“The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, Faith meekness temperance against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23).
The Fruit of the Spirit describes the attributes of Christ’s Righteous Character, which God expects us to also possess. Because we inherited hearts filled with the desire to sin, we cannot change ourselves without the power of the Holy Spirit.
“…I want you to be wise in doing right and to stay innocent of any wrong.” (Romans 16:19, NLT).
“In…Romans, the apostle Paul speaks about two antagonistic forces trying to shape our lives.”
“On the one hand, the surrounding world, with its various influences, tries to force us daily into its own mold, effecting a conformation in us that works from the outside in.”
Satan’s goal is to manipulate the righteous into sinning against God by any means necessary.
Everyday, we face Satan’s customized temptations that strongly appeal to the desires of our hearts. And he uses people to provoke our emotions, so we react with the bitter fruit of words that do not represent the Righteousness of Christ.
“To counteract this impact, the Holy Spirit is able to transform us inside out in a manner similar to the way a caterpillar metamorphoses into a beautiful butterfly.”
But we must cooperate with the Holy Spirit for our character to be transformed into the likeness of Christ’s Righteous Character. Are we willing to honor and revere God with daily surrender and faithful obedience?
“Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ” (Matthew 22:37).
Love is the catalyst that motivates us to live as Christ did, always seeking the will of God, His Father.
Without loving God more than ourselves, we will never see our need to acquiesce to His Sovereign Authority by living a life of self-denial and obedience.
“And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:24).
Human Effort: Our lifestyle must be one of daily worship, faithful obedience, and self-control. We choose to let go of worldly affections, pursuits, habits, and behaviors because we love God, and desire to follow Jesus.
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33).
We were never created to navigate through the Christian Journey using only human effort. Throughout the Bible, Jesus promises to help us to overcome every hardship and temptation:
“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13, NIV).
From striving to live righteously, we can depend on Christ to send the Spiritual Reinforcements of Divine Strength, the Wisdom to discern covert deception, and the Power to strengthen our faith.
God expects us to live courageously and with a mindset of total dependency on God. It is with holy boldness that we consistently pray in faith, “Lord, I need Your help to overcome my self-reliancee.”
“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)
In His earthly life, Christ continually separated Himself from others to pray and ask God, the Father for strength and guidance.
Whether we are at work, driving, or relaxing, we can pray silently, or audibly at any time of the day or night. Staying connected to Christ allows us to perceive life through spiritual eyes, and to receive the strength to obey God.
With humility, we acknowledge that we cannot fight Satan without Divine help. We must live as Prayer Warriors!
“No weapon formed against me will prosper…” (Isaiah 54:17).
Forming the habit of much prayer invites Christ, our Mighty Warrior to send angels to fight Satan’s unseen spiritual warfare, and to protect us from physical harm.
Unlike unbelievers who are constantly deceived, the believer who consistently prays will never fall victim to scams of covert deception.
Prayer allows us to stay connected to Jesus’ Divine Power. Prayer invites the Holy Spirit to keep us on the Path of Righteousness. Only Divinity can empower us to live as victorious overcomers!
A life of surrender and self-denial is the only way for us to be empowered by the Holy Spirit who keeps us on the Path of Righteousness.
God requires us to put Him first. Love for God produces loyalty and the desire to obey Him instead of pursuing our desires.
It is an issue of the heart when we find it difficult to obey God. Self-Reliance is the result of us redirecting our love and faith from God to ourselves.
To overcome self-reliance, from the moment we awaken, we make a covenant vow to put our faith and trust in God by including God in every decision and challenge.
From praying for His will to be done, we are rewarded with the spiritual wisdom and strength to live a sacrificial life dedicated to God. Pray, wait, and obey!
The willingness to surrender with faithful obedience not only keeps us in right standing with God, but we are also rewarded with the spiritual blessings of peace, joy, and happiness.
To emulate Christ, we must know who He is.
Studying the Life of Christ in the Four Gospels [Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John] is a life-changing experience: “Looking unto Jesus we obtain brighter and more distinct views of God, and by beholding we become changed.”
“Goodness, love for our fellow men, becomes our natural instinct. We develop a character which is the counterpart of the Divine Character. Growing into His likeness, we enlarge our capacity for knowing God.”
“But for that process to happen, we need to consecrate ourselves to God and ask Him to continue the good work that He has started in us (Philippians 1:6).”
“[Every day] we have to make the conscious choice, moment by moment, to walk in the Spirit.”
Powerful Message of Truth. It was my mother who told me that I would never grow spiritually, or have the desire to follow Christ until I began studying the Scriptures to learn His Loving Character.
“We love Him because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19). The Scriptures are God’s Spoken Words revealing His Loving Character.
From our willingness to receive Spiritual Nourishment, the Holy Spirit deepens our understanding of our Heavenly Father’s Love.
Under the guidance and teaching of the Holy Spirit, search the Scriptures daily to learn who God says He is: “I Am Who I Am.”
“In the beginning God created…” Studying the Book of Genesis gives us insight into Jesus’ history of intervening in the lives of the righteous to give them victory.
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.'” (Matthew 28:18).
From the Holy Writ, we learn that Jesus, God, the Son is Elohim Shomri, God, Our Protector who dispatches angelic protection to shield us from the evil one’s diabolical schemes.
As we come into the knowledge of the Truth, we no longer perceive God’s Commandments and Righteous Precepts as being restrictive.
Through the Holy Spirit, we receive the spiritual wisdom to understand that God’s Directives were given to shield us from evil, and to guide our steps.
We require Biblical knowledge for the Holy Spirit to speak to us when temptation threatens to detour us from the Narrow Path of Righteousness.
We strive to honor God with love and loyalty because every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God empowers us in our spiritual journey from Earth to Heaven.
Prayer and Bible Study are Faith-builders!
The Scriptures give us knowledge of Christ’s Righteousness and instruct us on how to live a sacrificial life of worship and obedience.
In the strength of Jesus Christ, while we are overcoming the trials and temptations in our earthly journey, the Holy Spirit is performing the daily transformation of our character into the likeness of our Lord and Savior’s Righteousness.
Preparing for Eternity One Day At a Time in the Strength of Our Triumphant King, Jesus Christ. Peace and Blessings!
“Now to Him who is able to keep you from falling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be Glory and Majesty, Dominion and Power, Both now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 1:24-25).
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