The Fruit of the Spirit: Reaping the Harvest

       

             

  The Fruit of the Spirit: Reaping the Harvest

We began this exploration of the Fruit of the Spirit with the mention of the Parable of the Sower and the Seed. In Matthew 13, Jesus told this parable:

Matthew 13: 3-8 “Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop; some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

 

Later, when Jesus was alone with His disciples, He explained to them what the parable meant.

Matthew 13: 19-23 “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy: yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces some a hundredfold, some sixty some thirty.

The sower (planter) is someone who shares God’s word. The types of ground represent our hearts. So some of us have the kind of hearts that the word  simply “falls by the wayside.” Some of us have the kind of hearts that even though we’ve accepted God’s word, any hint of ridicule for being a believer will cause us to stumble. The next kind of heart is the kind that let the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and becomes unfruitful. Notice that it’s not riches that are bad, it’s putting concern about our money problems and how to solve them ahead of God’s word. The last type of ground is the heart that hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces!  This fruit is the Fruit of the Spirit:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Notice that some produce a hundredfold crop, some sixty, some thirty. Could this mean that different people, even though all believers, receive and demonstrate the fruit in various degrees? The good news is that we all produce a crop, and we produce exponentially!

 

Jesus taught about fruit extensively in John 15, referring to Himself as the “true vine” and referring to us as “the branches.” He refers to God the Father as the “vinedresser,” the one who takes care of the whole thing.  Notice that all the talk of vines and branches and fruit all lead to His commandment that we love one another. Also note that twice in this short passage, Jesus connects this idea of branches and fruit to asking and receiving.

John 15:1-17 “I am the true vine, and My father is the vinedresser.

 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

 

 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.

 

 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

 

 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

 

 If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire and it shall be done for you.

 

 By this my father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples…

 

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends…

 

You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, and whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.

 

 These things I command you, that you love one another.

 

The fruit of the Spirit is given to us by the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, the Presence of God in our lives. Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit in John 14:16-17 and John 15:26 as the Helper, The Comforter, and the Spirit of truth. In John 16:13, Jesus said the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth. Chapters 15, 16, and 17 are all Jesus’ words right before entering the Garden of Gethsemane. In these chapters, He’s warning the disciples that He has to leave them, but He will not leave them comfortless: the Holy Spirit will come. In the Old Testament, the Israelites had God’s Presence in visible form as a pillar of cloud by day and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light (Exodus 13:21). Wouldn’t God feel so much nearer if we could “see” His presence as they did? Isn’t it ironic that even with the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire, they still didn’t trust Him and most of them never made it into the promised land?

 

1 Corinthians 10:5 “But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.”

 

Hebrews 3:17 “Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness?

 

They had a visible representation of God with them day and night. We, on the other hand, walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). The Holy Spirit is with us and in us, guiding us into all truth, teaching us all things, helping us to remember all Jesus’ words and giving us His fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the evidences by which outsiders see that we indeed have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ and have received the presence of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 7:20 says “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”

Meekness is Gentleness

             

                               

                  Meekness is Gentleness

 The eighth quality or result of having God’s Spirit in our lives is gentleness. The King James Version of the Bible calls this “meekness.”

Psalm 37:11 “But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.” (Jesus repeats this in Matthew 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.”)

 Gentleness

 The New King James, The New Living Translation, The Voice, The New International Version and the Amplified Bible all refer to this quality as “gentleness.”

The definition of gentleness is considerate or kindly in disposition, amiable and tender. Not harsh or severe.

 Jesus called Himself “gentle” in Matthew 11:29-30 “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

 

Sharing a “yoke” with Jesus leads to walking at a gentle pace, not getting overexcited, not trying to take on too much. Instead, it’s a balanced life filled with His peace, keeping pace with His gentle leading.  I’ve read where some ministers refer to this “yoke” as a type of “bondage,” but Jesus Himself said that He would provide “rest” for our souls. He told us in John 8:36:  ^“Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 3:17 “Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

 It should be noted that even though we are “sharing a yoke” with our Lord, we still recognized that He is the authority, and we are willingly submitting to His authority.

