Galatians 5:22-24
But what happens when we live
God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit
appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about
life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense
of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness
permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal
commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and
direct our energies wisely.
Legalism is helpless in bringing this
about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ,
everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding
to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for
good—crucified.
Scripture
quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs,
CO. All rights reserved.
I asked Timothy to sing a
little “Fruits of the Spirit” song for Greg and me that he learned at
church from his teacher, Mrs. Glenda. The song starts off asking if a
coconut, banana, watermelon and lemon are “Fruits of the Spirit.”
Depending on which version of the song you sing, other fruits are
included in subsequent verses, but the tune says, “If you wanna be a
coconut (banana/watermelon/lemon) you might as well hear it. You can’t
be a fruit of the Spirit! ‘Cause the ‘fruit’ is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control.”
When Timothy finished singing for us, he said, “But
wait a minute! Those are not real fruits you can eat!” I tried to
explain to him that there are other kinds of “fruits”…but he was off to
play with Legos®, so that is a discussion to continue with this
six-year-old on another day.
The “Message” translation of
Galatians explains that God gives Christians the “fruits of the spirit”
just as He places fruit on the trees and vines of orchards and
vineyards. And as orchards and vineyards that are properly tended and
well-cared for produce the best apples, peaches, pears, grapes and
more…the “fruits of the spirit” are more clearly evident and effective
in those of us who make every effort to live God’s way.
As for
legalism…too many Christians have gotten bogged down in things that may
sound impressive and important but really have nothing to do with
producing these nine “good fruits.” I’m talking about our obsession
with things like prayer in school (which has never been removed!),
whether we can post the Ten Commandments on public grounds, and the
current preoccupation with whether or not a particular church or pastor
is going to begin conducting same-sex marriages.
We get so caught
up in making a show that we fail to work on our personal relationship
with God and the effort to cultivate His fruits. We’re like the farmer
who has covered his crop with insecticide and cross-cultivated to
produce the biggest, prettiest, most disease-and-insect-free apples
possible…and they taste like cardboard! The fruit looks good…but it has
no flavor – and probably little to no nutritional value!
If you
want to be a beautifully polished “apple” in God’s orchard…go right
ahead and keep putting other things ahead of getting real with Him and
figuring out what He desires of you…where He wants you to serve
and minister…and how He wants you to represent Jesus to others. But if
you are serious about operating in the fruits of God’s Spirit, the time
has come to focus on what matters to Him rather than the mortal agenda
that has been created by many Christians – well-intentioned as they may
be.
It’s time to quite twisting God’s words and His plans to
suit what we have deemed to be important and representative of Him…and
to fall on our knees and say, “Lord, I’m ready for You to cultivate Your
good fruit in me.” Where are you marshaling your energies these days?
Are you focused on cultivating the “Fruits of the Spirit” and
demonstrating them to others…or are your efforts directed at making a
point?
Do you want to be a pretty hybrid, tasteless “fruit”…or
do you want to represent God’s best and finest? How you answer defines
your Christian faith and discipleship…and pretty well tells the world
where you stand. What is your “fruit” saying?
©2015 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment