Faith@Work        July 19, 2006        Fruit of the Spirit, Part Three

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in
him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." -
John 15:5

The Holy Spirit yearns to work in every Christian to develop the
character of Christ in his or her life. The purpose of this fruit is
to bless others and accomplish the mission of God in the world. This
transformative work is not done by our own effort, but by the power
of the Holy Spirit.

But does that mean that there's nothing we need to do to lead
fruitful lives? Absolutely not! The Word of God teaches us how to be
fruitful. I want to share some of those insights with you because I
want to encourage you to put these things into practice in your daily
life.

The journey of living a fruitful life begins by being born again. You
can't develop the character of Jesus if Jesus isn't alive in you. If
you've never taken that step of faith, opening your life to God's
work of forgiveness and grace, invite him in today.

The journey continues as we develop a love relationship with God. A
fruitful life, a life that is marked by the fruit of the Spirit,
grows out of a love relationship with God. God is constantly pursuing
a love relationship with you. More than anything God wants to you to
respond to his love for you by falling in love with him. A love
relationship with God is the soil out of which grows a fruitful life.

Let me share with you two ways that the Bible tells us to pursue that
love relationship in ways that bear fruit in our lives.

First, we need to remain in Jesus. In John 15 Jesus says, "Remain in
me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it
must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain
in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me
and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do
nothing." If you want to experience the transforming power of God in
your life, a power that bears fruit, you must remain in Jesus.

Second, we must live by the Spirit. In Galatians 5:16-17, Paul
wrote, "So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the
desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is
contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful
nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do
what you want."

How do we remain in Jesus? And how do we live by the Spirit? There
are many ways, but the most important is to stay rooted in the Bible.
Psalm 1:1-3 says, "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the
counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the
seat of mockers.  But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on
his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by
streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf
does not wither. Whatever he does prospers."

When we meditate on the Word of God regularly, filling our minds with
it and allowing it to work its way into our hearts and minds, the
Spirit guides us into the truth. And when we are obedient to the Word
of God we remain in Jesus. Jesus himself put it this way, "As the
Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If
you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have
obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love."

Fruitful living grows out of the fertile soil of a love relationship
with God. We can't produce the fruit of the Spirit in our life.
That's God's job. Our job is simply to fall ever more deeply in love
with the One who loved us enough to die for us.

Bringing It Home:
1.  What do you understand Jesus to mean when he says, "Apart from me
you can do nothing"? How is this reality impacting the way that you
live and prioritize your life?
2.  Are you falling more in love with God daily? What are you doing
to respond to God's constant pursuit of your heart?

Prayer
Father, thank you for loving me and for constantly pursuing me with
your love even when I stray away. Help me to abide in Jesus and to
fall ever more deeply in love with you. I want my life to be
fruitful, to make a difference in your Kingdom. And so today I yield
my life to the work of your Holy Spirit. Help me to become more like
my Lord Jesus in character and action. In his name I pray. Amen.


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