We have spent eight weeks considering the fruit of the Spirit as it is described in Galatians 5:22-23. Remember, if you are a Christian you have at least some measure of all these qualities, which were demonstrated by Jesus during his life on earth. By grace, you should grow in all of them by the help of the Holy Spirit.
Here is a summary of each of the qualities listed in Galatians 5. As you review them, consider the following questions and discuss the answers in your men’s group:
! In which of the qualities do you need to grow the most?
! Have you seen growth in these qualities over the last 8 weeks?
! What will you do over the summer months to continue to grow in the fruit of the Spirit?
Love is the sum and source of all the other qualities. It 1) is practical, 2) involves doing unpleasant things, 3) requires humility to do tasks that are beneath you, or not worthy of your time and talents, and 4) is not always welcomed (but that shouldn’t keep you from showing it).
Joy is "the spiritual buoyancy that comes from enjoying the privileges you have in Christ." Joy keeps us from giving in to the sorrows of life. Sadness seeps into our lives regularly, but when you remember the privileges and promises that you have in Christ, the joy overwhelm the sadness.
Peace is inner confidence and trust in God's wise and good control of your life.
Faithfulness is being trustworthy, reliable, true to your word, doing what you said you would do, keeping your promises, being a person someone can trust and rely on, being loyal even when the pressure is on.
Patience is the quality of being long suffering, to be long-fused rather than short-fused. It means that it takes a lot to get your dander up to the point where you lash out with your hand, tongue, or in your heart and will.
Kindness is a thoughtful, considerate disposition that a believer has toward a person; goodness is the concrete expression of that kindness in deeds. To put it another way, "goodness is the outgoing expression of a kind spirit."
Meekness is a quality that is a blend of humility, gentleness, and courage or boldness. Meekness has been described as “a quiet strength.”
Self-control is the mastery of your self. It is the ability to stay on the mission that God has given you (to love God and love people for God's glory) and not be derailed by temptation.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Self-control
In this men's ministry series we have been looking at the various character qualities that make up the fruit of the Spirit These are qualities that the Spirit produces and qualities that we ought to be prayerfully and purposely pursuing. This week we come to the last quality of the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23, the quality of self-control.
Self-control is the mastery of your self. It is the ability to stay on the mission that God has given you and not be derailed by temptation. What is the essential mission God has given you? To love God and love people for God's glory. That means a lot of different things in every area of your life—work, relationships, church, money, etc. The opposite of self-control is self-indulgence, which is getting distracted from the mission. Self-indulgence is turning off the road by taking the exit ramp of temptation into sin. Paul gives examples of this in 5:19-21 (sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these).
In Matthew 4:1-12 we see the self-control of Jesus when Satan tempted him in the wilderness. The three temptations were the first major challenge to Christ's mission; Satan tried to derail him, but Christ exerted self-control and stayed on course.
Matthew 4:1-11
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." 4But he answered,
"It is written,
"'Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,
"'He will command his angels concerning you,' and
"'On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"
7Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 10Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written,
"'You shall worship the Lord your God
and him only shall you serve.'"
11Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Recall the events leading up to Christ's temptations. 1) Christ had just been baptized and anointed by John the Baptist for his ministry as the great High Priest; 2) he was baptized with the Holy Spirit in full measure; 3) the Spirit led him into the wilderness to be tested. God was testing his Son, just as he had tested his son Adam in the Garden and tested his son Israel in the wilderness, so that he might learn obedience (Heb. 5:8).
As God was testing Jesus, Satan was also at work, tempting him to be self-indulgent and disobey his Father. Satan didn't want Christ to get to the cross; he wanted him to avoid the hard path of obedience and suffering that was his as the Messiah.
First temptation: Don't trust your Father Satan tried to persuade Jesus to use his power to avoid starvation instead of trusting his Father to give him food after the fast was over. He wanted Christ to use his divine power, rather than obey in his human strength as the representative of mankind.
Jesus responded with Scripture, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3. In effect, he said, Satan, my Father said a long time ago to the children of Israel and I say the same thing to you: man is not ultimately dependent on bread, but on Him, the creative and sustaining power of all things. He is the only indispensable source of man's life and well-being. Christ intended, no matter how hungry and weak he was, to maintain self-control and wait until his Father provided food for him.
Second temptation: Test God Satan tried to lure Jesus into creating an artificial crisis, a situation which would not happen in the normal course of obedience service to the Father. The crisis would manipulate the Father into showing his dependability. Christ responded with self-control, quoting from Scripture: "You shall not put the Lord God to the test." He was saying I'm not going to dive off to see if my Father will save me. He hasn't commanded me to do so. I would be testing and experimenting with my Father.
Third temptation: Worship me! Satan made one final attempt to derail Christ. As one author described the temptation, "Satan presented Christ with a vision of the world in which nations stood ready to abandon their idols and accept Christ as Lord ... Christ could win the world without pain—no weeping over Jerusalem, no crucifixion ...." All Jesus had to do was bow and worship Satan, acknowledging his lordship over mankind.
Christ knew that the road God had placed him on had a cross at the end of it, and he had to go all the way to the end. So, with utter self-control (unlike the first Adam), Christ, the second Adam, stood above the wilderness and cried, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.'" At that moment, Christ triumphed over temptation and the Tempter.
What do we learn about temptation and self-control?
1. Temptation is an invitation to take a detour and disobey God—to indulge your desires. It is an exit ramp. And sometimes when you get off on an exit, it's hard to get back on the road. By the time you do, your marriage may be gone, you may be enslaved to drugs, you may be in financial hardship, etc. Don't get off the road.
2. Temptation is inevitable. Jesus was full of the Spirit and led by the Spirit, and he had an absolutely pure heart, and yet he experienced temptation. Don't be naive to think that you are beyond temptation. Don't think it's strange that you experience temptation to do awful things. You are in spiritual warfare with the world, the flesh, and the devil. Testing and trials are the way to holiness and heaven.
3. Satan doesn't always tempt you with bad things; he tempted Jesus with bread, not booze; with safety, not sex; and with power. These were good things. Today, he tempts you to put good things in the place of first importance over God—things like friendship, family, respect, romance, financial stability, etc. If any of these things are of greater importance to you than God, they will control you. You will not have self-control, and eventually you will take the exit ramp of temptation away from God.
• If you live for human approval, people will control you.
• If you live for money or power, your greed will control you.
• If you live for pleasure, your physical desires will control you.
How do we grow in self-control, so that we are able to stay on the road?
1. You must know the Word of God well, so it is right there to counter the temptation when it comes.
2. The love of Christ for you must control you. You need to see that Christ was not just resisting temptation for himself, he was resisting temptation for you. As the second Adam, he set out to undo the results of the first Adam's fall by living a righteous life and then dying on the cross to pay the price for all the times that you lacked self-control and went off the exit ramp of temptation and into sin.
Christ loves you. That truth needs to be real to you; it needs to hem you in so that you stay on the road and fulfill your mission to love God and love others for God's glory. The Redeemer's Word and love for you must be like a video, constantly playing in your life, so that you stay on the road.
How will you respond?
Growing in self-control requires discipline. If you lack self-control, it is hard to exercise discipline.
1. Read the Word and meditate on the love of Christ for you. Do this regularly. How can your men's group encourage one another to do this?
2. In what areas do you tend to struggle most with lack of self-control? What do you need to do differently? How do you need to think differently?
