Weapons for the Believer: 4 – The Fruit of the Spirit

Weapons for the Believer: 4 – The Fruit of the Spirit

According to Paul, there are weapons of warfare.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 (ESV)

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.

We are considering ten weapons that the Believer has at their disposal. We looked at the first three in previous posts. If you haven’t read them I encourage you to take time to do so.

The next weapon on the list is in itself a list. These are referred to as The Fruit of the Spirit.

Ephesians 5:8-11 (ESV)

… Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light (KJV says Spirit) is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.

Galatians 5:19-24 (ESV)

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Weapon #4: Bear the fruit of the Spirit – love: joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

I have seen this list presented a little differently, as I typed it in the statement above. It asserts that the Fruit of the Spirit is love. Then, after inserting a colon, the remainder of this list is given as the Fruit of Love. I don’t believe it would be wrong to consider this notion. I began contemplating this and came up with the following:

The Fruit of the Spirit is love.

Joy is love’s emotion.

Peace is love’s guide.

Patience is love’s behavior.

Kindness is love’s demeanor.

Goodness is love’s action.

Faithfulness is love’s testimony.

Gentleness is love’s approach.

Self-control is love’s constraint.

As I stated at the outset of this study, I believe God has given us principles by which to live our lives that will keep us from most reasons to fight. This weapon is no different. When we allow the Fruit of the Spirit, which is simply the life of Jesus being manifested in us, we will extinguish most fires before they reach an unmanageable state. When the enemy comes to provoke us, to get us to lash out at others in an unseemly way, our response will determine the outcome.

Considering love to be the Fruit of the Spirit, the indwelling presence of God, makes sense to me. The first 2 weapons considered were: 1) Love God. 2) Love others as you love yourself. Then the third weapon was: 3) Speak the truth in love. This is one of the reasons Jesus came to earth; to reveal the Father’s heart for us. God is love, and His heart is to show His love through you and me.

So, love. Be joyful. Follow peace. Live with patience. Display kindness. Respond with goodness. Remain faithful. Act in gentleness. Stay true to the mission. We are the Body of Christ in the earth. Let others see Jesus through you.

Weapons for the Believer: 3 - Speak the Truth In Love

Weapons for the Believer: 3 - Speak the Truth In Love

A while back I posted a question on FaceBook regarding the weapons of warfare for the Christian. According to Paul, there are weapons of warfare.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 (ESV)

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.

I listed a few and asked for help with others. When all was said and done the list stood at ten. I’m still open to hearing more if you have other thoughts. Over the next few days we will consider the ten weapons that the Believer has at their disposal. We looked at the first two last time.

The next weapon on the list (and these are in no particular order) has to do with our speech.

3. Speak the truth in love.

By speaking honestly we eliminate the opportunity for the devil to get into the mix. It’s only when we give a place for him that creates the need for warfare.

Ephesians 4:14-16 (ESV)

… so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Do you notice the “Rather” in the middle of these verses? The presence of this word tells us of an alternative to being “tossed to and fro” and falling victim to “craftiness in deceitful schemes.” Speaking the truth in love keeps us from these things. Like we saw with the first two, this weapon (of sorts) is designed to keep us from danger. When you live a transparent life, God’s grace empowers you live above the fray. Pastor Bobby Gourley recently stated it like this. “Transparency leads to humility and humility produces grace. Self-preservation leads to pride and pride produces God’s opposition.”

When we live a transparent life, and speak the truth, it prevents so many stumbling blocks from coming into our path. Telling the truth does not require any extra effort. As a matter of fact, it requires less effort because you don’t have to keep track of what you said and to whom! Give it a try. Not only will you feel better about yourself, but you will also thwart any attempt at the devil to interfere with your relationships with others.

Speaking truth then opens the door for the second aspect of this weapon; in love. We can speak the truth through clinched teeth, or red-faced with veins popping out of our neck. Yes, that is the truth, but certainly not being communicated in love. Unless you share the love of God along with any truth you want to communicate, all you have become is, as 1 Corinthians 13 says, “clanging brass or tinkling cymbal.” Truth can only have its full impact when delivered wrapped in the bow of God’s love.

I’m excited about this series. I hope you stay tuned as we explore the rest of these weapons of the Believer. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Weapons for the Believer: 1 and 2 - Love God, Love Others as You Love Yourself

Weapons for the Believer: 1 and 2 - Love God, Love Others as You Love Yourself

A while back I posted a question on FaceBook regarding the weapons of warfare for the Christian. According to Paul, there are weapons of warfare.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 (ESV)

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.

I listed a few and asked for help with others. When all was said and done the list stood at ten. I’m still open to hearing more if you have other thoughts. Over the next few days we will consider the ten weapons that the Believer has at their disposal. Let’s get started.

The first two go together. They actually do not seem like weapons, but when you read a little further in 2 Corinthians you begin to see that the most significant battle we face is one against our own nature.

2 Corinthians 10:5-6 (ESV)

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.

This is the counsel of Jesus on how to deal with the war we wage on our nature.

1. Love the Lord with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength.

2. Love your neighbor as yourself.

Matthew 22:36-40 (ESV)

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

When we expend every ounce of effort we have toward loving God completely there is nothing left with which to fight against Him. Even though this does not sound like typical warfare, it is certainly a way to gain an advantage over our enemy.