The idea of being yoked with our gentle Savior is best described in the Message Bible:

Matthew 11:28-30 ^“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

 Jesus won’t fit anything heavy or ill-fitting on us, and we ought not to put anything heavy or ill-fitting on other people. One of the ways I’ve found myself doing this is when dealing with my adult children. I can give them what I think is good advice, but I must remember that their lives, thoughts, opinions, and ways of doing things belong to them.

When we learn to live freely and lightly being yoked with Jesus, we can then in turn show gentleness to our fellow man. I recently read that people get all pompous concerning their religion, when they fail to realize the “gentleness” Jesus represents.

 

People seem to want to use their belief as a way to one-up other people. Yet true belief in Jesus requires us to show love to everyone, regardless of their faith, regardless of their race, regardless of their politics. We don’t agree with everyone. But we’re not to disrespect anyone. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5: “⁴ Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; ⁵ does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;”

 

At the same time, having an attitude of meekness and gentleness in our actions, does not mean we are doormats. We’re not to lash out in anger or passively refuse to act when a response is warranted. We must learn (I, especially, must learn) to allow the Holy Spirit to show us when and how to respond in every situation, so that we can show respect and kindness while being firm.  Gentleness is using great strength with self-control.    

 

Ephesians 4:2 “Walk worthy of the Calling, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love.”

 

Philippians 4:5 “Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.”

 

2 Timothy 2:24 “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient…”

 

Titus 3:2 “to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.”

 

Humility: the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.

 

Definitions of “Humble”

 1. not proud or arrogant; modest:

2. having a feeling of insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc.:

3. low in rank, importance, status, quality, etc.; lowly:

4. courteously respectful:

 

The definitions above are dictionary definitions. The word “Humble” in the Biblical sense does not include number two. We are not to think of ourselves as insignificant or inferior. We know that we are created in God’s own image and He has given us His Son as a sacrifice so that we are made righteous in Him. We are to make sure that we’re not thinking of ourselves as “better” than anyone else. We possess strength, but we’re to exercise our strength in a humble way.

 

 

1 Peter 3:15 (NIV) “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

 

Matthew 23: 11-12, Luke 14:11 and Luke 18:14

 “But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

 

1 Peter 5: 6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time”

 

The Humility of Jesus

Isaiah 42: 1-3 “Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.
² He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.³ A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.”

It was prophesized seven hundred years before Jesus’ birth that He would be humble. He wouldn’t raise His voice in the street. He would fully heal a reed that was bruised and cause a light that was almost out to shine bright again. This is good news for our lives. Jesus will restore whatever needs fixing in us!

 

We see Jesus’ humility in:

The example of His humble birth.

Luke 2:7 “And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger (a feed trough for animals), because there was no room for them in the inn.

 

The example of Him riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.

Hundreds of years before Christ was born; it was prophesized in Zechariah 9:9:

“…Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Matthew 21: 4-5 and John 12:14-15 both reiterate that Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem, not on a majestic white horse, but gently on a donkey.

 

The example of washing the disciples’ feet.

John 13:2-15 “And supper being ended… (Jesus) rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded…So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.’”

 

The example of Him coming in the likeness of men.

Philippians 2:5-8 “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”

 

We are not good witnesses of the gentleness and goodness of our Savior when we are prideful in our faith. Knowing our true identity in Christ, we don’t have to continually lash out at or criticize others to prove our self-worth. Our worth has already been established by His grace. After all, it was Jesus Himself that suffered an agonizing and brutal death on the cross. We should be humbled by the humble position He took to save us from our sin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Number Seven is Faithfulness

   

                   Number Seven is Faithfulness

 The King James Version of the Bible actually says this fruit is Faith, as opposed to “Faithfulness” which has been adopted by the more recent translations.   

 

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Faith requires giving up control, putting our trust in God, whom we can’t see.

 

2Corinthians 5:7 “For we walk by faith and not by sight.” We hold onto faith, sometimes ignoring what we see, what we hear, and especially what we feel, choosing instead to depend on God’s goodness to work all things together for our good.

 

 Faith is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and also a gift of the Spirit (2 Corinthians 12:9). The Bible tells us that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith in Hebrews 12:2. God gives us faith. Yet we have the choice as to whether or not we will live in faith.

