Galati:22-23
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. "
LOVE, JOY, PEACE
Our Attitude or Inward State
LOVE: Love is a word that is hard to define. It is a word we grow up with, but we never really stop to think of all that it entails. One definition is that love is the high esteem which God has for His human children
There are many different kinds of love - natural love (children, parents, family); the love between husband and wife; love of friends,etc.; and then the love we have for God and our Savior, Jesus Christ.
There are many references to love in the Bible and it is certainly the most remarkable Book of love in the world. It records the greatest love story ever written of God's unconditional love for us that sent His Son to die on the cross (John 3:16; 1 John 4:10).
Love also expresses the essential nature of God. Love can be known only from the actions it prompts, as seen in God's love in the gift of His Son (1 John 4:9-10). Love found its perfect expression in the Lord Jesus. Christian love is the fruit of the Spirit of Jesus in the believer.
Love is like oil to the wheels of obedience. It enables us to walk in the way of God's commandments (Psalm 119:32). Without such love, we are as nothing (1 Corinthians 13:3). Such Spirit-inspired love never fails (1 Corinthians13:8) but always flourishes.
Do we need love? Yes! We all have a need to be nurtured and respected.
The need for love is created further by ill treatment, hostility, abuseand the hatred all around us.
Remember love is important to God:
1) God is love (1 John 4:8).
2) Love like this is everlasting ("The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love ... "Jeremiah 31:3), given freely (" ... I will love them freely ... " Hosea14:4; cf. Ephesians 2:4), sacrificial (John 3:16), and enduring to the end (John 13:1; Romans 8:38-39).
3) God loves (John 3:16). What greater love than this (Romans5:8)?
4) Jesus loves. He willingly gave Himself for us - He was not a martyr (Matthew 20:28). "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour" (Ephesians 5:2).
5) As Christians "the love of Christ constrains us" (2 Corinthians 5:14).
6) We are to walk in love (Ephesians 5:2).
7) We are to love one another (John 15:12). "And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you" (1 Thess.3:12).
8) Wives are to love their husbands and children (Titus 2:4).
9) The older women are told to teach the younger ones how to love (Titus 2:4).
10) We are to love our enemies (Luke 6:27; Romans 12:17-21).
To love is a decision. It is hard to love under difficult circumstances. There are times when we feel we need love and we don't feel like giving it. The love of Jesus is what enables us to give that love even when we don't feel like it. It is His love in us that helps us to reach out in love to others even when we don't want to.
Love is action - not just words. It is often much easier to say "I love you" than it is to put it into practice. Love has work to do and love does that work. Our actions back up our words and are proof of our love. Every family member provides you with an opportunity to love and do acts of love. Your work at home, at church, and at your job provides you with many opportunities to perform acts of love.
Love reaches beyond family and friends to the unlovely. It is easy to love family, friends and nice people. But we are told to love our enemies - those who are not so nice. God's love calls us to love those who are irritating, a bother to us, unthankful, or even evil. We are to love those who bring us sadness and heartache. That is hard. Jesus tells us in Luke 6:27, "But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you."
It is God Who provides the grace we need to extend our love to the unlovely. It is through His Spirit that we are able to love everyone,at any time and without conditions.
We need God to help us love. We rely on God for love. We naturally do not love those who do not love us, those who hurt us, bother us, and are different than us. It is God through His Holy Spirit Who gives us this love for others. God's love is there for us to give, and we who follow Christ need to remember that those who are the hardest to love are the ones who need it most. Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
Real love expects nothing in return. When we are loving toward someone, we expect that person to be loving to us. But when Jesus tells us to love our enemies and do good to them, He tells us to do good expecting nothing in return (Luke 6:35 - "But love your enemies, and do good and lend, hoping for nothing again ... "). We need to love without any thought of personal reward. This is not natural. This kind of love can only come from God. This is the kind of love God offers us in Jesus (Romans 5:8-10).
Love is not self-seeking. Its only intent is to love as Jesus loved, praying for others to respond to God's message of love through us.