Self-control is the mastery of your self. It is the ability to stay on the mission that God has given you and not be derailed by temptation. What is the essential mission God has given you? To love God and love people for God's glory. That means a lot of different things in every area of your life—work, relationships, church, money, etc. The opposite of self-control is self-indulgence, which is getting distracted from the mission. Self-indulgence is turning off the road by taking the exit ramp of temptation into sin. Paul gives examples of this in 5:19-21 (sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these).
In Matthew 4:1-12 we see the self-control of Jesus when Satan tempted him in the wilderness. The three temptations were the first major challenge to Christ's mission; Satan tried to derail him, but Christ exerted self-control and stayed on course.
Matthew 4:1-11
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." 4But he answered,
"It is written,
"'Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,
"'He will command his angels concerning you,' and
"'On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"
7Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 10Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written,
"'You shall worship the Lord your God
and him only shall you serve.'"
11Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Recall the events leading up to Christ's temptations. 1) Christ had just been baptized and anointed by John the Baptist for his ministry as the great High Priest; 2) he was baptized with the Holy Spirit in full measure; 3) the Spirit led him into the wilderness to be tested. God was testing his Son, just as he had tested his son Adam in the Garden and tested his son Israel in the wilderness, so that he might learn obedience (Heb. 5:8).
As God was testing Jesus, Satan was also at work, tempting him to be self-indulgent and disobey his Father. Satan didn't want Christ to get to the cross; he wanted him to avoid the hard path of obedience and suffering that was his as the Messiah.
First temptation: Don't trust your Father Satan tried to persuade Jesus to use his power to avoid starvation instead of trusting his Father to give him food after the fast was over. He wanted Christ to use his divine power, rather than obey in his human strength as the representative of mankind.
Jesus responded with Scripture, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3. In effect, he said, Satan, my Father said a long time ago to the children of Israel and I say the same thing to you: man is not ultimately dependent on bread, but on Him, the creative and sustaining power of all things. He is the only indispensable source of man's life and well-being. Christ intended, no matter how hungry and weak he was, to maintain self-control and wait until his Father provided food for him.
Second temptation: Test God Satan tried to lure Jesus into creating an artificial crisis, a situation which would not happen in the normal course of obedience service to the Father. The crisis would manipulate the Father into showing his dependability. Christ responded with self-control, quoting from Scripture: "You shall not put the Lord God to the test." He was saying I'm not going to dive off to see if my Father will save me. He hasn't commanded me to do so. I would be testing and experimenting with my Father.
Third temptation: Worship me! Satan made one final attempt to derail Christ. As one author described the temptation, "Satan presented Christ with a vision of the world in which nations stood ready to abandon their idols and accept Christ as Lord ... Christ could win the world without pain—no weeping over Jerusalem, no crucifixion ...." All Jesus had to do was bow and worship Satan, acknowledging his lordship over mankind.
Christ knew that the road God had placed him on had a cross at the end of it, and he had to go all the way to the end. So, with utter self-control (unlike the first Adam), Christ, the second Adam, stood above the wilderness and cried, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.'" At that moment, Christ triumphed over temptation and the Tempter.
What do we learn about temptation and self-control?
1. Temptation is an invitation to take a detour and disobey God—to indulge your desires. It is an exit ramp. And sometimes when you get off on an exit, it's hard to get back on the road. By the time you do, your marriage may be gone, you may be enslaved to drugs, you may be in financial hardship, etc. Don't get off the road.
2. Temptation is inevitable. Jesus was full of the Spirit and led by the Spirit, and he had an absolutely pure heart, and yet he experienced temptation. Don't be naive to think that you are beyond temptation. Don't think it's strange that you experience temptation to do awful things. You are in spiritual warfare with the world, the flesh, and the devil. Testing and trials are the way to holiness and heaven.
3. Satan doesn't always tempt you with bad things; he tempted Jesus with bread, not booze; with safety, not sex; and with power. These were good things. Today, he tempts you to put good things in the place of first importance over God—things like friendship, family, respect, romance, financial stability, etc. If any of these things are of greater importance to you than God, they will control you. You will not have self-control, and eventually you will take the exit ramp of temptation away from God.
• If you live for human approval, people will control you.
• If you live for money or power, your greed will control you.
• If you live for pleasure, your physical desires will control you.
How do we grow in self-control, so that we are able to stay on the road?
1. You must know the Word of God well, so it is right there to counter the temptation when it comes.
2. The love of Christ for you must control you. You need to see that Christ was not just resisting temptation for himself, he was resisting temptation for you. As the second Adam, he set out to undo the results of the first Adam's fall by living a righteous life and then dying on the cross to pay the price for all the times that you lacked self-control and went off the exit ramp of temptation and into sin.
Christ loves you. That truth needs to be real to you; it needs to hem you in so that you stay on the road and fulfill your mission to love God and love others for God's glory. The Redeemer's Word and love for you must be like a video, constantly playing in your life, so that you stay on the road.
How will you respond?
Growing in self-control requires discipline. If you lack self-control, it is hard to exercise discipline.
1. Read the Word and meditate on the love of Christ for you. Do this regularly. How can your men's group encourage one another to do this?
2. In what areas do you tend to struggle most with lack of self-control? What do you need to do differently? How do you need to think differently?
Monday, May 11, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Meekness
We are examining the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23. The fruit of the Spirit describes the kind of character and lifestyle you are to have as a person who has the Holy Spirit. If you are walking in step with the Spirit—that is, in step with his Word—you will have real love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and the quality that we are looking at this week: meekness.
Meekness is a misunderstood quality. Many people think of a meek person as a person with no backbone, a pushover, a wimp. It doesn't mean that at all. Moses and Jesus were meek—but they were not wimps!
Moses was the meekest man on earth (Numbers 12:3). He went to Pharaoh and said, "Let my people go," and, in effect, told Pharaoh to give up his entire slave labor force, which was at the heart of Egypt's military and economic superiority, to give it up without remuneration, and to do it now!
Christ described himself as meek. In Matthew 11:28-30 he said, "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will refresh you. Put My yoke on you and learn from Me; I am meek and humble in heart, and you will discover refreshment for your souls. My yoke is easy to wear and My burden is light." But we know that Christ had tremendous strength and backbone.
What is meekness? The word is used to describe a wild, powerful horse that has been tamed and is now submissive to the rider. Meekness has been described as quiet strength. The Kid Zone, (our children’s after-school program) uses the definition that "meekness is being willing to give up my rights in order to put others first. Meekness waits for God to bring about justice." Meekness is a quality that is a blend of humility, gentleness and courage or boldness. We saw it last week in Luke 7:36-50, in the story of Jesus and the forgiven prostitute. Simon didn't approve of this woman; he wanted Jesus to reject her. But instead, Jesus paid attention to her, talked with her, and assured her of his forgiveness and her faith; He acted with humility, gentleness, and boldness. Jesus didn't treat her as beneath him, even though morally, she was. This is also how he treated Judas when he washed his feet, and the three disciples when they fell asleep in the garden.
Meekness is a quality that Jesus expects you to have in your relationships with others; it is much needed. The need for meekness is clear in Galatians 6:1-2.
Galatians 6:1-2
1 Brothers, even if a person is caught in some trespass, you who have the Spirit should restore him in a spirit of meekness, watching out for yourself so that you won't be tempted too. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill Christ's law.
