Tag Archives: Fruit of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit

Posted on by brokenredeemed

This post has been two weeks in the making. I really wanted to come on here and talk about the Holy Spirit; but honestly, I feel inadequate for the task. There are people much more educated than myself that can more accurately describe Who the Holy Spirit is. Yet, perhaps that’s why I feel the need to write it, to show that it’s the Holy Spirit that gives us all we need to do things we feel ill-equipped for. What I can tell you is that He’s a part of the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. He’s co-equal, co-existant, co-eternal with the Father and Son.

We see Him at the beginning hovering over the face of the deep (Genesis 1:1-2), we see Him throughout the Old Testament when men were temporarily filled with the Spirit to complete a particular task(s). We see Him in the New Testament in John the Baptist, Elizabeth, and Mary, as they prepare for the birth of Jesus, the Messiah (Luke 1). We see Him when Jesus is baptized in Luke 3. Jesus talks about Him, in John 14-16, describing Him as the Comforter, Helper, Teacher, and Spirit of Truth. Yet, even after all the Word says about the Holy Spirit–and my list is not all-inclusive–I can’t help but feel like we sometimes miss Who is is and what He’s capable of.

After the resurrection, Jesus commanded the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. “And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, ‘you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now’” (Acts 1:4-5). I’m sure most of you are familiar with what happened on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2), but all the apostles and teachers found in the the book of Acts and all the epistles, written by the missionary, Paul, were written through the power of the Holy Spirit. Even the Bible itself, was written by men through the Holy Spirit!

Two Wednesday’s ago, as I was getting ready for bed 2 Peter 1:3, popped into my head…

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

2 Peter 1:3-4

His divine power. What divine power? Well, let’s see…could it be the very same power that raised Christ from the dead (Romans 8:9-11)?! When we accept Jesus Christ as Lord of our life, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us, and gives us power to do much more than just get from one day to the next (2 Corinthians 6:16). The Holy Spirit gives us everything we need “pertaining to life and godliness” [emphasis added]!

What does that mean? Godliness. When we talk about godliness we’re talking about being conformed to His will and likeness. Basically, the more time we spend with God in prayer, in the Word, in community with other believers, the more we begin to think and act like Him. This isn’t through our own doing, but the work of the Holy Spirit at work within us. He transforms our thinking, prompts us to act or speak, gives us boldness, and even the words to speak when we don’t have any clue what we’re doing.

How do we know the Holy Spirit lives in us? As stated previously, when we accept Christ, the Word says He comes to dwell in us, and the more we walk with God, study His Word, and allow Him to work in our hearts, we begin to see evidence of Him in our life, known as the Fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control begin to emerge in our lives (Galatians 5:22-25). That’s not to say that we’ll be perfect from the get go, but that it will become more and more evident over time, whom we serve and Who is at work in us. We cannot be in true relationship with God and not be transformed; this process is called sanctification.

Besides Fruit of the Spirit there are also gifts of the Spirit. The Bible lists a bunch of them in 1 Corinthians 12, but the most important thing to remember about this is that there there are many different gifts given to be used in service to the Lord, and all are indispensable. Also, this list in 1 Corinthians is not all encompassing, for example, we see in the Old Testament that the Spirit was poured out on the artisans who designed the articles to be used for worship in the tabernacle (Exodus 35:30-35). There are even gifts and talents given to us today to be used in the service of the King, that weren’t in existence in biblical times, due to technological advances. But they all have one Source!

So, all that to say, if you’ve accepted Jesus as Lord of your life and are committed to loving and living for Him, the Holy Spirit is at work within you! And that means you have real power within you to say and do some mighty things for the Kingdom! So, why are we so timid? Why do we hold back?

Perhaps, this is a question for myself? I know I hardly ever feel up for the task at hand, just like this post…yet, the Holy Spirit works, even now, though obedience. I was reminded, again, in today’s (Sunday) message that it’s about our obedience to answer the call rather than our skill or abilities. For He equips us with everything we need pertaining to life and godliness, through the Holy Spirit at work within us. And that is a mighty thing indeed!

Let it Go

Posted on by brokenredeemed

Hey, ladies and gents! I know it’s been quite a while since I’ve written. 2020 was a crazy year and I’ve been stuck at home with two kiddos under 3, with really hardly any time for myself, or really to just think.

When Ms. E turned one in September, the hubby and I were just beginning to have the “are we gonna try for a third?” talk. Honestly, I was a little freaked out by the prospect. I had a mini panic attack in the shower just thinking about it, one night; but then God reminded me that He wouldn’t give me more than I could handle. I just had to trust and rely on Him. Isn’t that where He always wants us? In a place of full surrender and dependency on Him.

As it turned out, we’re expecting again, and due June 2021. I guess that moment in the shower was God’s way of giving me a heads up, lol.