The only way we can walk in God's love is to look to Him to fill us with that special kind of love - that love that is a decision to love -that love that takes action - that love that extends itself to the unlovely. You and I need God to help us love.---
JOY: The joy which the people of God should have is holy and pure. It is real! It is distinct from mere happiness. Happiness is often temporal and dependent upon current circumstances. Joy, however, rises above circumstances and focuses on the very character of God. It looks beyond the present to our future salvation (Romans 5:2; 8:18). Joy like this is possible, even in the midst of sorrow (2 Corinthians 6:10; 7:4).
The need for this kind of joy springs from sorrow, tribulation, tragedy, affliction and trials. None of us is exempt from experiencing heartache and disappointment, etc., BUT through Christ we can have 'joy unspeakable and full of glory" (1 Peter 1:8).
Joy was important to Jesus.
1. Jesus wanted His disciples (and wants us) to know the joy of fellowship with Him, joy to the fullest (John l5:11)!
2. Jesus looked beyond His suffering to the joy that was before Him (Hebrews 12:1-2).
Joy that is the "fruit of the Spirit" is permanent (John 16:22). It is not dependent upon circumstances and things. The one thing that can rob us of experiencing the joy God provides is our failure to walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5: 16). The Holy Spirit causes this fruit to grow in our lives as we abide in Christ.
Joy is always available (Philippppian 1:4; 4:4). What ever the circumstances of our lives, we have ready access to the Source of true joy anytime we turn to Him.
Real joy is unspeakable (1 Peter 1:8). True spiritual joy is not mere happiness. If everything is going well, we are "happy." If we get what we want, we are "happy." Happiness can be a false joy. God's joy is a gift of grace to us as we encounter hardships, persecution and troubles in this life. It is supernatural and goes beyond all conditions of life.
* This joy is not dependent on circumstances but on spiritual realities:
His unconditional love for us and His victory over sin and darkness.
* This joy is not based on our efforts but, rather, on the truth of our relationship with God through His Son, the Lord Jesus.
* This joy is not merely an emotion, but the result of choosing to look beyond the present circumstance to what is true about our life in Christ.
The source of real joy is:
* God Himself. God - the only source of joy - wants to give you His JOY·
* Salvation is a great reason for joy.
* God's promises are a cause for joy. Simply by opening His Word, and reading and believing His promises, we will find a great source of joy.
* Our future - our blessed Hope - brings us joy.
PEACE: Peace refers to the inner tranquility and poise of the Christian whose trust is in God through Christ. It is both peace with God and the peace of God.
The Apostle Paul tells us that such peace and spiritual blessedness is a direct result of faith in Christ (Romans 5:1). Peace is having all our spiritual bones set. It gives calmness through the doubts, fears, and alarms in our lives. It is a restful assurance that God is in control. Peace is not the absence of problems, frustrations, or things going wrong but, rather, it is a peace that comes only from God that endures regardless of the circumstances.
Do we need peace? The answer is an emphatic yes! The need comes daily as we face events in our life that bring panic, fear, terror, dread and anxiety. Just reading the daily newspaper or listening to the news causes us concern and shows us the need for peace in our lives.
Truth about peace comes only from God. Without Him there is no peace.
* It has nothing to do with our circumstances but everything to do with knowing we have a right relationship with God.
* It has nothing to do with daily challenges or crises but everything to do with knowing that our times are in God's hands.
* It has nothing to do with the present conditions of our life but everything to do with knowing that God is all-sufficient.
* It is an inward serenity of the soul that indicates a life at rest as we place our complete confidence in God moment by moment.
* It is knowing God is there! (See Psalm 139:7-12.)
* The key to peace is not the absence of problems and conflicts but the presence of God. To enjoy peace we have to actively trust Him. Peace also requires a decision.
* When we walk and are led by the Spirit, our life is characterized not by fretting, panic and anxiety but, rather, by the peace that comes from trusting God.
* Philippians 4:7: "And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
* When the circumstances of life tempt us to panic, or feel terrified, we. can choose either to give in to those feelings or to trust in God.
* Choosing to trust God causes us to experience His peace even in the midst of the uproar.
God's peace comes to us from four sources.
1) God, the Father. Isaiah 26:3 says, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee." We cannot avoid strife, conflict and/or problems, but we can know perfect peace in the midst of this as we focus on God rather than on our difficulties.
