The Fruit of the Spirit vs. the nuts of the world

“But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5: 22-23)

The above scripture clearly highlights the attributes of a true born again Christian. Being born again by the spirit of God releases the Christ-like character and virtue which enables the Divine nature of God to be activated in us as a Christian. Before we became believers, we walked according to our sinful and selfish desires which longs to do evil at all times. This longing after sinful and selfish desire is called walking in the flesh. According to Galatians 5:19-21, the acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, outburst of anger (rage), selfish ambition, dissensions, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties and other sins like these. It continues with a warning that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the kingdom of God.

However, as Christians, we must live by the spirit and not gratify the desires of the sinful nature, for the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit. Therefore, as born again children of God, we ought to be led by the spirit of God in our daily lives. (Romans 8:14) “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” Being led by the spirit involves totally surrendering our will to the will of God, desiring to hear and obey God’s word, and being sensitive to discern between our natural feelings and God’s word. It is to rely solely on the Holy Spirit to guide us in all our dealings.

The true mark of a Christian is to live a Christ-like life. Jesus, teaching about the fruit in people’s lives says, “No good tree bears bad fruits, nor does a bad tree bear good fruits. Ye shall know them by their fruits (Matthew 7: 16 & 20).

Just as the trees are consistent in the kind of fruit they produce, every child of God also should exhibit fruits or character and virtue that are in accordance with the word of God. Indeed, the fruit that we produce as Christians should be a reflection of the Spirit of God, characterized by good morals and virtue since we are all made in His image and likeness. In order to be like Christ, we must resolve to change our character to be more like him. The only way to achieve this is by yielding our lives to the leading of the Holy Spirit and allowing Him to bear His fruit in us.

The fruit of the spirit is an integral part of a Christian’s life and is the outcome of one’s transformed life (repentance). John instructed his listeners in Mathew 3:8…”Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance.” In other words, John was asking them to prove by the way they live that they have repented of sin and turned to God, not only in words but also in deed. People must see the character that we exhibit as we continually walk with God.

Many people today are talking the talk but not walking the walk. The world wants to see the fruit before they can believe and be converted