Got Fruit?????????

Good morning guys and gals! I hope everyone had a great weekend. All of our kids are off from school today in Roane County, TN. We had a good night at youth last night. My message was "Got Fruit?" How do you usually know when fruit has gone bad? You can see it on the outside. Let's dig into some of the good stuff today and see what it says on the subject........

Bible Verse: Galatians 5:22-24 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 passion and desires.

Listen guys! Paul was writing this message to the Christians to remind them that WHEN they are in a relationship with God people WILL see the evidence. Paule actually wrote two opposite lists of bad behavior and good behavior. The bad behavior or sinful nature list is in Galatians 5:19-21. So, check this out. There is a battle going on in you if you are a born again believer. A battle between sinful nature (flesh) and the Holy Spirit. Well, which one is stronger? The right answer is the Holy Spirit but, yes there is a but. The Holy Spirit is stronger but, we are weaker on our own. Folks, the acts of sinful nature are very attractive and pleasing usually. We desire to satisfy our flesh. And when that is when we are operating from our sinful nature.

I do have good news! Paul said that when we follow the Holy Spirit those acts of sinful nature are not nearly as attractive because of the strength we find through God. So, who wins this battle? Because trust me most of us probably had battles last week and some are in the right now!!! Who wins? Let me start off by telling you that we make choices every hour of everyday. Those choices we make reflect whether we are trying to please God.....Ourselves......or The World. When we commit our lives to Christ. The Holy Spirit takes up residence in us. He moves in and begins helping us fight the cravings of our sinful nature. Now, comes the hard part. We have to yield to God and the Holy Spirit by saying "YES" to godly actions and "NO" to sinful temptations.

So, how do we tell which one is winning this battle? It is determined by what we show on the outside. The kind of fruit that grows on a tree shows us what kind of tree it is. The OUTSIDE is a reflection of the INSIDE!!! Listen guy's! The fruit of the spirit is a collection of nine visible traits of a Christian. How we should WALK-TALK-and ACT. The ultimate goal is to be more like Christ. To be transformed.

Let's talk about the delivery service. FedEx, UPS, USPS???? Nope. God doesn't just give us patience, joy, self-control, or any other fruit wrapped up in a pretty little box. You have to ask Him for them and then commit to practicing them whenever opportunities arise. I promise God will give you opportunities to develop and practice them. We must be patient and listen to the Holy Spirit. If you pay attention and let the Holy Spirit guide you. The fruit will grow and multiply!!! Love....Joy....Peace....Patience....Kindness....Goodness....Faithfulness....Gentleness....Self-Control!!!!!!! Let's pray that God can use us in a mighty way and there is plain to see evidence in our lives. Have a great day, I love you, and God bless!!!!