Tangy and tart. Juicy and sweet. The lip-smacking goodness of fruit is delicious! There is such variety to this creativity of God, but our location limits what we are able to enjoy of it.
There is fruit, however, that Christ followers everywhere are to experience – the fruit of the Holy Spirit. This develops in us as we grow in the Lord – evidence of a life submitted to God through Jesus.
It might be hard to admit, but sometimes the character we exhibit does not represent a life rooted in Christ, ‘fertilized’ by the Spirit, and pruned by the Father. Are we making choices that grow our roots of faith deeper and stronger? This cannot be done in sporadic whims of emotion or for our own appearances. Rather, God gives us the opportunity to regularly tend our souls by reading his Word, praising him, talking with him, and meditating on his truths. This helps us grow in godliness as we live our lives to honor him.
Giving up our selfish ways is necessary to be a follower of Jesus (Mark 8:34). As the Holy Spirit works in us, he enables us to obey Jesus, which demonstrates our love for him (John 14:15). In contrast to the acts of the sinful nature which the apostle Paul discusses in Galatians 5:17-21, verses 22-23a read, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (ESV). Other evidence of the Spirit’s work in our lives is seen in purity and understanding (2 Corinthains 6:6), humility and forbearance (Ephesians 4:2), truth (Ephesians 5:9), forgiveness and peace (Colossians 3:13,15). As a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), we are transformed by the renewing of our mind with our eyes fixed on him.
This godly character is not produced by our own efforts of just trying to be moral. If we could become so by our own efforts, we wouldn’t need Jesus’ sacrifice, would we? Many become ‘good’ for their own benefit to attain their personal goals or look better to others. Their incentive is self-centered. Proverbs 16:2 says, “All the ways of a person are clean in his own sight, but the LORD examines the motives” (NASB). God wants our motive to come from honoring him and loving him.
Let’s be mindful of this great God we serve and what our response should be. Why not start by reading Romans 11:33 through 12:2? Consider it tilling the garden of your soul!
Find more encouragement on this topic in the post “All In!” from July 2023.