The Fruit Of The Spirit

Have you ever met someone who said they were a Christian, but their life just didn’t show any evidence of it? I used to ask the young people in our youth meetings, “If you were on trial in a court of law for being a Christian, would there be any evidence to convict you?”
Lots of people say their Christians, but how do you know?
In our opening text, we read about certain fruits which will be in evidence in the life of the true Christian. Translated from the original text into more contemporary terms, they would be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
Let it be understood that the fruits enumerated here are not goals for us to strive toward — as though we can, of ourselves, produce these things — but rather, they are given as the evidence of a life that has been transformed by the Spirit of God. It is the Holy Spirit living in us that produces the fruit.
The Bible tells us that a tree is known by its fruit. A good tree does not produce bad fruit, and a bad fruit does not produce good fruit. “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” Matthew 7:20
The word for fruit in Galatians 5:22 is the Greek word karpos, which is where we get our phrase carpal tunnel. The carpal tunnel is the passageway in the wrist through which the median nerves and tendons of the hand travel. Likewise, karpos is the mechanism through which that which is in the heart of a tree comes forth and is seen. What is in the heart is made manifest in the fruit.
When we are in Christ, His Spirit dwells within us. And when the Spirit of God dwells within us, we will produce the fruit of the Spirit. Our salvation and subsequent good works are entirely the working of God in us.
The Holy Spirit of God produces His fruit in us, and our lives are a testament to His grace and transformative power. When we display love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control, we reflect the character of our Lord Jesus Christ and we glorify God.
True Christianity isn’t about the label we wear but about Who dwells within us and the life that we live — a life that bears the unmistakable fruit of the Spirit. “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain . . .” John 15:16