You need to have meekness because you have the responsibility to restore those who have fallen into sin. Christians are susceptible to falling into sin, straying from God, and really messing up their lives. It happens more than it should, and it happens to younger and older Christians alike.
For example, believers may have marriage problems and need help; someone may fall into adultery; a person may become deeply depressed; others try to escape difficult circumstances through drugs or alcohol; and some get distracted by the world and simply drift away from God. You probably know someone in trouble. Perhaps you've been there yourself.
What does God want you to do when he puts a wounded Christian friend in your path? He doesn't want you to 1) ignore them, 2) gossip about them, 3) write them off, or 4) condemn them. Rather, God wants you to work to restore them.
In Bible times, the word restore was used by doctors about setting a bone. When a broken bone was set and healed, it would become useful again—restored. Also, fishermen would use the same word about mending their ripped nets. After the nets were mended they were useful again—restored.
When a brother that you know falls into sin and away from God, God wants you to go to him, extend your hand to pull him out of the swamp of sin that he has fallen into, and help him to become useful again in the body of Christ. He has God-given gifts to be used, and without him, the rest of the body suffers.
Isn't that the responsibility of the pastor and elders? Read the verses again: "you who have the Spirit ...." Some translations say "you who are spiritual" but that simply means "those who have the Holy Spirit," which means all Christians. Now, if you are stuck in sin yourself, obviously you can't help. But otherwise you should be willing and ready to go. (If you aren't successful at extricating the erring brother, then others must be enlisted, including the elders, but that is further down the road of church discipline.)
Where does meekness fit into your responsibility to restore a fallen brother? When you go to your brother in meekness, it means you go to him in humility. You go as one sinner to another, realizing you are no better than he is; but for the grace of God, you would be in the same place. In fact, because you know you are susceptible to falling into sin, you are very wise and careful in your effort to restore your fallen brother so you won't fall into sin with him. That is humility.
Along with humility, there is gentleness. You know that the way of the transgressor is hard; he is already beaten up enough from his sinful choices. A meek person doesn't kick a person who he is down. He is gentle in his speech and in his actions (2 Tim. 2:22; 1 Cor. 4:21).
In addition to the humility and gentleness, a meek person has courage or boldness. You need courage to go to an erring brother; it is just plain hard to do! You might be afraid of how he will respond to you. If it is a friend, you might be afraid he will end the friendship—but if you are meek, you go anyway, and you courageously speak the truth in love to your fallen comrade.
How do you grow in meekness? Meekness grows in the heart of a believer who is aware of his own sinfulness and is grieved by it. This awareness of sin fosters humility and gentleness.
Meekness grows also in the heart of a believer who knows he is loved and forgiven by Christ, who was condemned in his place. Since a believer is loved, forgiven, and accepted by the Father, he knows that God is for him and with him, so he has the courage to do the work of restoring his erring brother.
Finally, meekness grows in the heart of a believer who is learning to love his neighbor as himself. Love is other-centered, so the believer who loves his fallen brother will overcome his own fear and, instead of giving in to it, find the courage and gentleness to try to rescue that brother.
How will you respond?
Discussion: "Meekness is a quality that is a blend of humility, gentleness and courage." Which of these qualities do you most need to strengthen?
Do you know someone who is caught in sin and has fallen away from God, or is drifting away? Perhaps it's a family member or someone at work. God is asking you to go. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." Jesus loved you by bearing your burden of sin on the cross and dying for it. He didn't stand by and watch you suffer under the burden of your sin. He bore it so that you could be freed from sin and able to love him and others. So like Jesus, you go, and go with meekness.
Are there specific situations where you need meekness? Pray together with the men in your group for God to help you grow in meekness.
Meekness is a misunderstood quality. Many people think of a meek person as a person with no backbone, a pushover, a wimp. It doesn't mean that at all. Moses and Jesus were meek—but they were not wimps!
Moses was the meekest man on earth (Numbers 12:3). He went to Pharaoh and said, "Let my people go," and, in effect, told Pharaoh to give up his entire slave labor force, which was at the heart of Egypt's military and economic superiority, to give it up without remuneration, and to do it now!
Christ described himself as meek. In Matthew 11:28-30 he said, "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will refresh you. Put My yoke on you and learn from Me; I am meek and humble in heart, and you will discover refreshment for your souls. My yoke is easy to wear and My burden is light." But we know that Christ had tremendous strength and backbone.
What is meekness? The word is used to describe a wild, powerful horse that has been tamed and is now submissive to the rider. Meekness has been described as quiet strength. The Kid Zone, (our children’s after-school program) uses the definition that "meekness is being willing to give up my rights in order to put others first. Meekness waits for God to bring about justice." Meekness is a quality that is a blend of humility, gentleness and courage or boldness. We saw it last week in Luke 7:36-50, in the story of Jesus and the forgiven prostitute. Simon didn't approve of this woman; he wanted Jesus to reject her. But instead, Jesus paid attention to her, talked with her, and assured her of his forgiveness and her faith; He acted with humility, gentleness, and boldness. Jesus didn't treat her as beneath him, even though morally, she was. This is also how he treated Judas when he washed his feet, and the three disciples when they fell asleep in the garden.
Meekness is a quality that Jesus expects you to have in your relationships with others; it is much needed. The need for meekness is clear in Galatians 6:1-2.
Galatians 6:1-2
1 Brothers, even if a person is caught in some trespass, you who have the Spirit should restore him in a spirit of meekness, watching out for yourself so that you won't be tempted too. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill Christ's law.
You need to have meekness because you have the responsibility to restore those who have fallen into sin. Christians are susceptible to falling into sin, straying from God, and really messing up their lives. It happens more than it should, and it happens to younger and older Christians alike.
For example, believers may have marriage problems and need help; someone may fall into adultery; a person may become deeply depressed; others try to escape difficult circumstances through drugs or alcohol; and some get distracted by the world and simply drift away from God. You probably know someone in trouble. Perhaps you've been there yourself.
What does God want you to do when he puts a wounded Christian friend in your path? He doesn't want you to 1) ignore them, 2) gossip about them, 3) write them off, or 4) condemn them. Rather, God wants you to work to restore them.
In Bible times, the word restore was used by doctors about setting a bone. When a broken bone was set and healed, it would become useful again—restored. Also, fishermen would use the same word about mending their ripped nets. After the nets were mended they were useful again—restored.
When a brother that you know falls into sin and away from God, God wants you to go to him, extend your hand to pull him out of the swamp of sin that he has fallen into, and help him to become useful again in the body of Christ. He has God-given gifts to be used, and without him, the rest of the body suffers.
Isn't that the responsibility of the pastor and elders? Read the verses again: "you who have the Spirit ...." Some translations say "you who are spiritual" but that simply means "those who have the Holy Spirit," which means all Christians. Now, if you are stuck in sin yourself, obviously you can't help. But otherwise you should be willing and ready to go. (If you aren't successful at extricating the erring brother, then others must be enlisted, including the elders, but that is further down the road of church discipline.)
Where does meekness fit into your responsibility to restore a fallen brother? When you go to your brother in meekness, it means you go to him in humility. You go as one sinner to another, realizing you are no better than he is; but for the grace of God, you would be in the same place. In fact, because you know you are susceptible to falling into sin, you are very wise and careful in your effort to restore your fallen brother so you won't fall into sin with him. That is humility.
