Fruit of our Freedom
We celebrate the date our country was born and the freedoms that followed. We also celebrate being born again and the freedoms that follow. I am thankful that God graciously allowed me to be born in America and that He chose me as one of His own affording me freedom from the bondage of sin. I know I have not always walked in this spiritual freedom appropriately or produced the kind of fruit the Lord expects of me, but I desperately want to grow in Him.
Galatians 5:1;13;16;22-23 say, “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”
The fruit of the Spirit is not pick and choose, but a total lifestyle that includes each and every fruit. Years ago I did a study by Beth Moore. The following are nuggets of truth that I gleaned:
We must show love as Christ loves, allowing ourselves to be vulnerable with the risk of rejection.
We must choose joy that defies our circumstances and causes our heart to swell.
We must be an instrument of peace as we get up under God’s authority.
We must be inspired by mercy which brings about patience through the power of our Holy God.
We must be tender with kindness just as Christ administers tenderness toward us.
We must show goodness through an energized expression of benevolence.
We must show we believe in the reality of a sovereign God by our faithfulness to Him.
We must surrender our lives to real power with gentleness expressing calmness in the storms.
We must have self-control as a mighty warrior not out of control like a slave in chains.
Freedom! What a glorious word. I want genuine freedom that comes only through a life controlled by the Holy Spirit!
Tina Laubscher
No comments:
Post a Comment