Bearing Fruit Like Jesus

Bearing Fruit Like Jesus

Galatians 5:22-23 ESV

”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.”

 

What does a spirit-filled Christians life’s look like? Well, such a person looks a lot like Jesus. He or she lives a lot like Jesus. He or she speaks a lot like Jesus. He or she thinks a lot like Jesus. He or she acts and reacts a lot like Jesus. Paul said Spirit-filled Christians exhibit these fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Now, if we had been privileged to be in Peter or Andrew or James or John’s shoes, we would certainly know what what such a life would look like; for they walked with Jesus day-by-day. Jesus bore  for them the Fruit of the Spirit always.

 

Matthew 26:28 ESV

“ . . . for this is my blood of the covenant,
which is poured out for many
for the forgiveness of sins.”

Just think, the disciples saw Jesus act out love and these other beautiful attributes daily. They knew what it felt like to be loved by Jesus as He patiently explained and re-explained, and explained again, all that God had for Him to teach them. Remember, Jesus did not just teach God’s Redeeming Truth—He lived it; He spoke it, He acted it out over and over again. Only Jesus in the history of the world ever exemplified every one of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Remember how He loved, how He chose to love Peter, Andrew, James and John every day, even when it meant encouraging, correcting, redirecting, forgiving, redeeming them and the other disciples. CHOOSE is the crucial word for His kind of love. Jesus made the CHOICE every single moment of every day to lay down His life to give the disciples what they truly needed from Him at that precise moment. Truly He CHOSE to love them. 

Philippians 4:4 ESV
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

And because Jesus CHOSE love, he experienced Joy—the delight which arises from a heart completely and willingly surrendered to God. Such joy never goes away—no matter the challenges nor the disappointments that come our way. We know God is Good. We know His Way is good. We know darkened moments in our day never prevail over the good plans God has for us. So, we, like Jesus discover the joy of fully living out trust and obedience in God.

John 14:27 ESV

“Peace I leave with you,
my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives
do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled,
neither let them be afraid.”

Then, as we experience love and joy, we discover peace which overcomes our worries and our fears. Look at Jesus in the midst of the storm walking on the Galilee, or on another stormy night, sleeping through the storm in back of the boat. Jesus knew perfect peace because He knew the Father held even the stormy seas in His hand. Jesus knew peace because He knew the Father held only good for Him. We, too, can know that peace more and more and more, as we grow in our faith and our understanding of essential goodness. “All things (do, indeed) work for the good of those who love Him. . . “

Ephesians 4:2-3 ESV

“ . . . with all humility and gentleness,
with patience, bearing with one another in love,
eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.”

Jesus never ran out of patience with His disciples. He certainly corrected them, rebuked them, questioned them hard. Still, He never gave up on them, but instead, He demonstrated such patience as He walked with Peter after their post-resurrection breakfast by the sea and asked asked him again and again, and yet again; “Do you love me?” He patiently provided for Peter one opportunity to declare His love for each time his fallen disciple had denied him on the night of Jesus’ trial.

Ephesians 4:32 ESV
“Be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other,
just as in Christ God forgave you.

And what kindness Jesus showed to women who had been rejected by their own. Alone with the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus kindly offered Himself as the Living Water her battered and scarred soul needed, after she had lived a life abused and misused by men. Notice again the kindness of Jesus, who welcomed the outcast woman whose body would not stop bleeding all those disgraced years, as the power from His body went out into hers, and she was healed. More than that, she was returned to her family, her friends, her neighbors a brand new woman, saved by the kindness of Jesus. And then in front of the Temple, when the woman caught in adultery (Where was the man?) was brought before her, the kindness of Jesus saved her life, forgave her sin, and delivered her into a brand new, victorious life removed beyond her sinful past.

Psalm 31:19 ESV
”Oh, how abundant is your goodness,
which you have stored up for those who fear you
and worked for those who take refuge in you.”

You see, there was an essential goodness (an impossible to ignore god-likeness) about Jesus. Those who deep in their hearts truly longed for and loved God, could not help but love Jesus and His godly goodness. Those who in their hearts rejected the love of God, even some very religious men, hated Jesus because He not only accepted God’s love, but rejoiced in that love. He shared that love as He related to every girl and boy, woman and man. To be with Jesus meant to be in the Presence of God. To listen to Jesus meant to hear the Word of God. To follow after Jesus, meant to follow after the goodness of God, which makes every such follower, girl or boy, woman or man, a godly person, no doubt.

1 Thessalonians 5:24 ESV
He who calls you is faithful,
and he will surely do it.

You might have heard it said, “He is faithful to a fault.” Well, how can that be true? How can faithfulness become a fault. Jesus, being faithful, full of faith, and so, perfectly  trusting and obedient before the Father; remained faithful to the end, when on the Cross, he prayed, “Father, into your hands I commend my Spirit.” When faithfulness meant delightful evening hours under the stars He had named, enjoying the company of His dear friends, His disciples—Jesus enjoyed the Father’s presence among them. When faithfulness meant walking hot and long and dusty roads to get to the people who so desperately needed His message of God’s Love and Mercy—Jesus drew strength from His Father’s presence among them. When faithfulness placed Him, hanging on the cross, deserted by all but faithful John, His loving mother and the few women with her—Jesus bore the weight of our sin and remained faithful to the very end.

Isaiah 40:11 ESV
He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arm,
and carry them in his bosom,
and will gently lead those that have their young.

