The Fruit of the Spirit: A Work of God, Not Man
“ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…” (Galatians 5:22)
The above scripture often prompts thoughts of:
- How do I increase my joy?
- I need to work on being more patient.
- Where is my peace?
- I need to have more self-control.
These thoughts shift our focus to our own efforts of working harder to produce these fruits. However, the Fruit of the Spirit were never something we were meant to produce ourselves.
Pastor and theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote,
“Fruit is always the miraculous, the created, it is never the result of willing, but always of growth. The fruit of the Spirit is a gift of God, and only He can produce it.”
We Are Called to Bear Fruit, Not Produce It
In Galatians 5:16 we are instructed to:
“Walk in the Spirit…”
The command is not to produce fruit but to walk in the Spirit.
Jesus illustrates this truth in John 15 through the Parable of the True Vine. In this parable:
- Jesus is the True Vine
- God the Father is the Vinedresser
- Believers are the branches
- The fruit represents the Fruit of the Spirit
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” (John 15:4)
A branch does not produce fruit unless it remains connected to the source, through the roots.
”I am the vine, you are the branches, He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit, for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)
“If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” (john 15:7-8)
We bear fruit as we depend on and stay connected spiritually to God and Jesus Christ who are sole providers of the things needed for fruit to be produced. We of our selves can do nothing.
What Is Needed for Fruit to Grow?
Scripture often uses the imagery of planting and growth to help us understand spiritual truth. When we think about the Fruit of the Spirit it is helpful to visualize a tree with branches full of fruit on them.
Let’s examine the components needed for a tree to bear fruit.
- Godly Seed = Word of God
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.” (Luke 8:11)
In the Parable of the Sower, we see that some seeds produce different results depending on the soil conditions. Some of the seeds fell on the wayside, some fell on stony places, some among thorns, and some fell on good ground:
3”Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 13:3-5)
- Godly Soil = Receptive Heart
A receptive heart is one that is open, teachable and willing to respond to God
But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Matthew 13:23)
“…those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit…” (Mark 4:20)
- Godly Roots = Foundation in Christ
Roots determine stability, growth, and fruit quality. Deep roots can withstand trials and storms that come along.
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:6-7)
- Godly Water = The Word
God’s Word renews, refreshes and sustains our spiritual life. It must continually flow to ensure on-going spiritual growth.
“… whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:14)
“For as the rain comes down…. So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I want it.” (Isaiah 55:10-11)
“…If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink…”(John 7:37)
Walking in the Spirit-Produces the Fruit In Us
We cannot produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control through our own efforts and willpower.
“With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)
Fruit is the result of being rooted in God the Father and Jesus Christ. The role we play is to walk in the Spirit and abide in Christ.
We walk in the Spirit by:
- Showing love to others
- Offering forgiveness to those who offend or wrong us
- Doing good works
- Showing gratitude to others
- Bringing our worries, doubts and fears to God
- Being slow to anger and quick to listen
- Not judging others
- Trusting God instead of learning on our own understanding
- Turning away from selfish and sinful desires
These actions do not produce the fruit, but they create the conditions and environment within our hearts and minds where God can produce it.
Purpose of the Fruit
Fruits do not grow to benefit the trees.
God created the fruits on trees to feed and nourish the birds, animals and humans that consume them. This is same way that the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives is meant to be given to others.
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control are meant to be shared with others.
Fruits also contain seeds. As we give our fruits to others God can use those “seeds” to work in their lives.
“By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit…” (John 15:8)
“Let your light so shine before men…” (Matthew 5:16)
’“Chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain…” (John 15:16)
Final Thoughts
As we “abide”, remain rooted in Christ, then God Himself produces the Fruit of God’s Spirit within us. Our role is not to strive in our strength, but to shift our focus to depend on God instead of our own efforts to produce the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives.
“Every good tree bears good fruit…For a tree is known by its fruit.” (Matthew 7:17-20)
Song: Abide in Me
Video: What Does It Mean to Abide In Christ
Lee
THANK YOU so much Cynthia!! This is EXCELLENT and VERY profound!!