Along with humility, there is gentleness. You know that the way of the transgressor is hard; he is already beaten up enough from his sinful choices. A meek person doesn't kick a person who he is down. He is gentle in his speech and in his actions (2 Tim. 2:22; 1 Cor. 4:21).
In addition to the humility and gentleness, a meek person has courage or boldness. You need courage to go to an erring brother; it is just plain hard to do! You might be afraid of how he will respond to you. If it is a friend, you might be afraid he will end the friendship—but if you are meek, you go anyway, and you courageously speak the truth in love to your fallen comrade.
How do you grow in meekness? Meekness grows in the heart of a believer who is aware of his own sinfulness and is grieved by it. This awareness of sin fosters humility and gentleness.
Meekness grows also in the heart of a believer who knows he is loved and forgiven by Christ, who was condemned in his place. Since a believer is loved, forgiven, and accepted by the Father, he knows that God is for him and with him, so he has the courage to do the work of restoring his erring brother.
Finally, meekness grows in the heart of a believer who is learning to love his neighbor as himself. Love is other-centered, so the believer who loves his fallen brother will overcome his own fear and, instead of giving in to it, find the courage and gentleness to try to rescue that brother.
How will you respond?
Discussion: "Meekness is a quality that is a blend of humility, gentleness and courage." Which of these qualities do you most need to strengthen?
Do you know someone who is caught in sin and has fallen away from God, or is drifting away? Perhaps it's a family member or someone at work. God is asking you to go. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." Jesus loved you by bearing your burden of sin on the cross and dying for it. He didn't stand by and watch you suffer under the burden of your sin. He bore it so that you could be freed from sin and able to love him and others. So like Jesus, you go, and go with meekness.
Are there specific situations where you need meekness? Pray together with the men in your group for God to help you grow in meekness.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness and Goodness
We are in the midst of a study on the fruit of the Spirit. Each week, from a different passage, we've looked at one facet of this jewel that is produced, ultimately, by the Holy Spirit. This week we will examine two closely-related facets of this beautiful jewel: kindness and goodness.
Kindness is a thoughtful, considerate disposition that a believer has toward a person; goodness is the concrete expression of that kindness in deeds. To put it another way, "goodness is out outgoing expression of a kind spirit."
The words "kindness" and "goodness" don't appear in our passage, but Christ and the Sinful Woman clearly and beautifully display them. Simon the Pharisee displays the opposite. Remember, love is the sum and source of the other qualities that make up the fruit of the Spirit, so when love is present, some measure of the other qualities is present also. Wherever real, Spirit-wrought love is found there will be kindness and goodness, and that is what we find in this story.
Luke 7:36-50
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner." 40And Jesus answering said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." And he answered, "Say it, Teacher."
41"A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?" 43Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt." And he said to him, "You have judged rightly." 44Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." 48And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." 49Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this, who even forgives sins?" 50And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
To understand this story, we have to know some of the customs of that day. This was probably a nice home constructed around a central courtyard where formal meals were served. The guests were reclining around a table on low couches, their feet extended away from the table. As the host, Simon should have shown the following courtesies to Jesus: place his hand on Jesus' shoulder and give him the kiss of peace on the cheek; have his sandals removed and his feet washed; anoint Jesus with a touch of olive oil. Since none of these kindnesses was shown, so Simon showed himself to be a rude and unkind host.
Another custom was that visitors would come in off the streets and sit around the courtyard wall to observe the happenings and, perhaps, even carry on conversation with the guests. Typically, a lot of folks were coming and going. One such visitor was the woman in our passage. Luke calls her a "sinner." Either she was married to a prominent sinner, or she herself was notorious for some sinful lifestyle. Many believe she was a prostitute. Whatever the reason for her status as a sinner, she was not welcome in the Pharisee's home. You can imagine the shock and the whispers, "Oh, look who's here! Can you believe her audacity, to come in here?"
Why did she come? She was grateful! She had met Jesus before, she had heard the good news about how she could be cleansed of all her sin, and that's what had happened to her. So she went to Jesus and stood at his feet. The tears began to flow from her eyes onto his dusty feet. The tears kept flowing and flowing; then she fell to her knees, unbound her hair (a no-no for a Jewish woman), and wiped the tear-drenched feet of Jesus. The text says she repeatedly kissed his feet and then she took an alabaster vial of expensive perfume and anointed Jesus' feet.
Can you picture this woman? She was unashamedly crying, her nose was running, her hair was a mess. She was a wreck. But what she did was truly an act of goodness, flowing from a heart of kindness and love for Jesus, and out of the kindness of his heart, Jesus welcomed her goodness, which was given to him without any concern for what Simon and the others would think.
Simon the Pharisee, however, didn't like what he witnessed at all. He sat there and complained to himself. He assumed that if Jesus knew who the woman was he would have sent her away.
Jesus confronted Simon with a parable about two debtors who couldn't repay their debts. Simon understood that the debtor who was forgiven the most would love the most. Then Jesus drew the comparison, point by point, between Simon and the sinful woman. Simon didn’t wash Jesus’ feet, but the sinful woman washed his feet and wiped them with her hair; Simon didn’t give Jesus the kiss of peace, but the woman hadn’t stopped kissing his feet since she came in; Simon didn’t anoint his head with oil, but she anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume.
Jesus drew the conclusion for Simon: The woman is the 500 denarii debtor. She recognized “her sins are many,” and because she was forgiven fully, she displayed such love and kindness to me. But the reason you don’t have any love for me and have been everything but kind is that you don’t recognize your sin, and you have never been forgiven. What a powerful blow to this religious conformist!
Jesus affirms the woman’s faith. Your sins have been forgiven (your love for me has made that clear); your faith has saved you. Then he sends her on her way.
Here are powerful and challenging truths:
Great love, kindness, and goodness flow from the realization that you have been forgiven a great debt by Jesus. If you appreciate the extent of your sin—and on the other hand know the extent of Christ’s love for you in forgiveness—you will love much. Acts of goodness flow from a heart mellowed with kindness.
Sometimes we don’t have a strong sense of our sinfulness because we don’t look below the surface. Outwardly, you may look pretty good, but what about the pride, selfishness, lust, bitterness, impatience, etc.? When you become aware of some of your heart attitudes, your sinfulness becomes apparent.
Being kind and doing good things are evidence of your faith, not the cause of it, and give one assurance of his faith. Notice in v. 50, Jesus says to the woman, “Your faith has saved you.” In v. 47 he says, “…her many sins have been forgiven, for she loved much ….” In other words, the evidence of her having been saved and forgiven was her great love and kindness.
Our world needs to see and experience your kindness and goodness. In many respects, you live in a harsh world. You hear of horrendous crimes regularly; you hear of political infighting and scandals; you hear of harshness, meanness, and spite everywhere. As those who have been shown the kindness and goodness of Jesus, we must follow in his steps and show kindness and goodness to others.
How will you respond?
Do you know someone who is an example of kindness and goodness? How can you imitate his or her example?
Can you think of times in the last week that you have been unkind? How have you fallen short ? How could you have behaved differently?
With the men in your group, discuss specific ways you can show more kindness and goodness to others—your spouse, your family, your co-workers, your neighbors.
Kindness is a thoughtful, considerate disposition that a believer has toward a person; goodness is the concrete expression of that kindness in deeds. To put it another way, "goodness is out outgoing expression of a kind spirit."
