THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS LOVE!

 

  And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.  (1 Corinthians 13:13 NKJV)

Let's lay the emphasis on the word fruit, as contrasted with the works of the law. In work there is effort, strain, the sweat of the brow, and straining of the muscles; but fruit comes easily and naturally by the overflow of the sap rising from the root to limb and bud. So our Christian life should be the exuberance of the heart in which Christ dwells. The Apostle Paul prayed that Christ might dwell in the heart of his converts, that they might be rooted and grounded in love. It is only when the Holy Spirit fills us to overflowing that we shall abound in love to all men.

We must distinguish between love and the emotion of love. The former is always possible, though not always and immediately the latter. Our Lord repeating the ancient words of the Pentateuch taught us that we may love God with our mind and strength, as well as with our hearts. We all know that the mind and strength are governed not by our emotions, but by our wills. We can love, therefore, by determining to put our thought and energies at the service of another for the sake of God; and we shall find our emotions kindle into a sacred glow of conscious affection.

In the chapter from which our text is taken, the Apostle Paul distinguishes between the gifts of the Church and love. After passing them in review he comes to the conclusion that all of them, without love as their heart and inspiration, are worth nothing.

The greatest word in the world is the unfathomable phrase, "God is Love." You can no more define the essence of love than you can define the essence of God, but you can describe its effects and fruits. I give Dr. Weymouth's translation: "Love is patient and kind, knows neither envy nor jealousy; is not forward and self-assertive, nor boastful and conceited. She does not behave unbecomingly, nor seek to exaggerate herself, nor blaze out in passionate anger, nor brood over wrongs. She finds no pleasure in injustice done to others, but joyfully sides with the truth. She knows how to be silent; she is full of trust, full of hope, full of patient endurance."

We ought to take each of these clauses, and think about whether our lives are realizing these high ideals. If it does, in one sense, we have received the baptism or seed of the Holy Spirit, a life centered in love for Christ, for His Word and Church, and love for our fellow man.  The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love.

PRAYER

Almighty heavenly Father, my love is like some feebly glimmering spark; I would that it were as a hot flame. Kindle it by the breath of Your Holy Spirit, till Your love constrains me. I pray this in Jesus' name, AMEN.

God's Daily Promise

Promise #310:
Jesus bore your sins on the cross so you would be healed.

1 Peter 2:24 (WEB)
who his own self bore our sins in his body on the tree,
that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness;
by whose stripes you were heal