Msg #1703 Nine Fruits of the Spirit

January 18, 2017, Pastor Rice, Uncategorized,

What The Bible Says

Good Samaritan’s Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (John 15:8). Much fruit is God’s goal for every believer. “The branch in me that beareth not fruit,” Jesus said, “The Father taketh away” (vrs.2). The wayside, stony, and thorny soil bear no fruit (Matt13). When a professed believer bears no fruit, recall what Jesus said, “By their fruits ye shall know them” (Matt 7). Eternity does not depend on our knowing, so at the funeral give them the benefit of the doubt. In the mean time plead and pray for loved ones as lost souls. The fruitless are taken away and the fruitful are purged to bring more fruit. God’s goal is much fruit. In Galatians the Apostle Paul gives eighteen WORKS of the flesh, and nine FRUITS of the Spirit. Consider these nine fruits, consider if they are for your consumption or for others to consume. The fruit “love” that comes from you is for others, but joy and peace are fruits that you enjoy for yourself. Your longsuffering, gentleness, and goodness, others enjoy, while your faith, meekness, and temperance are fruit feasts for everyone to enjoy. The first fruit mentioned, love, is first on purpose. The Apostle John, who mentions us to abiding in Christ to bear fruit, writes his first epistle as a dissertation on love. Love is the first fruit that needs to be tender and plentiful in our lives. John’s dissertation contends that love’s absence is God’s absence. The well purged vineyards around our church bear much fruit when branches are overflowing with sap. It is the presence of the sap that pushes out much fruit. No sap, no fruit! Abide in Christ, keep your mind stayed on him, and bear fruit.