 

Definitions of Faith

1. Confident belief of the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, an idea or a thing.
2. Loyalty to a person or thing, allegiance.
3. Secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God’s will.

 

Love is The Thing

The fruit of the Spirit is love. Because the first condition of “faith” is to believe that there is a God, it’s curious that although “faith” is a fruit of the Spirit, it’s not the fruit of the Spirit. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 13:2 “…though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” Our faith then, is grounded in the assurance of God’s love for us and is made evident by our love for each other. Paul ends “The Love Chapter:” 1 Corinthians 13:13 with, “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” Paul said that if he didn’t have love, he was nothing. All the faith in the world without love is nothing. All those people throughout history who have used their “faith” to justify killing, to justify looking down on others, and to justify treating people with cruelty didn’t have true faith at all. We have to love. We have to see every human being as created by God in His likeness and image

 (Genesis 1:26).  We even have to love people who have a different “faith” than ours!

Romans 13:10 “^Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

 

 

Faith in Believing God Exists and He is For Us

The first requirement of faith is that we believe in God. Hebrews 11:6 “…For he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

Yes, the first requirement is to believe that there is a God. At first glance, it appears that this is all there is. However, it’s established that the second part of the verse treats what we think about God is just as important as believing in Him. “He is a rewarder to those who diligently seek Him.” It’s not enough to believe He exists; we must also realize that He loves us and created us to be in a relationship with Him. One of my good friends said to me once, “I believe in God and that’s it.” In my naïveté, I thought that this was a courageous statement. My friend expressed “faith” while dodging any responsibility of knowing God or claiming to have a relationship with Him. I’m sure that the intent was to say, “I believe in God but I don’t want to be a hypocrite by claiming I know anything about him.” I see now that it wasn’t courage at all; He actually felt disqualified to make any assertions about God.  It was not realizing that God wants us to know Him. God not only wants us to seek a relationship with Him, He also wants us to know that He is for us. This is a fairly new concept for me. It amazes me that the Creator of the universe; the One who parted the red sea, the One who fed His people manna from heaven for forty years, and the One who produced water from a rock…is on my side? How can this be? He has all those planets in all those galaxies to keep in place. He keeps the earth revolving around the sun, changing day into night, changing the seasons…yet He is for me! He cares that I’m well. He cares that I have what I need. He even wants me to be happy! We can have faith in God’s good plans for us because we know that He is good!

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

 

Psalm 34:8 “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”

 

Hebrews 11: The Faith Chapter

If we can call 1 Corinthians 13 “The Love Chapter,” it’s only fitting that we should call Hebrews 11 “The Faith Chapter.” It begins:

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ² For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.

³ By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.

Verses 4-39 cite all the specific acts of faith throughout Biblical history, including:

⁴ By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain

⁶ But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

⁷ By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household,

⁸ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance.

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac,

²³ By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents,

³⁰ By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days

³⁹ And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, ⁴⁰ God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

Because of all the men and women listed with their acts of faith in Hebrews 11, this chapter  is often referred to as the “wall of faith.” Yet God had something even better for us: His Son.

 

Faith to Believe in the Son:  Atonement for Sin and Peace with God

 The second requirement of faith is that we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and that we are cleansed from sin by His work at the Cross.  The whole point of the gospel (which is “good news”) is “justification by faith.”  We are not only freed from the penalty for sin, we are also freed from the bondage of sin. This means that God has declared us as righteous. We have right-standing with Him, because we believe in the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that Jesus is the Son of God, a specific position in the Trinity.   We believe that the punishment for sin was served in the body of Jesus on the cross, and that by believing this, we are declared righteous. We now have no need to fear the wrath of God, and in fact we are adopted into His family.

Isaiah 53:5 “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”

 

 

Romans 5:1 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

2 Corinthians; 5:21 “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

 

 

1 John 1:4-5 “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

 

 

 

Faith or Works?

It’s established that we are justified by Christ’ finished work at the cross and that the fruit of the Spirit is supplied by God Himself. This leads to the question: what are we supposed to do? Here is the double–sided coin of works and faith.  Paul said that if our salvation is by our works, then we wouldn’t need faith. It is completely possible that Paul is referring to “works” that are the old requirements of Jewish Law, which included the rites of animal sacrifices and even circumcision. His language, however, is adamant that by just “believing” we are justified before God.

