doing it with gentleness and respect? We are called to be gentle when we speak about the hope that we have. The key is to set Christ apart as Lord in our hearts. If we haven't come to the point where He is Lord of our lives, gentleness will be sporadic at best. "Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." (1 Peter 3:4-5) Peter was talking to wives but it applies to all people. When people notice something different (the hope that we have) it will be tied to having a gentle and quiet spirit. If we are rude and crude, I doubt if anyone will come up and ask for the reason for the hope that we have. Our Hope 'Say to the Daughter of Zion, `See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" (Matt 21:5) Jesus came the first time as a gentle King. He didn't come riding on a white horse (the sign of a conquering king), but a donkey. He exhibited the extreme in gentleness by letting sinful men crucify Him on the cross. That sacrifice paid for all our sins. Because we have Jesus living in us, our hope is that we can live a gentle life and see Him when He does come as the conquering King. When that day comes, Matt 5:5 will be fulfilled. "Blessed are the meek [praus], for they will inherit the earth." Our gentleness will be rewarded. Let us concentrate on being gentle because that will glorify our Lord and demonstrate to the world the hope that we have. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert Self-Control - Galatians 5:22, 23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." The eighth fruit of the Spirit is self control. egkrateia (eng-krat'-i-ah); from egkrates; self-control (especially continence): KJV-temperance. Egkrateia is only used in two other verses in the New Testament, Acts 24:25 and in 2 Peter 1:6. That makes it kind of tough to look for the meaning of being self-controlled by seeing how it is used. However, there are a few other words and synonyms that Bible translators have used for self-control or self-discipline, otherwise, this email would have been very short. Self-control may have been the last fruit listed, but it is very important because it is one that is most visible to un-believers. When a professing Christian gets drunk, has an affair, etc, it is a demonstration of a lack of self-control that is evident to all. "As Paul discoursed on righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and said, 'That's enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you.'" (Acts 24:25) Felix was a Roman governor who was well acquainted with Christianity according to Acts 24:22. Paul frequently spoke to Felix and was trying to bring him to faith in Jesus Christ. When this was recorded, Paul was speaking about three essentials regarding Christianity, one of them being self-control. I can imagine that as Paul spoke, Felix was getting very nervous about the subject of righteousness. He probably realized that he was as far from being righteous as everyone else. Regarding self-control - well the Romans weren't known for keeping their physical appetites under control either. If Felix wasn't convicted by Paul's discussion on righteousness, then Paul's comments about the need for self-control would have produced pangs in his conscience. Putting them both together actually frightened Felix when he realized that he would be on the wrong side of the fence when Jesus came to judge the living and the dead. Unfortunately, Felix did little more that get scared. If we have the righteousness of Christ and have self-control, we should have no fear of the judgment to come. "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:5-8) This is one of my favorite passages because it shows the growth and maturity that Christians are striving for. As with other manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit, there is cooperation between the Holy Spirit and us in achieving the outward appearance of the fruit. This progression of qualities puts self-control very early in our spiritual maturity. The predecessor is knowledge. As soon as we learn that we should have self-control, we are obligated to exhibit it. Without self-control we will have difficulty in advancing in maturity. If someone is having great difficulties with godliness, brotherly kindness and love, there is a distinct possibility that they have failed to appropriate self-control. This is why many who have good Biblical knowledge are ineffective and unproductive in their Christian walk. "But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God- having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them." (2 Tim 3:1-5) The last days on earth before Jesus comes to finally do away with sin are described here. Sin will be rampant and in the middle of it all is the description that people will be without self-control. I think the reason more and more people have a lack of self-control is that they are lovers of pleasure rather than God. If we don't put the Lord first in our lives, we won't be able to have any self-control (we may have will power that appears to be self-control). When temptations come, we need to have a good motivation for self-control. There comes a point when we simply give up and yield to pleasure instead of what God wants. This is a key to the whole issue of good and evil. Who is first in our lives, God or self? If the answer is self, I'll bet there is also a major problem with self-control. A lack of self-control is also infectious. Note Paul's warning to Timothy. Paul knew that hanging around with the people he described would have a detrimental effect on Timothy. "Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined." (Titus 1:8) When describing the qualifications of elders, Paul included self-control and discipline. Both of the Greek words can be translated as self-controlled. The distinction between them has to do with self-control in mind on the one hand and in appetite on the other. This tells me that it takes a determination of the mind and a follow up in practice to be truly self-controlled. The devil made me do it! I can't help myself! It's your fault; you made me angry. I had a deprived childhood so I can't help it. The list of excuses goes on and on. In a sense, the devil plays a large part in a lack of self-control, but he can't be blamed. As mentioned above, self-control takes a determination of the mind and that is where the devil can wreak havoc by providing us with really bad doctrines, including the excuses above. However, as we add knowledge to our faith, we can't blame others for our lack of discipline. "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." (2 Tim 1:7) God gives us self-discipline. The case is closed on blaming our circumstances for a lack of self-control. The consequences of this lack can be far-reaching. "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control." (Prov 25:28) Pause for a moment or two and think about what happed to a city in the Middle East 1000 years BC when its walls were broken down. Enemies had very little trouble conquering it. Predatory animals were free to roam the streets at night. It wasn't long before the people either have to fix the walls or move to a safer location. After Babylon conquered Judah, they broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 70 years later, the people there were living in poverty and humiliation. A lack of self-control leaves us open to the blatant attacks of the enemy as well as the hidden attacks that we are unable to discern. We will soon become spiritual paupers. "A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control." (Prov 29:11) When a person can't keep his anger under control, the Bible calls him a fool. Anger can be controlled; otherwise it would not have been condemned so clearly. If a wise man can control his anger, he is very likely to be in control in other parts of his life as well. Eph 4:26, 27 says that a person who doesn't handle anger correctly will give the devil a foothold in his life. Wherever there is a lack of self-control, there is an opportunity for Satan to foul up our lives and tarnish our witness. There are a lot of verses that tell us we should be self-controlled, but nothing that I found directly tells us how to be self-controlled. I think that it is primarily because it is a fruit of the Spirit as explained in 2 Tim 1:7. God has given us a spirit of self-control. We already have it. However, as 2 Peter 1:5-8 explains, we have a part in manifesting what God has given us.
This is a never-ending loop of growth until the day we see Jesus face to face. We shouldn't expect to gain self-control over everything all at once. We need to humbly come before the Lord and ask Him to glorify Himself in us by conquering a lack of self-control once it has been identified. Generally, we should work on the one thing that the Lord has laid on our hearts. I often run into people who have a self-control problem with eating, smoking or some similar habit. They have been trying to beat the habit for years and have almost given up, claiming a total lack of self-control. When you talk with them, you will find that their biggest problem may be a lack of self-control in a far more important area of their life. Sometimes it is a lack of prayer, study of the Word, fellowship, service or worship. Sometimes it is a problem with anger, lust or other issues. Why do you suppose they are focusing on physical habits instead of the root problems or more serious problems? I think it is because Satan has a foothold and wants to keep them focused on an area where they will maintain a cycle of failure instead of a cycle of growth by gaining control in one area at a time, starting with the most important. Remember, God want us to grow. He doesn't expect us to become instantly mature. Let's ask the Holy Spirit where He sees a lack of self-control and use the gift that He has given us to live a life pleasing to the Lord. May you be blessed as you enjoy the fruit of the Spirit. In Jesus, Ray Ruppert If you would like to know how to surrender your life to Jesus, click on Eternal Net on the left.
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