You should have the fruit of the Spirit to use the gifts of the Spirit. This is important because the gifts empower us to do mission and ministry. Without the gifts of the Holy Spirit our outreach, our ministry, our Christian life, our work, would be fruitless. To work in the Master's vineyard we must be trained and empowered by the Master.
On the other hand, the fruit allows us to live in community with other believers (as well as non-believers). Love, gentleness, longsuffering- These are attributes that are crucial to our relationships with people. These two things must be working together to accomplish anything near success or even fulfillment in the Christian life.
- The fruit allows the discretion to properly use your gifts. Because of the Holy Spirit reminding us how we are to relate to others, we better know how to minister to them.
- The fruit helps you be sensitive to the needs of others. Gentleness, peace and self-control will allow us to recognize and appropriately respond to our friends, family members, co-workers, neighbors and even other church people.
- The fruit helps you to be gentle in your relationships. If only we could take back all the hurtful, gossipy things that we have said. If only we could be sure that we would never hurt someone with our words again. With the fruit of the Spirit working in our lives we can get closer to that ideal.
Relate to one another with...
- Love. The mission of Jesus, and all his followers, is to love. Our priority is to love those around us. Care about everyone. Be sensitive to their needs. Love them not for what they can do for you, but because they are an important child of God.
- Listening. Pay attention when someone is talking. Three things will happen when you listen. First of all, you will hear what someone else is saying. Secondly, they will know that you care about them. And finally, if you are listening you will not be saying anything stupid.
- Patience. Take your time. Not everyone is going to learn, grow and change as fast as you are. Let your friends have time to heal from hurts and to experience the love of God.
- Understanding. This is the hardest part. When you listen to the needs of others, you have to do your best to be empathetic. Put yourself in someone else's position. Remember that Jesus did this all the time. He ate with publicans and sinners. He tried to understand everyone and their needs.
- Acceptance. There is no place in the Christian faith for judgmentalism. Jesus loves everyone. Although he does not approve of everything, he does accept all kinds of people. Christianity is no place for prejudice, bigotry or racism. You are not superior to anyone.
Either way, Christians should have all the fruit of the Spirit.
4 comments:
If the fruit of the Holy Spirit help us in our relationships to one another, should we value the fruit more than the gifts of the Spirit?
How can we find a balance between the two?
What implications are there for our relationships?
Are the gifts of the Spirit committment, hard-work, drive, talent, dedication, organization? If so, then the fruit of the Spirit is necessary to make the gifts of the Spirit successful. Imagine having organization, dedication and committment on a project without love, kindness, self-control and patience. One without the other would be a shame. Having kindness and goodness and doing nothing with them, or having hard-work and organization without faithfulness to Christ - not what Christ teaches. It is the same thing in relationships - without the fruit of the Spirit the relationship cannot grow.
I have to agree. The fruits and gifts must both be present in our lives.
I see the gifts, basically as something to edify other believers, while the fruits can be God showing His love to those inside AND outside the church.
Both are necessary. Both are required. I believe the fruits are contagious - others may want to have these same fruits if they see them.
I've been thinking about this all week and am in agreement with the other comments. However, if we put God first then our relationships with others will grow through the fruit & the gifts of the Spirit. I beleive that He promises that!
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