All Who Believe Should Desire To Share The Fruits & Gifts Of The Spirit

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice.’ (Proverbs 27:9)

I was asked recently what ‘fruit of the Spirit’ meant, and do all Christians really have such ‘fruit’.  My response is ‘yes, of course!’  One misconception is ‘fruit of the Spirit’ is reserved for those who preach or teach (or write long-winded blogs), but as Paul in Galatians 5:22-23 states, ‘Love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’ are those gifts.  These are not actions but attributes within the actions we are to take in the service of the Lord.

The ‘fruit of the Spirit’ ties into the ‘gifts of the Spirit’.  There are nine gifts as listed in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Wisdom, Knowledge, Faith, Healings, Miracles, Prophecy, Discernment (between Good and Evil), Speaking in ‘Tongues’ (or Languages), and Interpretation of ‘Tongues’. 

It is not that all are called to preach or become missionaries, but are all called to share the Gospel through our service to Him.  It is that whatever talents or resources the Lord provides, the Christian should want to, though under no obligation to do so other than to follow their Godly desire to serve Jesus, use their talents and resources to bring the Gospel and Jesus’ love to others, in support and fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20 & Acts 1:8).

One’s talents may be to provide counsel, or prepare food, or clean the church.  In earnestly performing these actions, the fruits and gifts of the Spirit will be on display. (Showing faithfulness and love through using the knowledge and wisdom to prepared meals for a church function, as an example.) Not all may be on display at one time, but at least some will be demonstrated.  A Believer will want to share their fruits and gifts with others, and do so with great Joy. 

It may not always be glamorous or in the spotlight; the Word-of-the-Day blog is seen by many so there is a level of notoriety that comes with it, but there is a web developer who works diligently to ensure the website is working and enables me to post daily, and for you the reader to have access to it. Without her work (that she does with Joyful contentment, though not always with happiness), I could not share this with all of you as I am blessed to do.

The fruits and the gifts of the Spirit are on display when one brings Joy to others; sharing and helping others in struggles, encouragement and constructive criticism are all part of providing your fruits and gifts to others. Using your fruits and gifts bring about the joy and pleasantness discussed in Proverbs 27:9.  

As not all talents provided by God are the same, neither are the needs of those who need on the receiving end of your fruits and gifts.  This is why, though the fruits and gifts of the Spirit are universal, they are not always equally applied or bestowed.  The person who greets visitors on Sunday may not do so well if someone need a meal made, or the Pastor may not be the best one to fix an audio/visual issue inside the church.  Each Christian has a part to play inside the church, each part comprises the Body of Believers. 

Not all of us are Joyful over the same things, either.  If you replace ‘perfume and incense’ with, say, ‘Bible stuff, gun stuff and steaks’ in the verse, for example; you would indeed bring Joy to my heart.  (I’m not into ‘perfume and incense’ as those would usually give me a sinus headache.)  Someone gave me a ‘2^nd Amendment’ ballcap for a Christmas gift a couple of years ago, and I treasure it greatly and am always Joyful (and in this case happy) to wear it – more for the thought than the gift itself (though I really like that cap).

Many have given me and my spouse things over the years that we treasure as well.  But what I always find more gratifying is in talking with others, for many give me advice and insight as well as letting me know some items they are going through so that I can try to reciprocate that help and advice back to them. 

We all have some things we keep private and to ourselves, and there are many things that should stay private.  Those things one can seek counsel from the Lord, and no one else.  We however should try to share issues we face where it would benefit us to gain the counsel of others, who have perhaps dealt with similar circumstances. 

We talk with some folks on medical concerns, and others about our shared love of cats.  Still others I talk through things about home improvement, even if it’s just to bounce an idea off of them.  We all can help and give greatly to one another, not through physical gifts but the gifts of friendship and Spiritual comforting.   

Jesus Himself came as our Savior, but first and foremost came as our Friend; not to condemn us but to save us.  His heartfelt advice is simple, ‘Follow Me’.  No other gift compares and nothing physical would ever match this gift.  The best advice to give is advice given with Jesus’ love in mind, and to Him be given the Glory.  When you give advice, give advice that Jesus would want you to give and give it out of love for another, as Jesus would give to you.