The words "kindness" and "goodness" don't appear in our passage, but Christ and the Sinful Woman clearly and beautifully display them. Simon the Pharisee displays the opposite. Remember, love is the sum and source of the other qualities that make up the fruit of the Spirit, so when love is present, some measure of the other qualities is present also. Wherever real, Spirit-wrought love is found there will be kindness and goodness, and that is what we find in this story.
Luke 7:36-50
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner." 40And Jesus answering said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." And he answered, "Say it, Teacher."
41"A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?" 43Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt." And he said to him, "You have judged rightly." 44Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." 48And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." 49Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this, who even forgives sins?" 50And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
To understand this story, we have to know some of the customs of that day. This was probably a nice home constructed around a central courtyard where formal meals were served. The guests were reclining around a table on low couches, their feet extended away from the table. As the host, Simon should have shown the following courtesies to Jesus: place his hand on Jesus' shoulder and give him the kiss of peace on the cheek; have his sandals removed and his feet washed; anoint Jesus with a touch of olive oil. Since none of these kindnesses was shown, so Simon showed himself to be a rude and unkind host.
Another custom was that visitors would come in off the streets and sit around the courtyard wall to observe the happenings and, perhaps, even carry on conversation with the guests. Typically, a lot of folks were coming and going. One such visitor was the woman in our passage. Luke calls her a "sinner." Either she was married to a prominent sinner, or she herself was notorious for some sinful lifestyle. Many believe she was a prostitute. Whatever the reason for her status as a sinner, she was not welcome in the Pharisee's home. You can imagine the shock and the whispers, "Oh, look who's here! Can you believe her audacity, to come in here?"
Why did she come? She was grateful! She had met Jesus before, she had heard the good news about how she could be cleansed of all her sin, and that's what had happened to her. So she went to Jesus and stood at his feet. The tears began to flow from her eyes onto his dusty feet. The tears kept flowing and flowing; then she fell to her knees, unbound her hair (a no-no for a Jewish woman), and wiped the tear-drenched feet of Jesus. The text says she repeatedly kissed his feet and then she took an alabaster vial of expensive perfume and anointed Jesus' feet.
Can you picture this woman? She was unashamedly crying, her nose was running, her hair was a mess. She was a wreck. But what she did was truly an act of goodness, flowing from a heart of kindness and love for Jesus, and out of the kindness of his heart, Jesus welcomed her goodness, which was given to him without any concern for what Simon and the others would think.
Simon the Pharisee, however, didn't like what he witnessed at all. He sat there and complained to himself. He assumed that if Jesus knew who the woman was he would have sent her away.
Jesus confronted Simon with a parable about two debtors who couldn't repay their debts. Simon understood that the debtor who was forgiven the most would love the most. Then Jesus drew the comparison, point by point, between Simon and the sinful woman. Simon didn’t wash Jesus’ feet, but the sinful woman washed his feet and wiped them with her hair; Simon didn’t give Jesus the kiss of peace, but the woman hadn’t stopped kissing his feet since she came in; Simon didn’t anoint his head with oil, but she anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume.
Jesus drew the conclusion for Simon: The woman is the 500 denarii debtor. She recognized “her sins are many,” and because she was forgiven fully, she displayed such love and kindness to me. But the reason you don’t have any love for me and have been everything but kind is that you don’t recognize your sin, and you have never been forgiven. What a powerful blow to this religious conformist!
Jesus affirms the woman’s faith. Your sins have been forgiven (your love for me has made that clear); your faith has saved you. Then he sends her on her way.
Here are powerful and challenging truths:
Great love, kindness, and goodness flow from the realization that you have been forgiven a great debt by Jesus. If you appreciate the extent of your sin—and on the other hand know the extent of Christ’s love for you in forgiveness—you will love much. Acts of goodness flow from a heart mellowed with kindness.
Sometimes we don’t have a strong sense of our sinfulness because we don’t look below the surface. Outwardly, you may look pretty good, but what about the pride, selfishness, lust, bitterness, impatience, etc.? When you become aware of some of your heart attitudes, your sinfulness becomes apparent.
Being kind and doing good things are evidence of your faith, not the cause of it, and give one assurance of his faith. Notice in v. 50, Jesus says to the woman, “Your faith has saved you.” In v. 47 he says, “…her many sins have been forgiven, for she loved much ….” In other words, the evidence of her having been saved and forgiven was her great love and kindness.
Our world needs to see and experience your kindness and goodness. In many respects, you live in a harsh world. You hear of horrendous crimes regularly; you hear of political infighting and scandals; you hear of harshness, meanness, and spite everywhere. As those who have been shown the kindness and goodness of Jesus, we must follow in his steps and show kindness and goodness to others.
How will you respond?
Do you know someone who is an example of kindness and goodness? How can you imitate his or her example?
Can you think of times in the last week that you have been unkind? How have you fallen short ? How could you have behaved differently?
With the men in your group, discuss specific ways you can show more kindness and goodness to others—your spouse, your family, your co-workers, your neighbors.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Patience
We have been looking at the fruit of the Spirit as it is presented in Galatians 5:22-23. We've looked at love, joy, and peace, then last week we skipped over to faithfulness. This week we come back to the quality of patience.
Remember, since this fruit is produced by the Spirit in Christians, only Christians can have real love, joy, peace, patience, etc. There are counterfeits, but the real McCoy comes only from the Spirit.
Question: Since the Spirit is the one who produces the fruit, what does the believer have to do about it? Do not make the mistake of thinking we can be passive. We must pursue the fruit. In this week’s passage, the first two words are, “Be patient.” That's a command! Growing in Christ-likeness is a cooperative effort; the Holy Spirit produces the fruit and we are commanded to demonstrate the fruit. God works, so we work.
God expects you to be patient. To be patient is to be long suffering, to be long-fused rather than short-fused. It means that it takes a lot to get your dander up to the point where you lash out with your hand, tongue, or in your heart and will. Consider this passage in James:
James 5:7-11 7Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 10As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
God expects you to be patient with his timetable. James uses the example of the ancient farmer who had to wait for the early rains to soften the ground, and for the latter rains to mature the crop. If he became impatient and harvested his crop too soon, before the latter rains, his crop would not be mature. Any good farmer would patiently wait for the right time to harvest the crop. In the same way, you must be patient with God's timetable and agenda for your life.
1. You can become impatient with God’s timetable. For example, let's say you're on the way to an important meeting and get caught in a traffic jam. Would you become impatient?
Or, say you're really tight financially, but you're in line for a promotion that would provide what you need. Then you find that you were skipped over and didn't get the promotion. Would you become impatient?
You make your plans and set your goals for a project, for a family, for school, for a career, etc., but God has different plans and a different timetable. It's difficult not to become impatient with God and His plan.
2. You can become impatient under trial. James' readers were being taken advantage of by rich landowners, who were withholding their wages and mistreating them. There are also many other examples of believers being mistreated:
● Jeremiah was beaten, put in stocks, held in prison, and finally,
into a muddy cistern.
● Job lost his wealth, his family, his health, and his friends.
God does test and try his people to see if they are for real, and if they are, to purify their faith by removing the dross — pride, unhealthy dependence on something or someone else, etc.
Are you under trial? Are you saying, "How long, O Lord, how long?" Or, perhaps you're saying, less eloquently, "Life stinks!"
If that's you, then beware! When impatience is a temptation, so is self-pity. Self-pity is when you feel sorry for yourself and believe that you deserve better. It is dangerous! When self-pity sets in, you can justify any sin—and I mean ANY sin. You reason to yourself, "This is too hard for me. I deserve some relief and some pleasure," And then you go out and do ....
