The Essential Christian Life Requires the Fruit of the Spirit!

We are in the midst of an article series on the Fruit of the Spirit, click on this Bible study series for more detailed and devotional thoughts on each of the Fruits.
www.intothyword.org and Bible studies on the Fruits are here:

http://www.discipleshiptools.org/pages.asp?pageid=60402&contentonly=true

Are you willing to learn more about the Holy Spirit, God’s active love and work within and through us so we bear and convey His Fruit?

Our Fruit shows us that the Christian life comes with a responsibility to take the knowledge we have gleaned from His Word, our faith, discipleship, prayer, and devotional life, and then applying it while His love is working in and through us! Then, we are to ask, "How then do I live? What can I do now, today, or this week to implement the instructions given to me with my relationship to Christ, to others, and to myself?” No matter where we are or what circumstances besiege us, scare us or excite us, from the drudgeries of life, to daunting places, and/or to the opportunities at hand, His Fruit must direct us and lead the way. His Way paves the path; His Fruit lights our way giving us comfort, knowledge, hope, and life. Consider this: as Christians, our primary job is faith, the atonement of Christ exhibited in us! This is what we have in Christ: Love—His loving devotion to us, and our response of obedience to His love. We do this out of love from His love, not out of legalism or mere obligation, but rather from gratitude and devotion.

This means that we are partakers of the divine nature. We partake in Christ so we can live out our lives in Christ. We participate as sons, (and) children of God as we are conformed to the likeness of Christ. We are not made divine through either our efforts or His, or through purification, and we are not little gods. We have the image of God in us and we have the Holy Spirit, the Divine Nature living in us, guiding, leading, motivating, and fulfilling us. He gives us His actual presence as well as His precious promises. Knowing the promises of God will help us escape the evils of the world. This is a tremendous way to take hold of our trust in Him and grow our faith through our obedience. A Bible Promise book is a necessity (Gen. 3:5; John 1:12; Rom. 8:9-21, 29; 2 Pet. 1:9, 11).

The Fruit of the Spirit is also a description of who we are to be in our entirety. This is the basic, foundational character upon which the other characters rest. God's Spirit empowering and working in us summarizes the essence of character in general as applied to our entire lives as Christians. It encapsulates the work of God in us. This is what builds a life emulating God and building a church upon Him where people will want to go. We all have the ability to be good or be bad, to take what Christ has given us and use it, or ignore or even perverse it. This not just about our reputation and ambassadorship in Christ; it is how we are to serve and be if Christ has a hold on us and our church (2 Cor. 5:20)!

Is this Fruit working in me?
How do I now exhibit this Fruit in my daily life?
How can I use this Fruit to develop a better willingness to respond to others—especially to the ones I love—with a since of awe and fear of God, and respect for people?
What blocks this Fruit from working and being exhibited in me?
How can I make this Fruit function better, stronger, and faster, even in times of uncertainly and stress?
Think through the steps you would take to put this Fruit into action in a specific instance, or, to improve it. Consider the examples from the passages in God's Word.

And do not forget to be in prayer during all of this. Have someone you trust hold you accountable or get in a small group to learn and practice.

So, how is your “Fertility?”