Finding Fruit

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Gal. 5:22) 

It’s all spelled out right there in Paul’s book to the church in Galatia. The Big Nine. Nine characteristics that we can expect to find in the heart filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. 

The problem had been that I’d been missing one of them: forbearance. Translated as acceptance or tolerance. I’d been measuring high on the “critical” fruit lately. And that’s not one of the Spirit’s fruits. (So is it one of the other guy’s? Or is it just an absence of God’s?) 

Does that mean the Spirit has left me, if I’m missing one of His fruits? Doubtful. But it probably does mean that I’m not allowing Him to be fully at work in my life. Or even more likely, I’m not pouring myself out as an offering in love and service in the world around me in every moment, in every way. 

The more I realized that this was a stumbling block in my life, something that was really keeping me from being the person that God wanted me to be, the more I started examining my life to try to figure out what was missing. 

To many people who know me, I would appear to be the Perfect Christian. And in most areas of my life, God was at the center and my first love. But there was this nagging ache in my heart to be truly all God wanted me to be. The whole nine yards. 

So I started digging through the Scripture, looking up references to the Holy Spirit because I know He’s the key to all of this. And I finally found this: 

“Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:1-5) 

Bingo! This was it. This hit the nail on the head. 

There are actually four specific pieces of instructions here. 

1. “Rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.” I don’t think Peter’s presuming to tell us to do the work in our hearts that only the Spirit can do. But he’s telling us to cut it out. Stop participating in the ugly talk that goes on behind closed doors. Don’t get on the phone or our e-mails or Facebook and spread the gossip and rumors and rampant criticism that consume so much of our time and tie up our thoughts. Just stop it. 

2. “Crave pure spiritual milk...now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.” Look for the best stuff. Once you know what the good food tastes like, don’t settle for less. Seek it out. Develop an appetite for nourishment and create a steady diet. Find sources for spiritual food in church worship services, Sunday school classes, and Bible studies. 

3. “As you come to…the living Stone…you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house.” Recognize your part in the Body of Christ. You are not just a spectator in the church. You and your fellow believers are the Church. Act like it. Join up. Link up. Bond. Invest yourself. Find your place of service and get to work. 

4. “…offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” On our own, none of this would mean anything in our relationship to God. But through Jesus Christ, our sacrifices are acceptable. What we do in Jesus’ name is of eternal value because it matters to God. If He calls us to the work and empowers us to do it, then whatever we give to that ministry matters—not because of whatever rewards we may see, but because it is acceptable to God. 

As these truths have become realities in my heart and my daily life, I’m finding the Holy Spirit reaching in to work in all areas of my life again. Specifically, as I have put the first instruction into practice and shut down some of the negative discussions I’d been having, I find my “forbearance” growing. Funny what obedience can do for a person. 

“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.” (Romans 15:13)