2) God, the Son. The prophet Isaiah tells us one of His names is the "Prince of Peace" (Isa. 9:6). That names reflects His mission. Jesus' death on Calvary gave us the gift of peace with God that comes only with forgiveness of our sins (Romans 5:1). Our personal peace comes through the work of God's Son on the Cross.
3) God, the Spirit. He is our personal Helper, Teacher and Comforter (John 14:26). The instruction, guidance and comfort we receive from Him are indeed gifts of peace.
4) God's Word. The Word helps us know God by revealing Himself, His ways and His purposes. The Psalmist declares in Psalm 119:165, "Great peace have they which love Thy law, and nothing shall offend them. "When we embrace God's standards for living, we experience the peace which comes from maintaining a right relationship with God.
We choose to apply peace in times of crisis. The choice is ours. Do we panic? We should pray first, pray often and pray continually. We can place our fears and doubts into His hands. When we pause to acknowledge God, His presence, His power and His love, He will make our paths straight. Then once we've turned to Him, we will again be in touch with His peace that passes all understanding.
Jesus is our example and displayed these attitudes in the Garden of Gethsemane. This was a dark night in human history as the sinless Son of God faced death for your sins and mine in order to accomplish our salvation.
Throughout His three years of ministry, Jesus often referred to God's plan for His death. As He prepared for the Passover (Matthew 26) He said, "My time is at hand." It was now time for Him to die and to fulfill the Father's plan.
Jesus willingly obeyed. Jesus, acting in love, gave Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. He knew He would be betrayed by His own disciples. He would be misunderstood by His family and friends. He would be rejected by mankind. He knew there would be verbal and physical abuse. He knew there would be an unjust sentence. And, worst of all, He knew there would be momentary separation from God, His heavenly Father. In other words, from the human perspective, Jesus was losing all He had. Yet, in love, He willingly went through with it all- "He first loved us."
Facing the crisis of the cross, Jesus went to Gethsemane to pray. He prayed fervently - "His sweat became like drops of blood" (Luke 22:44).On the physical level Jesus wanted it to pass - He did not desire to taste death and carry the burden of our sins to the cross. Yet He prayed, "Not as I will, but as Thou wilt." With this submission to God's will, we see Jesus emerge triumphant from His time in the Garden.
Love is the sacrifice of self. Jesus was determined to do the Father's will. Jesus' love looked to the Father and to us and the Spirit enabled Him to submit to death on the cross (Hebrews 9:14; Ephesians 5:2). The flesh wanted the cup to pass but love looked to God the Father and said, "Thy will be done."
Jesus experienced joy. Hebrews 12:2 says, "For the joy that was set before Him .... " What was that joy? It was the joy of fulfilling the will of the Father (Psalm 40:8; Philippppian 2:8; Hebrews 10:7).
He got up from His agonizing time of prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane with peace, knowing that His times were in God's hands, saying, "Let us be going" (Matthew 26:46). He was now rid of His fears, and free from those agonies and dreadful apprehensions of the events to come. He signifies His willingness to be apprehended, and to suffer and die bearing the sins of mankind.
It is good to note that the circumstances did not change! After agonizing prayer, Jesus was still going to be crucified; He was going to die but He went sustained by God's love, joy and peace.
It was not easy for Jesus.
* He knew what suffering He was facing.
* He prayed, not once, but three times.
* When our Savior finally rose to go forward, He did so with love,joy and peace saying "Let us be going."
* He went to the cross by His own choice; He did it willingly. "He could have called ten thousand angels, but He died alone for you and me."
What a challenge! Do those around us see love, joy and peace? What do our attitudes show to the Christian community? To the non-Christian community? What a difference we could make in this world if in our daily lives these three graces were exemplified!
Also Read
WHERE ARE YOU LIVING! by Evangelist S. Lee Homoki
(A 10 Minute Video)
How God Saves
Men
Believing
Christ DIED, that’s HISTORY.
Believing
Christ DIED for YOU SINS and Rose again that’s SALVATION.
Read
Romans 1:16, Romans 10:9-10 and 1. Corinthians 15:1-4
(A 10 Minute Video)
Posted By Cecil and Connie Spivey
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