3. You can become impatient with someone else’s weaknesses and sins. This can be a big problem in a church family, where God brings together people from different backgrounds, experiences, idiosyncrasies, and styles of sinning, and says, get along, love each other, and be patient with one another. That's a big challenge for us all.
God expects you to say wholeheartedly,
● "God, your timetable is better than mine. It's hard to wait, but who am I to think that I know better than you?"
● "God, this trial is long and difficult, but I know you are in control and at work in my life to make me more like your Son. Thank you.
● "God, this person is awkward to be around, but you have put us together in the same church family. I need to wash his feet and be patient with him, and he will have to be with me. Thank you, Lord."
How can you cultivate patience in your life? By strengthening your heart, the inner you, where you think, believe, decide, feel, and value things. You need to think of, delight in, and believe the truth of God for patience to be produced in your heart and life.
1. Remember who is making you wait — God. Not your boss or your spouse, but the sovereign and majestic God of heaven and earth, the one person who has perfect wisdom and loves you.
2. When you’re under trial or being mistreated, remember that Christ will right all wrongs when he returns. For now, he is using the trial to produce growth in you, and the process of growth into Christ-likeness is valuable. Remember also that God hasn’t left you alone. He is compassionate and merciful, and will provide for you as he did for Job.
3. When you are dealing with the sins and weaknesses of others, remember how patient God has been and is with you. Jesus endured his suffering patiently, and his suffering of the crown of thorns, the nails, the mocking and the scorn, were far worse than anything you have to endure. He patiently took it for you, and he never lashed out.
Remember how patient and forgiving God is with you. Think of the parable of the unmerciful servant, who forgot the king's patience and kindness to him (Matthew 18:23-35). The next time you feel like tearing into someone who has blown it with you, remember God's patience with you. (Patience doesn't mean saying nothing or being indifferent. It means that you say the truth in love and you lend a helping hand.
Discussion
1. When are you most tempted to be impatient? Which of the three occasions listed in the blog are most challenging to you?
a. when your timetable is disrupted;
b. when you are undergoing a trial;
c. when you have to deal with someone's weaknesses and sins.
2. What thoughts will help you to overcome impatience and respond with genuine, God-pleasing patience?
3. What will you do—specifically and concretely—to help yourself remember how to respond patiently in the future?
Remember, since this fruit is produced by the Spirit in Christians, only Christians can have real love, joy, peace, patience, etc. There are counterfeits, but the real McCoy comes only from the Spirit.
Question: Since the Spirit is the one who produces the fruit, what does the believer have to do about it? Do not make the mistake of thinking we can be passive. We must pursue the fruit. In this week’s passage, the first two words are, “Be patient.” That's a command! Growing in Christ-likeness is a cooperative effort; the Holy Spirit produces the fruit and we are commanded to demonstrate the fruit. God works, so we work.
God expects you to be patient. To be patient is to be long suffering, to be long-fused rather than short-fused. It means that it takes a lot to get your dander up to the point where you lash out with your hand, tongue, or in your heart and will. Consider this passage in James:
James 5:7-11 7Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 10As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
God expects you to be patient with his timetable. James uses the example of the ancient farmer who had to wait for the early rains to soften the ground, and for the latter rains to mature the crop. If he became impatient and harvested his crop too soon, before the latter rains, his crop would not be mature. Any good farmer would patiently wait for the right time to harvest the crop. In the same way, you must be patient with God's timetable and agenda for your life.
1. You can become impatient with God’s timetable. For example, let's say you're on the way to an important meeting and get caught in a traffic jam. Would you become impatient?
Or, say you're really tight financially, but you're in line for a promotion that would provide what you need. Then you find that you were skipped over and didn't get the promotion. Would you become impatient?
You make your plans and set your goals for a project, for a family, for school, for a career, etc., but God has different plans and a different timetable. It's difficult not to become impatient with God and His plan.
2. You can become impatient under trial. James' readers were being taken advantage of by rich landowners, who were withholding their wages and mistreating them. There are also many other examples of believers being mistreated:
● Jeremiah was beaten, put in stocks, held in prison, and finally,
into a muddy cistern.
● Job lost his wealth, his family, his health, and his friends.
God does test and try his people to see if they are for real, and if they are, to purify their faith by removing the dross — pride, unhealthy dependence on something or someone else, etc.
Are you under trial? Are you saying, "How long, O Lord, how long?" Or, perhaps you're saying, less eloquently, "Life stinks!"
If that's you, then beware! When impatience is a temptation, so is self-pity. Self-pity is when you feel sorry for yourself and believe that you deserve better. It is dangerous! When self-pity sets in, you can justify any sin—and I mean ANY sin. You reason to yourself, "This is too hard for me. I deserve some relief and some pleasure," And then you go out and do ....
3. You can become impatient with someone else’s weaknesses and sins. This can be a big problem in a church family, where God brings together people from different backgrounds, experiences, idiosyncrasies, and styles of sinning, and says, get along, love each other, and be patient with one another. That's a big challenge for us all.
God expects you to say wholeheartedly,
● "God, your timetable is better than mine. It's hard to wait, but who am I to think that I know better than you?"
● "God, this trial is long and difficult, but I know you are in control and at work in my life to make me more like your Son. Thank you.
● "God, this person is awkward to be around, but you have put us together in the same church family. I need to wash his feet and be patient with him, and he will have to be with me. Thank you, Lord."
How can you cultivate patience in your life? By strengthening your heart, the inner you, where you think, believe, decide, feel, and value things. You need to think of, delight in, and believe the truth of God for patience to be produced in your heart and life.
1. Remember who is making you wait — God. Not your boss or your spouse, but the sovereign and majestic God of heaven and earth, the one person who has perfect wisdom and loves you.
2. When you’re under trial or being mistreated, remember that Christ will right all wrongs when he returns. For now, he is using the trial to produce growth in you, and the process of growth into Christ-likeness is valuable. Remember also that God hasn’t left you alone. He is compassionate and merciful, and will provide for you as he did for Job.
3. When you are dealing with the sins and weaknesses of others, remember how patient God has been and is with you. Jesus endured his suffering patiently, and his suffering of the crown of thorns, the nails, the mocking and the scorn, were far worse than anything you have to endure. He patiently took it for you, and he never lashed out.
Remember how patient and forgiving God is with you. Think of the parable of the unmerciful servant, who forgot the king's patience and kindness to him (Matthew 18:23-35). The next time you feel like tearing into someone who has blown it with you, remember God's patience with you. (Patience doesn't mean saying nothing or being indifferent. It means that you say the truth in love and you lend a helping hand.
Discussion
1. When are you most tempted to be impatient? Which of the three occasions listed in the blog are most challenging to you?
a. when your timetable is disrupted;
b. when you are undergoing a trial;
c. when you have to deal with someone's weaknesses and sins.
2. What thoughts will help you to overcome impatience and respond with genuine, God-pleasing patience?
3. What will you do—specifically and concretely—to help yourself remember how to respond patiently in the future?
Monday, April 20, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness
We have been looking at the fruit of the Spirit as it is presented in Galatians 5:22-23, where Paul says, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control ...." We've looked at love, joy, and peace. This week we are skipping ahead to the quality of faithfulness, and we will look at faithfulness from Mark 14:32-42:
32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." 33And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." 35And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will." 37And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." 39And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41And he came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand."
