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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5.22-23; all emphasis mine above and below). If one notices closely, he will see that the first word of today's focus verse is the little word but. It is a word of contrast. Today's message will look at this contrast and some of its implications.

The contrasting verses appear just prior to today's verses. “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5.19-21). Never could one devise two more opposite lists of attitudes and actions. One list comes from the heart of God and the other comes from the pits of hell!

The fruit of the Spirit is not the Spirit; it is what the Spirit produces. The fruit is similar to the parent; it bears all the marks and characteristics of the parent. Yet, the parent exists as a separate entity. It goes without saying that the offspring [the fruit of the Spirit] would not exist without the parent [the Spirit]. In the beginning God established the laws of genetics and among them was the law which says that things produce after their kind. This law extends into all realms, even the realm of the Spiritual! When God's Spirit guides us and directs our paths, the result is that we begin to take on the qualities of godliness. Such is the law of sowing and reaping. Later in the Galatian letter, Paul wrote,

Now notice two other things: Concerning the works of the flesh, Paul says that “...those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” However, concerning the fruit of the spirit, he says, “...against such there is no law.” The inference which he apparently wants us to make is that there is a law against the works of the flesh. Certainly this is the truth even as is taught in many, many other scriptures. Likewise, one could also substitute the opposite result if it were said, concerning the fruit of the Spirit, “...those who practice such things will inherit the kingdom of God.”

It ought also to be noted that the phrase “works of the flesh” is a plural phrase (work has an “s” on it), while “fruit of the Spirit” is a singular phrase (fruit is singular; no “s”). This is not just a matter of style in the English; in the Greek, the words are plural and singular, respectively. To take this one step further, each “fruit of the Spirit” is singular; it is a one of a kind attitude. However, many of the individual works of the flesh are plural in number; rather than murder, it is murders, rather than jealousy, it is jealousies, rather than revelry, it is revelries. These actions are not one of a kind; they have cousins galore! However, in whatever flavor they come, they are a work of the flesh, they are wrong, they come from Satan himself, and “...those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Finally, observe one other thing in which an illustration will help. I love to trout fish. And at certain times, places and numbers of fish taken, trout fishing is legal. However, if one fishes in the wrong place, or at the wrong time, or catches too many trout, it becomes illegal. With the fruit of the Spirit, this is not true. A person cannot be too kind, or too loving, or too peaceful, or too faithful. Against such, “there is no law!” Any time, any place, any quantity – its OK with God for us to possess these!

Questions:

1. What Spirit is spoken of in Galatians 5.22-23?

2. What is the flesh in Galatians 5.19-21?

3. Who made the laws which define sin (good and evil)?

4. How much goodness is too much? How much love is too much? Patience, etc.,?

"Bible verse and quote" from Jan Couns

Bible and Quote - February 3-7