With each pregnancy, I’m reminded how the changes in my body and the development of the baby in my womb are beyond my control. I can only trust God’s plan and walk in faith. But it’s not always easy. Every doctor’s visit I can’t help but hold my breath in anticipation of hearing that little “whoosh whoosh” of baby’s heartbeat.

This weekend, as I drove to the grocery store, alone (whew!), I began praying over the state of our country. To be honest, it gives me some anxiety. And I was reminded, yet again, that my faith is not in our leaders, our constitution, or even in our country (you may want to take a look at my last post for more on this), but in Jesus Christ, alone. No matter what, we must keep our eyes focused on Him. We must teach our children to love Him, follow Him, and share Him within our spheres of influence. Because that’s really all we CAN do. Just like a pregnancy, there are really so many things beyond our control, and the only thing we can do about such things, is pray Gods will, and let it go.

Therefore, if you’re worried about something–or someone–we cannot control or influence (which covers a pretty wide spectrum), PRAY and LET. IT. GO. Focus on what we can control…our tongue, our actions, the things we entertain in our minds, the information we consume. Anger, bitterness, fear, anxiety, divisiveness, have no place in a believer’s heart, even if others allow these things to consume them. We’re supposed to be different. We’re supposed to be imitators of Christ, led and empowered by the Holy Spirit!

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. ~ Galatians 5:16-17, ESV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. ~ Galatians 5:22-26, ESV

So, again, I say pray and let it go. Take care and God bless.

The Lamp of the Body

Posted on by brokenredeemed

The eye is the light of the body. If your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. If your eye is bad, your whole body will be dark. If the light in you is dark, how dark it will be! ~ Matthew 6:22-23, NLV

 

When I was little there was a song that we used to sing that quoted the verse above. It went as follows…

Be careful little eyes what you see/There’s a lot of bad things on your TV/Be careful little ears what you hear/Turn the channel if you think the Devil is near

For the eye is the lamp of the body/In Matthew 6:22, we’re told/And if the eyes are good/Your whole body will be full of light

Years later I still recall those verses of truth. The song, so simple; yet, it taught us, even as children, to guard our hearts & minds from things we shouldn’t be watching or listening to. I think that often, as adults, we think we can watch or listen to whatever we want because we’re adults, mature, or because we have the “freedom” to do so. However, the Bible teaches us otherwise.

In Galatians 5:13a Paul reminds us that we “were chosen to be free. Be careful that you do not please your old selves by sinning because you are free.” Peter also reminds us, in 1 Peter 2:16 (NLT) “For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.”

And let’s not forget that Philippians 4:8 tells us to “keep your minds thinking about whatever is true, whatever is respected, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever can be loved, and whatever is well thought of. If there is anything good and worth giving thanks for, think about these things.”

These verses make me very particular about what I watch, read, or listen to, and they should! Have you ever heard of that saying, “garbage in, garbage out”? The Bible also calls it reaping what you sow (Galatians 6:7-8). When we fill up on impure garbage, it infiltrates every area of our lives: our relationship with Christ, our marriage, and our relationship with our children, neighbors, and friends. Luke 6:45 (NIV) says that “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart,” and “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Which begs the questions: what are you filling up on? What’s coming out of your mouth? And how are you treating the people around you?

“But everybody’s watching/reading/listening to it! I don’t want to be left out!” you may be thinking.

However, the Bible calls us to be holy and set apart for His good works (2 Timothy 2:21). It doesn’t call us to be like everybody else or to fit in with everybody else. In 1 Peter 2:9, in fact, we’re called a chosen people, royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession, some versions even call us a peculiar people. (We’re supposed to be weird!) 😀

Lastly, let’s nail our final excuse to the cross…”but that’s so hard!!” The Word never tells us to do anything on our own. We’re to be led and empowered by the Spirit to live according to His plan and purpose for us. And we’re not talking about some meek powerless god we serve here, we’re talking about the Creator of the universe, the same Spirit of God which raised Christ from the dead, for which nothing is impossible!

I say this to you: Let the Holy Spirit lead you in each step. Then you will not please your sinful old selves.  The things our old selves want to do are against what the Holy Spirit wants. The Holy Spirit does not agree with what our sinful old selves want. These two are against each other. So you cannot do what you want to do.  If you let the Holy Spirit lead you, the Law no longer has power over you.  The things your sinful old self wants to do are: sex sins, sinful desires, wild living,  worshiping false gods, witchcraft, hating, fighting, being jealous, being angry, arguing, dividing into little groups and thinking the other groups are wrong, false teaching,  wanting something someone else has, killing other people, using strong drink, wild parties, and all things like these. I told you before and I am telling you again that those who do these things will have no place in the holy nation of God.  But the fruit that comes from having the Holy Spirit in our lives is: love, joy, peace, not giving up, being kind, being good, having faith,  being gentle, and being the boss over our own desires. The Law is not against these things.  Those of us who belong to Christ have nailed our sinful old selves on His cross. Our sinful desires are now dead. ~ Galatians 6:16-24, NLV

“So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls” (James 1:21, NLT)!