What is faithfulness? It means being trustworthy, reliable, true to your word, doing what you said you would do, keeping your promises, being a person someone can trust and rely on, being loyal even when the pressure is on.
Jesus was faithful par excellence, and this week's passage describes the culmination of a whole life of fidelity. When Jesus went into the Garden of Gethsemane with his disciples to to pray, he knew the crucifixion was imminent, and the reality of it began to weigh on him. He saw the horror and felt the weight as never before. Listen to the depth of his emotion: "...he began to be distressed and troubled. And he said to them, 'My soul is very sorrowful, even to death.'" Jesus did not exaggerate; the life was being sucked out of him by the horror of what he faced.
Jesus mentions the cup he would have to drink. This was a metaphor used by the Old Testament prophets to picture the wrath and judgment of God being poured out on sin. In the Garden, Jesus saw the cup. He saw the sins of his people swirling around; he saw the deception and lies, the unfaithfulness, the adultery, the hatred, the gossip, the abortions—all the acts of sin committed against his Father. And he saw, and smelled, and tasted, and felt the horror of hell. One commentator, William Lane, says, "Jesus came to be with the Father for an interlude before his betrayal, but found hell rather than heaven opened before him, and he staggered.
As horrible as all that was, something even more devastating was happening. His becoming sin for us meant alienation from his father. Jesus was all alone as the sins of his people were poured over him. Heaven was closed to the Son of God. What happened in the Garden anticipated the cry of Jesus on the cross, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" He began to hear the judgment from his father, "Depart from me, ye cursed, from the presence of the Lord and his glory."
Jesus was faithful under infinite pressure. The waves of utter horror and astonishment at the coming judgment came crashing upon him, yet he was like a rock on the shore and didn't crack or give way. He remained faithful in the dark, when he was all alone. He remained faithful to his Father and to his people—faithful to you.
Jesus didn't change when thorns, the whip, and the nails inflicted their pain. No, Jesus took the chalice of sin and wrath from the hands of his Father and drank it all and staggered into the flames of hell. His beautiful body was broken and precious blood was spilled out down his body onto the cross and to the ground below, and he died. What faithfulness! He kept his word. He kept his promise.
The disciples were unfaithful. Three times Jesus asked Peter, James, and John to stay awake and pray for themselves lest they succumb to the temptation to be unfaithful to Jesus when the betrayer appeared. Each time, they fell asleep. The spirit was willing, but the body was weak.
How could they do that, with Jesus right there with them, suffering and writhing in painful horror? Their unfaithfulness seems incredible! Or are the disciples a picture of you in your relationship to Jesus and others?
• How many times have you been unfaithful in your relationships—not doing what you said you would do, not being a true and faithful friend, husband, wife, child, or brother or sister?
• How many times have you given in to the temptation or invitation to be untrue to Jesus by choosing to sin, doing the very things that Christ convulsed over as he peered into the cup of judgment and suffered the alienation of his father?
• Are you someone entirely different under the cover of darkness? Are you different around certain people than you are at home or at church? What do you watch on TV when you're alone in the hotel room? How do you carry out your job when the boss is away?
How do we become more faithful like Jesus?
1. Own up to your lack of faithfulness to Jesus. Don't deceive yourself; acknowledge it and ask God to forgive you.
2. Contemplate and cherish this:
• Jesus came to be faithful to the Father for you because you couldn't be.
• Your unfaithfulness was attributed to him; Jesus prayed and got hell and was ignored so that you could pray and get heaven and be heard.
• God considers you forgiven and faithful, now and forever.
• Paul says in 2 Cor. 3:18 that when you see the glory of Christ you are transformed from one degree of Christ-likeness to another. So when you see Jesus being faithful for you, that will change you.
3. Out of gratitude for his faithfulness, you need to make a disciplined, prayerful effort to be faithful to God and others.
• Identify areas in your life where you need to be more faithful.
• What will you do to change?
• Pray for God's help, for yourself and your brothers.
32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." 33And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." 35And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will." 37And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." 39And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41And he came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand."
What is faithfulness? It means being trustworthy, reliable, true to your word, doing what you said you would do, keeping your promises, being a person someone can trust and rely on, being loyal even when the pressure is on.
Jesus was faithful par excellence, and this week's passage describes the culmination of a whole life of fidelity. When Jesus went into the Garden of Gethsemane with his disciples to to pray, he knew the crucifixion was imminent, and the reality of it began to weigh on him. He saw the horror and felt the weight as never before. Listen to the depth of his emotion: "...he began to be distressed and troubled. And he said to them, 'My soul is very sorrowful, even to death.'" Jesus did not exaggerate; the life was being sucked out of him by the horror of what he faced.
Jesus mentions the cup he would have to drink. This was a metaphor used by the Old Testament prophets to picture the wrath and judgment of God being poured out on sin. In the Garden, Jesus saw the cup. He saw the sins of his people swirling around; he saw the deception and lies, the unfaithfulness, the adultery, the hatred, the gossip, the abortions—all the acts of sin committed against his Father. And he saw, and smelled, and tasted, and felt the horror of hell. One commentator, William Lane, says, "Jesus came to be with the Father for an interlude before his betrayal, but found hell rather than heaven opened before him, and he staggered.
As horrible as all that was, something even more devastating was happening. His becoming sin for us meant alienation from his father. Jesus was all alone as the sins of his people were poured over him. Heaven was closed to the Son of God. What happened in the Garden anticipated the cry of Jesus on the cross, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" He began to hear the judgment from his father, "Depart from me, ye cursed, from the presence of the Lord and his glory."
Jesus was faithful under infinite pressure. The waves of utter horror and astonishment at the coming judgment came crashing upon him, yet he was like a rock on the shore and didn't crack or give way. He remained faithful in the dark, when he was all alone. He remained faithful to his Father and to his people—faithful to you.
Jesus didn't change when thorns, the whip, and the nails inflicted their pain. No, Jesus took the chalice of sin and wrath from the hands of his Father and drank it all and staggered into the flames of hell. His beautiful body was broken and precious blood was spilled out down his body onto the cross and to the ground below, and he died. What faithfulness! He kept his word. He kept his promise.
The disciples were unfaithful. Three times Jesus asked Peter, James, and John to stay awake and pray for themselves lest they succumb to the temptation to be unfaithful to Jesus when the betrayer appeared. Each time, they fell asleep. The spirit was willing, but the body was weak.
How could they do that, with Jesus right there with them, suffering and writhing in painful horror? Their unfaithfulness seems incredible! Or are the disciples a picture of you in your relationship to Jesus and others?
• How many times have you been unfaithful in your relationships—not doing what you said you would do, not being a true and faithful friend, husband, wife, child, or brother or sister?
• How many times have you given in to the temptation or invitation to be untrue to Jesus by choosing to sin, doing the very things that Christ convulsed over as he peered into the cup of judgment and suffered the alienation of his father?
• Are you someone entirely different under the cover of darkness? Are you different around certain people than you are at home or at church? What do you watch on TV when you're alone in the hotel room? How do you carry out your job when the boss is away?
How do we become more faithful like Jesus?
1. Own up to your lack of faithfulness to Jesus. Don't deceive yourself; acknowledge it and ask God to forgive you.
2. Contemplate and cherish this:
• Jesus came to be faithful to the Father for you because you couldn't be.
