Today I want to talk about our relationship with God and the affect of it in our relationships with people.
I want start with some reflections using these questions.
Who are you?
Do you have a good character?
How are you known by your family and friends and what do they talk about you?
She is so lovely, He is so stubborn.
He cannot control himself.
Do you love yourself?
Do you like to be with yourself?
Do you like the way you behave?
Do you love the person you are?
Do you think you can change or improve?
As a Christian we are called to be the salt and the light. Matheus 5.13-16
To be a blessing.
But sometimes we screw up, we don’t love others, we don’t behave in a nice way. We are mean, nasty and out of control.
How can I live a life that shows God’s love wherever I go?
This is a situation that all children of God face one day. As Christians we can be acting like wild animals. Even the first Christians from biblical time had this problem.
Let’s look at the book of Galatians
“My friends, God has chosen you to come to him so that you can be free. But you must be free in the right way. You are not free to do everything that, as a human person, you may sometimes want to do. Instead, you must be like servants to each other because you love each other. One rule brings together all the rules that God gave to the Jews ( the Ten Commandments) This one rule says: ‘Love other people as much as you love yourself.’ But do not be like wild animals. Wild animals fight and eat each other. If you are like that, be careful. Be careful that you do not destroy each other completely.”
Galatians 5:13-15 EASY
What’s the problem?
Looks like we can be nice in one place and wild in another.
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Galatians 5:16-21 NIV
How can we be controlled by His power and not by our flesh?
How can we produce the fruit of the spirit?
They are God’s qualities that He gives to us when we surrender our lives to him and allow him to control us through the Holy Spirit.
When we are not living in God’s way we have fear, anxiety, no peace, dread.
Our actions and reactions are controlled by fear of man and fear of failure.
We need to LIVE a life full of the Fear of God.
The Fear of the Lord is good, it brings us close to him and reminds us to not sin against him.
Only when we surrender we can produce the fruit of the spirit. Our flesh will call us to produce fleshy fruits – works of the flesh. Before we met God this was our nature. We were mean, anxious, grumpy, full of fear, seeking our own pleasure.
But now we are called to live and walk a different life.
For me the big challenge is walking. To live it talks about something inside of me but to walk it talks about a life style. It’s my outer expression.
A branch only produces fruits if it’s alive.
We need to show fruits. We need to produce something. If you have a relationship with God your life will show it.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance( patience) , kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
1- Love, peace and joy.
These are part of God’s character. We can have them inside of us independent of the circumstances or the person that you are dealing with. Holy Spirit pours them in our lives constantly.
2- patience, kindness, goodnesses
They are attitude to others, being able to wait and not being anxious, being kind and good. All the time. Not choosing whom you are patient with, whom you are kind or good to.
3- Faithfulness, patience and self-control
These are our lifestyle. We are called to live this way: full of faith, being patient to one another and controlling our desires.
When we are truly guided by the Spirit we will have this attitude naturally, but sometimes we relapse- it’s because we are allowing our flesh to make decisions for us again. We can change when we realise our mistakes, by repentance. Then you will return to God’s presence. Confession and repentance are the key.
We need to develop this habit of self examination (1 Co 11:28-29)
“Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.”
“If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else,”
Galatians 6:3-4 NIV
How often do you examine yourself? Only on the Lord’s Supper on Sunday.
I suggest you do it daily. Your devotional can’t just be reading one chapter of the bible and doing intercessory prayer.
Your devotional time must also be a time of self reflection and repentance. A time of worship too. It must be a time of connection with your beloved.
When you leave your bedroom after this time you should feel peaceful and ready for your day, with your mind renewed by the word of God. After all you were talking to your Daddy, your beloved Father.
When I spend time with my beloved ones, I feel so good. And we are supposed to feel the same with God. Every day you must set this goal: I will have a wonderful time with my Beloved. He will listen to me and I will learn something new from him.
Jesus said
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
Matthew 11:29 NIV
When we misbehave, we are mean, nasty, disrespectful. We are not living by the Spirit. This attitude is a very selfish way. We are only pleasing ourselves.
We grieve the Spirit of God; we lose our relationship with him. We can’t experience His presence.
Remember when someone is being nasty, out of control towards you they are hurting more themselves than you.
They will experience the consequences of lack of blessing just as you would if you choose to behave that way. How can I change? Through repentance and confession to God.
When we are led by the Spirit, we will produce this fruit by his grace.
Because of the relationship we develop with our God.
Remember it is by Grace. It’s through a relationship.
We are called to express the Kingdom of God wherever we go.
People are looking for God, they want to know him. How will they meet Jesus?[2]
Through Your fruits. Your life when you walk with God. You can show God with your attitudes, manners, behaviour. Because you have been walking with Him you will become like him.
“When they saw Peter and John’s confidence, and realised they were uneducated, ordinary men, they were very surprised. They also recognised them as Jesus’ companions.”
Acts 4:13
“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it remains part of the vine, so it is for you: you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me. I’m the vine, you’re the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit—for apart from me you can’t do anything.” John 15: 4,5
If you fear God, you will have a heart full of gratitude and desire to please him and never make him grieved or sad.
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed to the cross their sinful human nature, together with all their sinful passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit we should also walk in the Spirit. Let’s not become boastful, or irritate and envy one another.”
Galatians 5:24-26
Who are your Companions?
Who do you spend your time with?
Conclusion:
If we want to produce the fruits of the spirit, we need to be connected to God, and deny our own pleasure. Then we will live the life he prepared for us. A life with no fear and anxiety. But a life of peace and connection.