James 4:7-8 (ESV)

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

There is a direct correlation to our proximity to God and the proximity of the devil to us. As we move toward God we move away from the devil. As a matter of fact, the devil actually moves away (flees) from us.

The second of this pair of weapons is to love others (our neighbor) like we love ourselves. One of my favorite C. S. Lewis quotes speaks to this aspect of the life of the Believer. He said, “Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.” God loves you. He also loves those around you just as much. He wants you to love them as well. In doing so, you will eliminate the possibility of so many issues that might occur between us and our “neighbors.” This is a very strong military tactic. It is a weapon of warfare for the Believer as well.

Let’s take some time to evaluate our effectiveness with these two weapons at our disposal. They can make a huge impact in our ability to fight the good fight of faith.

Square Peg – Round Hole

Square Peg – Round Hole

There is an old adage that says, “You can’t put a square peg in a round hole.” Sometimes things just don’t fit. Relationships can be that way. Temperaments clash, or likes and dislikes just don’t mesh. There are many reasons people do not get along.

However, I realized something today as I was fiddling with my latest gadget. I signed up for a Square account so I could take credit card payment for my book sales. It is a great service, and not very expensive. You just plug the Square reader into the iPhone audio jack, download the app, and you’re ready to go.

I ran into a slight problem, however, when I tried to plug the Square Reader into my phone. I have one of the big-honking protective cases on my iPhone. I have never dropped my phone, but in case I ever do, I don’t want a cracked screen, or worse! The thickness of the protective case would not allow the pin to seat properly in the phone’s audio jack. Consequently, there was no way to use the Square reader without first removing the case.

This is so true regarding relationships. We tend to put up such a massive wall around us to keep anything, or anyone, from hurting us that we also prevent good things from making contact as well. Not only is this true of human relationships, but it also can affect our relationship with God. The same guard we erect to keep us safe from emotional harm also closes off ALL attempts to touch our soul.

My pastor spoke on this very thing this past Sunday. He said, “Transparency leads to humility, and humility produces grace. Self-preservation leads to pride, and pride produces God’s opposition” The more vulnerable we become with those around us, the more open we will be to allow God’s grace to sustain us.

I found a work-around to the problem of using the Square with my phone case still intact. I purchased an adapter that provides an extension, which gives enough clearance for the Square Reader to fully engage in the audio jack on the phone. This is what led to the byline of this post: Square peg in a round hole. You see, God always has a way. Even if we are “square pegs in a world of round holes,” there is still hope for us.

A licensed pastoral counselor and I were discussing temperaments one day. A temperament is simply the way you came prewired by God. Each temperament has good and not-so-good qualities. She explained, “One good thing about being a Christian is that God ‘tempers’ our temperament.” Through the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Believer, God “rounds off” some of the sharp edges that tend to keep us causing harm to others. In other words, He serves as an “adapter” to help us function in our world, even when things don’t exactly fit.

This is also the work of God’s grace in our life. My prayer this day is that you can find the grace to allow God’s Holy Spirit to begin His work of dismantling your outer protective shell that you’ve spend years building, and let Him touch you with His healing to stop the pain of past hurts, and allow you to become “real” again. It will be uncomfortable at first, but that is why His grace is there: to help you start the process of grace flowing into you from the Lord, and then back out of you to those around you.

The Five Fold Ministry – All We Need Is Love

The Five Fold Ministry – All We Need Is Love

Five Fold Ministry, Ascension Gifts, or Equipping Gifts – regardless what you call them they all mean basically the same thing. None of these labels are found in scripture, but they all refer to the list of titles or offices found in Ephesians 4:11. Paul gives a list of “gifts”, according to what he called them, that Jesus gave to the Church after He ascended into heaven to be seated at the right hand of the Father. Look at these statements in context.

Ephesians 4:7-14 (ESV) But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.”

…

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds (KJV says pastors), and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, …

If this list were intended to be the foundation for Church government I believe much more would have been said about their qualifications, form, and function. Paul gave qualifications and a description of duties for deacons and overseers (or bishop, elder, etc. depending on translation) in one of his letters to Timothy (1 Timothy 3). He also explicitly referred to them as being an office in the Church.

Paul gives a different list of ministries in 1 Corinthians 12:27-31. Why is this list not considered when naming “offices” or “ministry gifts” to the church?

1 Corinthians 12:27-31 (ESV) Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.

Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts.

Which has more spiritual significance: Jesus giving gifts or God appointing people in the church? Here, eight different functions are mentioned, including apostle, prophet, and teacher, but omitting evangelist and shepherd (pastor). Added to the list from Ephesians are miracles, healing, helping, administrating, and tongues.

Paul then asks several rhetorical questions with the implied answer to each one being “No.” After listing most of the functions previously listed, he then urges his readers to desire the higher gifts. The implication is that none of these listed are the “higher gifts,” including apostles, prophets, and teachers.

As you know, chapter and verse delineations were not part of the original letters in scripture. They were added for ease of reference. In light of this, the very next thing Paul states after “desire the higher gifts” is 1 Corinthians 13.

1 Corinthians 13:1-2 (ESV) If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

Perhaps we have missed Paul’s focus of trying to explain the diversity of function while stating the singleness of purpose. If we cannot love one another it really does not matter what the sign says on our door. Instead of fighting over who is in charge let us learn to love our Brothers and Sisters in the Church, and find ways to serve them instead of severing our Lord’s Body.