Monthly Archives: December 2022

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The fruit of the Spirit is in Jesus.  When we have Jesus inside, we also have the fruit of the Spirit in us.  I have joy because I have Jesus and He’s in me.  I don’t call on myself, I call on Him.  But I don’t just have joy, I have all of the fruits listed above.  If you aren’t getting all of the fruit you’d like to see in your life, it’s because you’re not seeing who Jesus is in you!

So we get the fruit of Jesus, but are these fruits just hanging out on a limb?  I don’t think so!  I think the fruits of the Spirit flow together with the spiritual gifts.

Look back at the spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12 and let’s do a little application.  Get out a sheet of paper and make a list of the spiritual gifts on one side and the fruit of the spirit on the other.  Make sure you get them in the right order: first gift matches up with the first fruit and on down.  Did you do it?  Now let’s take a look.

First Corinthians mentions the word of wisdom first, and Galatians lists love first.  So when the Spirit tells us what to do (wisdom), and the fruit tells us how to do it (in love).  What’s next?  The word of knowledge and joy.  When you bring someone a word of knowledge, it should have joy with it.  What about faith?  Peace is the fruit that goes with it.

So when we get a spiritual gift, we want the fruit to go with it, because then we become like Jesus and all He has for us.

Father, I pray that You put a divine hunger in me for the fruit of the Spirit and the spiritual gift that goes along with it.  When these gifts and fruit flow together, they are absolutely beautiful.  Amen.

And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord: “For He is good, For His mercy endures forever toward Israel.” Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. – (Ezra 3:11 NKJV)

In the book of Ezra, we see a great restoration coming.  Ezra’s responsibility was to see that the temple and the people were restored.  It wasn’t just the temple that had fallen into shambles, but also the morality of God’s people.  In this way, Ezra’s restoration work foreshadows the work of Jesus in restoring man with God through the cross.

So, the first step to restoration was rebuilding the foundation.  In the verse above, we see that as soon as the foundation was laid, the people began to celebrate.  Why didn’t they wait until the entire structure was completed?  Because once the foundation was laid, everything else would spring forth from that.

What is our foundation as God’s people?  Ephesians 2:19-22 holds the answer:

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.  In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

Jesus is our foundation!

Jesus, I declare that You are the chief cornerstone.  Everything I am springs forth from You.  Thank You for Your work of restoration in my life!

David wrote the 23^rd Psalm before he went out to fight with Goliath.  No wonder he won if this was the reflection of his heart!  We all love the 23^rd Psalm, but did you know that it is filled with revelations about Jesus?  Let’s take a closer look.

The Lord is my shepherd…Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd” (see John 10:11).  I shall not want…Jesus is Jehovah-Jireh, the Lord who provides (see Genesis 22:14).  He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters…Jesus, our Jehovah Shalom, said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you” (see John 14:27).  He restores my soul… “By his wounds we are healed” (see Isaiah 53:5).  He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake…Jesus is my Jehovah Tsidkenu:  the Lord our righteousness (see Romans 3:22).  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me…Jesus is our Jehovah Shaba; He will never leave us nor forsake us (see Deuteronomy 31:6).

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies… “Thanks be to our God, Jehovah Nissi, the Lord our banner, who always leads us to triumph through Christ” (see Exodus 17:15).  You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over…An anointed head is one filled with the revelation knowledge of Jesus, which comes from reading the Bible (see 2 Timothy 2:7, et al).  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever…What follows behind you?  Goodness and mercy.  And it’s not just one day; it’s all the days of your life.

Jesus, I declare that You are my shepherd, my healer, my comforter and my peace!  Amen!

In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong. – (Job 1:22 NKJV)

A pastor once told me about a man in his church who was an excellent giver.  He loved God and stayed true to God, yet his whole business fell apart and he went into bankruptcy.

The man came to his pastor and said, “I don’t have a company anymore and I don’t have much to do, so I’ll just volunteer at the church until God open another door.” He didn’t get bitter.  He just stayed in faith, believing that God was going to take care of him.

I don’t know how long this went on, but one day he got a letter in the mail from a place he had worked at 20 years before.  The letter said, “We never gave you all of your retirement,” and included a check for $60,000.  Folks, that’s what faith can do!

I think sometimes we feel betrayed by God, because we didn’t get a certain answer and God didn’t do it exactly the way we thought He should; the timing can make us so nervous.  Just look at Job.  Job could have felt betrayed by God.  In fact, he did in the first part, but look what God had for him in the second part—double the blessings!  So, hang in there, because in due season we shall reap if we faint not.  And thanks be to God who always leads us to triumph in Christ!

Jesus, You are compassionate.  You care about me.  You want me to prosper.  You want me to do well.  And so, I commit to staying in faith and declare that I will see an end to my problems and I will triumph in Christ!  Amen.