 

Romans 4:4-5 “Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.”

 

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

 

Even Jesus used the word “believe” when explaining His reason for coming to earth:

 

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

 

On the other hand, James tells us that faith without works is dead. James begins his discussion in reference to good works: helping the needy, which of course, we see that this goodness is indeed a fruit of the Spirit. He makes obvious the correlation between faith and goodness, but he goes much further than this, also adamant, that faith requires action. James states that even demons “believe.”

 James 2:14-26 “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

¹⁸ But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! ²⁰ But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? ²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? ²² Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? ²³ And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. ²⁴ You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

²⁵ Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?

²⁶ For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

 On the other hand, when the people asked Jesus in John 6:28-29,

“What shall we do that we may work the work of God? Jesus answered…’This is the work of God, that you believe in Him Whom He sent.”  This sentence seems to contradict what James said. In fact, Jesus used the phrase “Your faith has made you well” or “Your faith has saved you” many times during his three year ministry on the earth. However, on closer inspection, we see that the recipient of the blessing had actually done something; they had exercised their faith in some way.

 

To the woman with the twelve year hemorrhage in Mark 5:34, Jesus said, “Your faith has made you well.” Perhaps the “work” in this case was her reaching out to touch His clothes. ²⁵ Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, ²⁶ and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. ²⁷ When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. ²⁸ For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”

²⁹ Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction. ³⁰ And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”

³¹ But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’”

³² And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. ³³ But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. ³⁴ And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

 

 

In Mark 2:5, after Jesus saw that a man was lowered down into a house from the middle of the roof, Jesus’ response to the paralyzed man was to praise the faith of his four friends by forgiving the paralyzed man’s sins.  When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” The paralytic was rewarded based on the faith of his friends. Perhaps the “work” in this case was to get their friend to Jesus in

whichever way they could.

 

In Luke Chapter 7, we read about the woman who broke the alabaster flask of oil and anointed Jesus. The anointing and the washing of His feet was the “work”. His response: “Your faith has saved you.”

³⁷ And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, ³⁸ and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.

⁵⁰ Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

 

In Luke 17 verses 11-19, we read again where Jesus said to the one leper who returned to say “thank-you” after receiving his healing, “Your faith has made you well.”

¹¹ Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. ¹² Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. ¹³ And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

¹⁴ So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.

¹⁵ And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, ¹⁶ and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.

¹⁷ So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? ¹⁸ Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Faith is to be Spoken and is built by Hearing

 

In Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer” in John 17, he prayed to the Father for His disciples and also for us. In this prayer, Jesus essentially said that we would declare our belief in him through “our word,” in essence, by saying we believed in Him.

John 17:20-21 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”

 

Consider this passage in Romans Chapter 10:

Romans 10:6 “But the righteousness of faith speaks…8. But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9. that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard:? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 17. So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

 

Paul wrote to the believers who lived in Rome that we can “speak faith” using God Himself as our example. In Romans 4:17, Paul wrote that God “…calls those things which do not exist as they did.” And after all God spoke everything in this world into existence by simply saying, “Let there be…” in Genesis 1.

 

The woman with the issue of blood in Mark 5: 25-34  heard about Jesus, and then she said to herself, “If only I may touch His clothes…”

 

 

Jesus taught about the importance of what we say, as a sign of our faith in

Mark 11:22-24 ^“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

 

God Will Give Us Everything We Need

It’s truly a “leap of faith” to believe that the Creator of the universe exists as the Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It’s a further “leap of faith” to believe that the “Son” in this Trinity was born into a human body and lived on earth teaching, healing, and finally sacrificing His life so that we could be forgiven for sin and restored to right-standing

with the Father. Even though these beliefs require a “leap of faith,” I’m willing to say that most of us have taken that “leap” and we do believe.  So why is it so hard to believe that God will provide for us, protect us, heal us, and improve our lives? Jesus asked in Luke 18:8, “…when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” I hope that He will. Here are a few Bible promises to help us build our faith:

 

God will protect us:

 The Entire Chapter of Psalm 91

  The Entire Chapter of Psalm 121

 

God will provide for us:

 2 Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”

 

Philippians 4:19 “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

 

God will heal us:

Psalm 103: 2 - 3   “Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases.”

