Temple Baptist Church - 8-30-2020
Ephesians 5:17-21; Galatians 5:13-24
Introduction:
A. The Fruit Bearing of Salvation – John 15:1-2, 5 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (Notice three phases that show fruit bearing is progressive and a result of growing spiritually.)
Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
1. The fruit of holiness brings blessing - Romans 6:22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
2. The fruit of the flesh brings death - Romans 7:5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
B. The Fruit Bearing of The Spirit.
Ephesians 5:9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
C. It is important to note the order of the nine aspects of spiritual fruit. The soul or heart comes first as it dictates the outcome of the other two parts.
1. Man is a trichotomy or three in one—soul which is self-conscious, body which is world conscious, and spirit which is God conscious. If the heart is not right, then our relationship with both man and God will not be right!
2. Three are inward which shows the condition of our soul: love, joy, peace.
3. Three are outward which is how we treat others: longsuffering, gentleness, goodness.
4. Three are upward which is how we approach God: faith, meekness, temperance.
5. If the soul, or heart of man, is not right—then our relationship with others and God will not be right.
D. How we walk spiritually decides what fruit we bear inwardly, outwardly, and upwardly.
Ephesians 5: 6-9 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them. For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
1. Goodness is inward as it dictates the condition of the heart of man. We often use the phrase “he is a good man” or “she is a good woman.”
2. Righteousness is outward and has to do with what we do works or righteousness. The inward dictates the outward.
3. Truth is upward as we are to worship God in spirit and truth. We cannot be right with God if we are not both inwardly right and outwardly right!
E. There are nine aspects of the fruit of the Spirit listed. To be filled with the Spirit is to possess all nine!
F. The Bible deals with the inward first because it is the inward that dictates the outward and upward.
G. The first aspect of the fruit of the Spirit is love. As the love of money is the root of all evil, the love that God instills within His children is the root of all righteousness.
H. If we are filled with the Spirit, we will love. I want to open this morning with the importance of love. In 1 Corinthians, chapter 13, we find the word “charity” used. Charity is an aspect of love but love covers a lot of ground. Charity is brotherly love so I will be careful not to take a verse out of context.
1 Corinthians 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. (When dealing with spiritual gifts, both passing and permanent, the Bible gives the importance of charity, i.e. brotherly love. The greatest gift that we have withing the local church is charity or brotherly love. Charity covers a multitude of sins! If we love right, we will interact right!)
J. When we are saved, at that moment, the Holy Ghost of God enters and indwells the believer and we become filled with love.
Romans 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. (The world has love but it is often misdirected or misused. The child of God has “the love of God” and the Bible says that “God is love!”)
1. We Will Love The Lord – Ephesians 6:24 Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
a. It Is A Submissive Love - John 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
John 14:23-24 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.
b. It Is A Serving Love - 1 Corinthians 5:14-15 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again
c. It Is A Sacrificial Love - 2 Corinthians 8:8-9 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love. For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
d. It Is A Surpassing Love - John 21:15 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.
2. We Will Love One Another - John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
1 Thessalonians 4:9 But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.
a. It Is A Witnessing Love - John 13:35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
b. It Is An Assuring Love - 1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
c. It Is A Forgiving Love - Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
d. It Is A Compassionate Love - John 15:12-13 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
1 John 3:17 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
e. It Is A Sincere Love - Romans 12:9-10 Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Galatians 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
3. We Will Love Sinners
Romans 13:9-10 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
4. We Will Love God’s Word
a. We will highly esteem it - Job 23:12 Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.
b. We will meditate in it - Psalms 1:1-2 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
c. We will obey it - 1 John 5:1-3 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
5. We Will Love God’s House
a. Shown through faithfulness - If the everyone came as often as you, what kind of church would we have?
b. Shown through willingness to help and work - If everyone did as much as you do, would the work of the Lord get done?
c. Shown through participation - How often do you attend extra-curricular activities
Conclusion: God’s love is something that does something to us and then does something through us.
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