3rd Devotional:
Galatians 5: 16- 26 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not
gratify the desires of
the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the
Spirit, and the Spirit
what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each
other, so that you do
not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not
under law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity
and
debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of
rage, selfish
ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the
like. I warn you, as
I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom
of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is
no law. Those
who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its
passions and
desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the
Spirit. Let us not
become conceited, provoking and envying each other. These are the Fruits of the Spirits. What is a Fruit? A Fruit is
something that
carries a seed and springs forth a tree. We get the Fruits by asking for
forgiveness every
time we sin. If we don't ask for forgiveness we begin to bear the things
opposite the Fruits
of the Spirit. Then we have fits of rage and we do the snowball effect
on down the list of
bad things. So as we become mature in Jesus, we begin to grow in Christ.
Then we pass
them on to others through witnessing, then that person bears the Fruits
and plants them in
others. 2 Corinthians 4: 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on
what is unseen. For
what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. The things seen are short lived like the things opposite the Fruits of
the Spirit.
But, the things unseen, like God, last forever and are great, like the
Fruits of the Spirit. One more thing, we all have friends who are not Christians and they
have a hard
time believing what the Bible says. Well, I will be the first to say the
Bible is FACT. It is
God's true word, and has never been rewritten, besides being translated
but what it says
has not been changed. Man-made religions have rewritten their books many
times,
because they are not perfect like the Bible. The Bible is the manual for
life, just look in it
when you have a problem and you will find and answer. Also, many people
say the Bible
contradicts itself. Well, in the Old Testament there is 300 references
to Jesus' coming.
The Old Testament was also written over 1,500 years, so these could not
have been lucky
guesses. Finally, you have to trust in the Lord. How do we know the sun is going
to rise
tomorrow? Well, in our lifetimes we have seen it rise many times and we
know it is
going to rise tomorrow. So we learn, in the same way, through
experiences that God will
help us and answer our prayers. Last thing, many people have study about Jesus and his life. As a
result, we have
more historical evidence proving his resurrection than we have of the
fact that Napoleon
was defeated at Waterloo. Read: Luke 8: 22-25 Pray: Ask God to help you show the Fruits of the Spirit in you as you
become mature in
Him.
Need Love? Your friend in Christ,
"Growing In Christ"
Get to know Jesus.
Need Peace?
Get to know Jesus.
Need Strength?
Get to know Jesus.
Need Forgiveness?
Get to know Jesus.
Brian Greer