 

Isaiah 53:5 “…and by His stripes we are healed.”

 

God will improve our lives:

Proverbs 4:18 “But the path of the just is like the shining sun, That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.”

 

Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

 

And here is the crux of the matter. If we can believe in Jesus and His finished work at the cross so that we are free from sin and made right with God, we can be sure that God will honor His word and freely give us all things.

 

Romans 8: 31-32 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

 

 

 

 

Peace of God and Peace With God

Peace: an absence of hostilities, harmonious relations, inner contentment, serenity

 This present world is filled with hostilities and harmonious relations seem to only exist in an idealistic imagination of someone who’s never watched the news. There is a huge misunderstanding about peace and God’s kingdom of peace. God’s present “kingdom of peace” is inside of us as individuals. Anyone who’s ever heard of Christmas knows the verse Luke 2:14 that says, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men.” So if that was over 2,000 years ago, where is the peace? Unfortunately this verse has been misstated. Modern translations render this verse as  “peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” All those who have accepted the gift of faith are qualified to be included in those with whom God is pleased.

Luke 2:14 in The Message:

Glory to God in the heavenly heights,
Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.

 Luke 2:14 in the New International Version:

 Glory to God in the highest heaven,
 and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

 

Right now, God’s peace is inside of us as individuals. There will, however, be a time when this kingdom of peace will be an actual kingdom spoken of in Isaiah 9:6: “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His Shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  This kingdom of peace, when “the government will be upon His shoulder,” doesn’t occur until after the Second Coming of the Messiah, however in this time, right now we can have the peace of God in our individual lives.
That being said, however, doesn’t mean that the individual who has accepted the peace of God through faith in the finished work at the cross is not concerned with the state of other human beings. In gratitude to God, as a response to His great love for as individuals, we are inspired to lift up others. The peace of God in our lives fills us with compassion to help those in need. It also fills us with the desire to help remediate the damage we’ve done to our planet. Unfortunately, it seems that what the world sees “Christians” doing is just going to church. We do see individuals risking their own safety and comfort and going out into the world feeding the hungry, digging wells, providing medical services and promoting justice. True peace for the individual causes him to want peace for others. Those of us who haven’t yet found our own inspiration as to how we will spread the peace of God, are trusting that He Himself will open our eyes to our own gift for spreading His peace.

Peace Began with God

1 Corinthians 14:33 ^“For God is not the author of confusion but of peace…”

Philippians 4:9 “…the God of peace will be with you.”

1 Thessalonians 5:23 ^“ Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely…”

All throughout the bible we read, “the God of Peace, the Prince of Peace, the author of peace, which lets us know peace is an attribute of God Himself. In fact, every time Jesus greeted His disciples (especially after His resurrection,) He greeted them with the word “peace.” The Hebrew word “Shalom” which is usually translated as peace, actually means “wholeness.” It includes good health, provision, and total well-being.  The implication here is that when Jesus greeted His disciples with the word “peace” He greeted them with more than just, “have an absence of hostilities” or “have inner contentment.” Instead, His greeting included, “Don’t be afraid,” “Be well,” Be prosperous,” and “have inner contentment.” Peace is not the absence of trouble. Peace is our dependency of God to work it all out and protect us in spite of trouble.

 

God Provided a Way for us to Have peace with Him

1 John 4:18-19  ^“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.  We love Him because He first loved us.”

Romans 5:1 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Romans 5:10 “ For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

God gave us the opportunity to have peace with Him, to not be afraid of his wrath or punishment. Because He loves us with a perfect love, we have no need to fear. God punished our sins in the body of His own son. God demonstrated His great love for us by redeeming us from the penalty of sin and by declaring us righteous in His sight. If this sounds really simplistic, we must remember that a steep price was paid for this peace. Because we so often we hear the phrase, “Jesus died for our sins,” we’re almost tempted to treat this as a small thing. Jesus suffered public mocking and inhumane suffering even before He actually went to the cross. The prophet Isaiah told us what would happen to Him 700 years before the actual event. Isaiah 53:5-6  says “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement for our peace was upon Him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; And the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

 

