What good is a tree with out fruit? if i claimed to be an apple tree, what would i have to do in order to prove it? Produce APPLES of coarse! What if while claiming to be an apple tree, i produced ORANGES? That would not only prove i am NOT what i claim, but in fact, i am a totally different kind of tree! You see, our mouths can say what ever they wish, but our fruit will either prove or disprove our claims. If we claim to love God but we are producing fruit of rebellion and disobedience, the Lord says, we are lying. If we have truly been BORN of GOD, the we should bear his resemblance. Imagine seeing a child who looks nothing like either his mother or father… the question then becomes… where did it get it looks from? We expect to find traces of the parents in the appearance of the child. It should be the same way with us as Gods spiritual children. When people look at us, we should remind them of our Father in Heaven. We should bare not just his name, but His character and behavior. If we don’t, we are “taking His name in vein”.
Let’s look at the fruit of the Spirit we should experience in our hearts, minds and behaviors if we are truly sons and daughter of God.
WEEK 16
PURPLE BOOK 4.2
FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
READ JOHN 15:1-8
Fruitfulness is an important theme in the Bible. The picture of how a grapevine is maintained is at the heart of Christ’s teaching on our spiritual lives. These vines were not left on the ground to be trampled and to grow wild. A fruitful vine was lifted off the ground to be constantly cared for by an attentive gardener. It would be absurd to think of a branch growing that was separate from the vine or a vine being fruitful and beautiful without constant help from the gardener. how can we bring glory to the father? Vs. 8: _______________________________________________________________ what happens to the branches that do not bear fruit? Vs. 2: _______________________________________________________________ what happens to the branches that bear fruit? Vs. 2: _______________________________________________________________ why does the father prune the branches? Vs. 2 _______________________________________________________________ can we bear fruit by ourselves? Vs. 4 _______________________________________________________________ what must we do to bear spiritual fruit? Vs. 4-5 _______________________________________________________________ what does it mean to “remain in the vine”? vs. 4-7 _______________________________________________________________
Jesus said if we remain in Him we will bear fruit, but what does this mean? Not long after Jesus resurrection the apostle Paul described what kind of fruit is produced by a spirit led life. List the fruit of the spirit: _______________________________________________________________
God’s Holy Spirit no longer dwells in buildings of brick and stone; He dwells in people. WE are God’s temple, and we show that we are His temple when we practice the fruit of the spirit. The “you” in 1 Cor. 3:16 is plural. Mabey that’s because it’s hard to practice virtues like love, peace, patience and kindness on our own.
Do you see evidence of the fruit of the spirit in your life? Which ones do you have? Which ones do you need to develop?
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