Though he was raised to do tough, hard labor in the home of a carpenter’s son, Jesus knew what it was like to look with gentleness into the eyes of a child and laugh as they giggled along with Him. He knew what it was like to look with gentleness  into the eyes of the desperate Jairus, whose daughter was dying, and take the weight of that grief upon Himself. And somehow, even dying on the cross, Jesus looked into the eyes of that terrified, dying thief with a gentleness which offered deliverance and redemption where there only seemed to be death. Yes, Jesus was a gentle man.

1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV
No temptation has overtaken you
that is not common to man.
God is faithful, and he will not let you
be tempted beyond your ability,
but with the temptation he will also
provide the way of escape,
that you may be able to endure it.

Then in the wilderness Jesus had to battle it out with hunger and thirst and exhaustion and worst of all, the Enemy of all goodness and life and love. In the face of all the tempter’s most carefully crafted tests, Jesus remained self-controlled, choosing the Truth of God which seemed so hard, in order to save a lost and dying world. Standing on God’s Word,  Jesus met each test with self-control,  which arose from his absolute trust in and obedience to His Father God.

We praise God we have a Savior who perfectly exemplified a life perfectly living out the fruit of the Spirit, not just in the face of great challenges, but in the quiet moments of everyday life on this earth.  

Now, the Apostle Paul tells us Spirit-filled believers will also live in such a victorious, wondrous way which invites others into the Kingdom everyday. I must admit I have not in my rather long life discovered any person who so perfectly as Jesus illustrated all of this rich and luscious spiritual fruit. But, thank God, I have known a few who have consistently surrendered their lives to Jesus, His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; revealing the glory of God. I want to briefly mention them here—only to encourage us as to how  Jesus, given the opportunity in our own lives,  can share these delectable spiritual fruit even as God builds His Kingdom.

My list includes imperfect people (like all of us) who in my life have pointed me to God through their day-to-day  lives acting out the His Presence through the Fruit of the Spirit.

I’ll begin with folks who inspired me during our years in Africa. Some are international missionaries living out their lives there, while others are Africans by birth.

Jane Ellen Gaines could not be easily ignored. Full of energy and enthusiasm and a love of God like no other, she truly inspired me during my first years at Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria. All of the Fruit of the Sprit played a part in her ability to effectively invite people to faith in Jesus. Love, Joy and Goodness certainly characterized her wonderful and godly personality.

Brother Mike Abraham is a dear man who shared many of my brightest and darkest days at Baptist High School, Jos. His love for God kept him going in the face of some overwhelming circumstances along the way; but with self-control, faithfulness and joy, he has constantly persevered, certainly carrying the light and life of God’s Love in midst of it all.

Samson Adedokun brings to life the adventuresome joy of trusting Jesus as he so naturally shares a delectable spiritual love for Jesus with a gentleness which opens up the hearts of others to respond to his Gospel witness. God’s goodness in His life shines through as he continues to lead his church and his family for the glory of God.

In our home in Jos we were blessed to have wonderful Christian co-workers, who enabled us to be fully immersed in the various ministries that God gave us. Of these I mention the most godly gentle man I have known, Gideon Ali, who was a household manager for us in Jos; shopping, cooking, keeping the yards in shape. All the while, he blessed us with his ever gentle smile and self-control in the face of keeping a household going in the face of every challenge imaginable.

In Niger I met Hajara Abou, who knew French and Hausa inside-and-out, but so much more than that, loved God and His Word with all her heart. She always had her Bible at her desk day-to-day, and demonstrated her faithfulness in a difficult place for believers. Along with her husband she tirelessly equips others to share the Gospel. In the midst of every trial God’s peace and her faithfulness in the work, keeps her strong. Always, every single day, she has been an encouragement to me.

Here in the States I think of Ramona Weems. She always went out of her way to bring joy into the lives of others. She always loved others in very practical ways. She stood in the face of long term health challenges with patience so real, she still managed to influence others with her godly kindness and gentleness. Her smile always lit up every room because it shone with beauty of the Love of God.

I must also mention Mary Penney who had enough of God’s Love for everyone she knew. She particularly loved children,  and God used her kindness and gentleness to inspire so many of those she cared for, to grow up loving Jesus—her model. When situations got complicated, her patience often showed the way forward as God brought folks together to see His Will accomplished. 

Marsha Eichenberg Cooke was used by God to fully reset and fix my life on His path and not mine. Her godly love was a tough one—her whole heart given to loving people in need of His Love. Her Kindness also came with a tough edge—demanding the people of God to do the work of God in loving and serving Him. Still, remembering her heart-warming smile, gives me strength and hope to trust in His Goodness, as does she.

Vince Whittington loved the Gospel like no other man I have ever known. He believed the Gospel and claimed its promises for every person he knew or got to know in order to share the Good News. He had a joy about him that gave others confidence in what might seem like uncomfortable situations. His faithfulness made it seem natural to him to tackle a new challenge for God, for his family, for the Church, and for the people next door.

My PaPa, (Dewey Stonecypher) was the smallest big man I ever knew. I don’t believe he ever weighed more than 130 pounds. That’s okay, because he was the most faithful, the hardest worker I ever knew. God’s love lit up his eyes and his smile in a way that delighted every child. He never knew a stranger, but as a truly gentle man, always brought peace into the room. He loved Jesus with all of his heart and demonstrated the Savior’s love with a remarkable kindness in an often hard world.

All over the world
and among all the peoples
people are praying for the Love of God,
they are searching for the Joy of God,
they are desperate for the Peace of God,
they are hoping for the Patience of God,
they are seeking for the Kindness of God,
they are hungering for the Goodness of God,
they are thirsty for the Faithfulness of God,
they are praying for the Gentleness of God,
they are longing for the Self-control of God—
and all of them need Jesus!