The book of Matthew describes the actual events leading up to the crucifixion itself. Matthew 26:37 says that even before His arrest, in the garden of Gethsemane, “He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed.” Luke 22:44 says “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”  Note how Jesus was first taken to the high priest, where he was abused by the temple guards there and then taken to the Roman governor, where he was mocked and beaten by the Roman guards in their private garrison, in addition to the public scourging:

Matthew 27:26-31 “Then they spat in His face and beat Him and other struck Him with the palms of their hands. (This describes His treatment at the hands of the temple guards, the servants of the religious leaders. Later, after Jesus had been turned over to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate who repeatedly said he found no fault with Jesus, still had Jesus scourged. The Roman scourge was a short whip of three straps with scraps of metal knotted in. This instrument would tear off the person’s flesh with each lash and there would be excessive bleeding.)  27. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium… 28. And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. 29. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand, And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30. Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. 31. And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.   

 

 

Having His Inner Peace

Psalm 119:165 “Great peace have those who love Your law, And nothing causes them to stumble.”

Philippians 4:7 “and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Inner Peace Gives us courage In addition to no longer having to fear of punishment for sin, inner peace includes freedom from fear of people or circumstances. Peace also includes contentment, and freedom from anxiety. This world is so full of people and circumstances that will cause us to live in constant fear. There’s the risk of getting killed by terrorists, the risk of contacting a fatal disease, the risk of losing our income, and the risk of losing those we love. In order to have relief from these fears, we have to accept the Holy Spirit’s gift of peace. We have to constantly remind ourselves that we belong to God. He’s the Creator of this entire universe and He loves us unconditionally. We also have to remember the promises in His word:

Psalm 91:5-7 “⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.”

Psalm 118:6 “The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” This is reiterated in the New Testament in Hebrews 13:6 “So we can boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”

Psalm 121:7-8 ^7 “The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
⁸ The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.”

Isaiah 54:17 “No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn.

Inner Peace Gives us Contentment

One of the things that rob us of peace is the idea that we have to have more things. God did promise us in Matthew 6:33 to “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things would be added unto us.” We know that “things” in this particular context, is referring to clothing, shelter, and food, since the previous verses in that chapter deal with how God feeds the birds of the air and how He clothes the grass with beautiful flowers.

^{Matthew 6:25} “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

²⁸ “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; ²⁹ and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

³¹ “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

I have to admit that I have trouble with this idea of wanting. All day long, my thoughts play an ongoing recording of “I want new clothes, I want a new phone, I want a tablet, I want to update the bathroom. I want a Coach bag. And of course, I want a new car.” Every time that recording starts to play, I have to remind myself that “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.” The recording stops for that moment and then later it comes back. We live in a society that tells us that we have to have more. The commercials on television make us think that everyone has these particular things but us. If we’re walking in the fruit of the Spirit, we’re not supposed to give in to the idea that we need more and more things in order to be fulfilled. The Bible speaks to us about having contentment:

Philippians 4:11 “…for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.”

^{Hebrews 13:5 “}Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.””

^{1 Timothy6:6 “}Now godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. ⁸ And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. ⁹ But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. ¹⁰ For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

1 Timothy 6:10 “for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” is a verse that has been misconstrued and misquoted over many years. We need money to buy goods and services and we need money in order to give to the poor. In fact, in Ecclesiastes 10:19, Solomon said that “money answers everything.” What Paul wrote to Timothy about money has to do with greed. He points out that people’s “love of money” has caused them to basically ruin their own lives. Thinking about money all the time is truly a “peace destroyer.” The word “covetousness” is defined as inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy. Jesus, in Mark 7: 22 listed covetousness as one of the things that defile people alongside things like thefts, deceit, lewdness, and blasphemy.  The Bible tells us that we are supposed to be fed, sheltered, clothed, and have money to donate to charities and to churches. However, we are not to love money and we’re certainly not to trade our peace for money. The Bible says that God’s grace (His unmerited favor towards us) will cause us to receive all we need and to have enough left over to help others.

2 Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”



The Bible also tells us that if we have a need, we’re to ask God through prayer, being sure to give thanks, and that we will receive peace, His peace which passes all

understanding. Is the answer to our request “peacefulness while we wait” or is the answer God’s peace itself?

Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”