• Your unfaithfulness was attributed to him; Jesus prayed and got hell and was ignored so that you could pray and get heaven and be heard.
• God considers you forgiven and faithful, now and forever.
• Paul says in 2 Cor. 3:18 that when you see the glory of Christ you are transformed from one degree of Christ-likeness to another. So when you see Jesus being faithful for you, that will change you.
3. Out of gratitude for his faithfulness, you need to make a disciplined, prayerful effort to be faithful to God and others.
• Identify areas in your life where you need to be more faithful.
• What will you do to change?
• Pray for God's help, for yourself and your brothers.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Fruit of the Spirit: Peace
We are looking at the fruit of the Spirit—the fruit produced in a believer's life by the Holy Spirit in coordination with the believer's own pursuit of it. We have looked at love and joyfulness in recent weeks, and now we look at the quality of peace, which is closely related to joy. The very same eternal realities that are the basis of your joy are what the Spirit uses to produce peace—the reality of your salvation in Christ and your relationship with him.
Peace is inner confidence and trust in God's wise and good control of your life. It is an attitude that is constant, solid, and confident no matter what the conditions. The natural man doesn't know true peace. Some people have the counterfeit of true peace—they are laid back and easygoing, but only because they are apathetic or indifferent or self-centered; they don't have true Spirit-produced peace. True peace has confidence and trust in God's control, and it also loves and cares for and is engaged in the lives of other people.
The natural man, on the other hand, is worried to death. Inside, he is torn apart with worry about the economy, terrorism, moral decay, etc. Worry in the heart of a pagan is like a weed growing wildly, out of control. He worries because he doesn't know God; he worries because he is oriented only to the material world and yet he can't control it. He is like the rich fool in Luke 12, who was busy laying up treasure for himself on earth and was not rich toward God:
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." 14But he said to him, "Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?" 15And he said to them, "Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." 16And he told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17and he thought to himself, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' 18And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' 20But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' 21So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."
22And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
32 "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The rich fool was self-centered and greedy. Though he worked hard and was blessed by God, he gave no thought to God or others; his life consisted in having an abundance of things.
What does it look like today when someone is busy laying up treasure for himself on earth?
You see it every day. You know someone whose primary ambition is to accumulate money and possessions, or to travel the world, to head up his own company or to buy out his competitors, to build his reputation., to succeed, earn human approval and acceptance, fame and power. Or maybe you know someone who is determined to have physical health and be young forever.
This ambition for treasure on earth is a prescription for worry and dissatisfaction. It is the soil out of which the weed of worry flourishes and takes over a person's heart. Just look at the market for prescription drugs! People crave relief from the worry and anxiety that come from a life centered on the material world, the world without God. And their worry is justified! Everything they are living for will be lost, and they know in their hearts that they have no security.
Are you a believer? Do you have the Holy Spirit? Then you shouldn't resemble the worry-filled pagans in the world. You should possess a confidence and trust and rest in God's wise and good control of your life, resulting in an inner calmness—the peace of God. Why? Because you have a personal relationship with God. He loves you and is concerned about the very details of your life, and he promises to provide for your needs. Jesus has already met the greatest need in your life by giving you peace with God when he was your enemy. If God has met your greatest need, won't he meet the other, lesser needs that you have?
What prevents you from having the peace of God? The roadblocks to peace are simple (though serious):
• a focus on laying up treasures on earth - "Where your treasure is there will your heart be also" (v. 34). When treasures on earth are too important to you, you worry over them.
• unbelief - You don't trust God's good and wise control; you don't really believe his promises.
How can you remove the roadblocks to peace?
• Repent for your worry and unbelief, and for your inordinate desire for treasures on earth.
• Seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness with all your heart. How do you seek that? You seek the kingdom of God when you try obey his word. That includes being salt and light in the world, serving in the church, your family to know God, enjoying and sharing with others the material wealth God provides, in the promises of God, praying with thankfulness, and seeking to spread the gospel and bring others into the kingdom.
What issues in your life sometimes threaten the peace of God that you should have?
When you indulge in the sin of worry, what is the impact on those around you? On yourself?
What will you do to cultivate peace in your life in the next week?
Have you grown in love and joyfulness as a result of the first two weeks' studies?
Peace is inner confidence and trust in God's wise and good control of your life. It is an attitude that is constant, solid, and confident no matter what the conditions. The natural man doesn't know true peace. Some people have the counterfeit of true peace—they are laid back and easygoing, but only because they are apathetic or indifferent or self-centered; they don't have true Spirit-produced peace. True peace has confidence and trust in God's control, and it also loves and cares for and is engaged in the lives of other people.
The natural man, on the other hand, is worried to death. Inside, he is torn apart with worry about the economy, terrorism, moral decay, etc. Worry in the heart of a pagan is like a weed growing wildly, out of control. He worries because he doesn't know God; he worries because he is oriented only to the material world and yet he can't control it. He is like the rich fool in Luke 12, who was busy laying up treasure for himself on earth and was not rich toward God:
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." 14But he said to him, "Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?" 15And he said to them, "Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." 16And he told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17and he thought to himself, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' 18And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' 20But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' 21So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God."
22And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! 25And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
32 "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The rich fool was self-centered and greedy. Though he worked hard and was blessed by God, he gave no thought to God or others; his life consisted in having an abundance of things.
What does it look like today when someone is busy laying up treasure for himself on earth?
You see it every day. You know someone whose primary ambition is to accumulate money and possessions, or to travel the world, to head up his own company or to buy out his competitors, to build his reputation., to succeed, earn human approval and acceptance, fame and power. Or maybe you know someone who is determined to have physical health and be young forever.
This ambition for treasure on earth is a prescription for worry and dissatisfaction. It is the soil out of which the weed of worry flourishes and takes over a person's heart. Just look at the market for prescription drugs! People crave relief from the worry and anxiety that come from a life centered on the material world, the world without God. And their worry is justified! Everything they are living for will be lost, and they know in their hearts that they have no security.
Are you a believer? Do you have the Holy Spirit? Then you shouldn't resemble the worry-filled pagans in the world. You should possess a confidence and trust and rest in God's wise and good control of your life, resulting in an inner calmness—the peace of God. Why? Because you have a personal relationship with God. He loves you and is concerned about the very details of your life, and he promises to provide for your needs. Jesus has already met the greatest need in your life by giving you peace with God when he was your enemy. If God has met your greatest need, won't he meet the other, lesser needs that you have?
What prevents you from having the peace of God? The roadblocks to peace are simple (though serious):
• a focus on laying up treasures on earth - "Where your treasure is there will your heart be also" (v. 34). When treasures on earth are too important to you, you worry over them.
• unbelief - You don't trust God's good and wise control; you don't really believe his promises.
How can you remove the roadblocks to peace?
• Repent for your worry and unbelief, and for your inordinate desire for treasures on earth.
• Seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness with all your heart. How do you seek that? You seek the kingdom of God when you try obey his word. That includes being salt and light in the world, serving in the church, your family to know God, enjoying and sharing with others the material wealth God provides, in the promises of God, praying with thankfulness, and seeking to spread the gospel and bring others into the kingdom.
What issues in your life sometimes threaten the peace of God that you should have?
When you indulge in the sin of worry, what is the impact on those around you? On yourself?
What will you do to cultivate peace in your life in the next week?
Have you grown in love and joyfulness as a result of the first two weeks' studies?
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