Fruit of the Spirit
Part 5 – Peace
Rev Bruce A. Shields
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SERMON TIMELINE
1. Christ set us Free
2. Walking in the Spirit
3. Love
4. Joy
5. Peace
INTRODUCTION
Today is Sunday. August 20th, 2023
We began looking at the Fruits of the Spirit a few weeks ago; more specifically, last week, we talked about joy and how our outward circumstances should not change whether or not we have real joy because that is a fruit from God’s Spirit. We can experience it in all circumstances if we allow.
Today we will Learn about the Spiritual Fruit - PEACE
SCRIPTURE READING (Legacy Standard Bible)
Galatians 5:22-25 Crucify the flesh
“But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things
there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus
crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by
the Spirit, let us also walk in step with the Spirit.”
TODAY’S MESSAGE
I. THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
a. How we receive the Fruit of the Spirit
i. When we surrender ourselves to Jesus Christ and the work of the cross, calling on His name, the Lord promises that we will be saved.
ii. Romans 10:8-9; 13 “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; … 13 for “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
iii. Romans 10 continues, giving us the reason for and the importance of preachers, local churches, missionaries, and ministries like The House of Faith who share the Word of God worldwide, and why churches like this one need to be supported by believers financially.
1. Romans 10:14-15; 17 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? 15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim good news of good things!” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
iv. The House of Faith Church currently has over 1,000 sermons available online for free. Over 60,000 views on our blog, The Truth Digest, and on Sermon Central, a resource for pastors worldwide to download sermons for preaching. We have 1.27 million downloads, all for free.
1. Who can know how many have heard those 1.27 million sermons preached? God knows.
v. We spoke last week about the difference between believing and trusting in something.
vi. Confessing with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believing God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
vii. We trust IN Jesus as our Lord and follow that with action.
b. Action follows real trust
i. I Corinthians 13 teaches LOVE is action.
ii. Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commands.” John 14:15
1. Jesus says you love him by your actions.
iii. We talked about works NOT saving you last week, but if you are saved, you have works (the actions).
iv. Scripture tells us faith without works is DEAD.
v. We must have actions, not just words.
Matthew 3:8 “Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance;”
c. Walking in the Spirit
i. When Galatians 5 speaks of walking in the Spirit as opposed to the flesh, Paul points out that our walk is purposeful, meaning we must choose the path.
ii. Jesus warns us in Mathew 7:13-14 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
iii. Walking in the Spirit means dying to self.
1. Remember, Galatians 5 opens up with, “Christ set us free.”
2. Free from what?
a. The yoke of slavery (flesh and its desires which are contrary to the Spirit of God)
3. So when we do sin, we walk in the flesh.
4. When we walk in the flesh, we choose the broad road.
5. It was a choice, and we are accountable to God for it.
iv. We must feed the Spirit so it remains strong in us.
1. Prayer
2. Reading/studying/meditating on God’s Word
3. Listening to Positive (theologically sound) Christian music
4. Listening to sound preaching on the radio/TV
5. Surrounding ourselves with believers
v. It becomes easier to find the narrow path when you can hear the Shepherd's voice, which happens when our Spirit is strong, and our flesh is weak.
II Corinthians 12:9-10
“He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions and hardships, for the sake of Christ, for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Ah, now it makes sense. Weak in the flesh, strong in the Spirit of God!
You now have an understanding of the reason for fasting.
II. THE PEACE OF GOD
a. How we receive it
i. It is available at salvation through God’s Spirit
ii. We receive it when we “walk in the Spirit.”
iii. It is presented when the fruit is shown to others during our weakness. We remain content with insults, distresses, persecutions, and hardships. This is actually when we are strongest!
b. What it accomplishes
i. It shows those around us that our house is built on the unmoving ground, the Rock of our salvation, Christ alone. He is our mighty fortress and our tower of refuge.
ii. No one greater than the Lord God almighty!
iii. No shifting sand here!
iv. Regardless of the storm, we will remain standing at the end!
c. Why do we need it?
i. There are two significant things that the Spiritual Fruit of Peace brings to our Christian walk.
1. Contentment
2. Unity between people
ii. I have always said contentment is the key to a happy life
1. There isn’t much contentment in American society
a. Enten, H. (2022) American Happiness Hits record lows | CNN politics, CNN. Available at: https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/02/politics/unhappiness-americans-gallup-analysis/index.html (Accessed: 20 August 2023).
b. Only 38% of those polled by Gallup said they were satisfied (content)
2. Why are they so unhappy?
a. Money – never enough, want more.
b. Medications – too many, too expensive.
c. Gadgets – steal time, never up to date.
d. Stress – real or perceived.
e. Unhealthy – poor diets.
3. These were just some of the reasons listed.
iii. They are unhappy because they have not learned the lesson Paul did, to be content in all matters.
1. Philippians 4:12-13 “I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in abundance; in any and all things I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”
2. Spiritual contentment can be achieved through the Spiritual Fruit of Peace!
III. SPIRITUAL FRUIT OF PEACE ALSO BRINGS UNITY BETWEEN PEOPLE
a. Before salvation
i. When I was a slave to the yoke of my flesh, pulled left and right by the desires of my flesh, living in bondage to my sin, there was never peace in my life.
1. There may have been short sessions away from conflict. Still, between conflict with others, there was always the dissatisfaction with life or dwelling on the previous or upcoming conflict which would most assuredly come.
ii. There was no contentment in my life
1. With work
2. With family
3. With relationships
4. The storms shook my foundations because I built everything upon the shifting sands, not the Rock, Christ Jesus.
iii. Because there was no contentment, I was almost always angry and unhappy. Therefore, there was not much peace or unity between myself and others.
b. After Salvation
i. The Spiritual Fruit of Peace gives us so much.
1. We can be content in all situations, knowing that regardless of what we have or don’t have in this life, we have Salvation in Christ Jesus, and one day we will be with Him in a New World.
2. What more could you want than forgiveness of your sins, salvation, and the promise of a new perfect body which will never see sickness or pain, living in a realm with others like yourself for eternity with our Lord and Creator Jesus Christ?
ii. When we are content in life, we find a peace that confounds non-believers and sometimes believers who have not yet submitted to the Spirit.
iii. When we are content and have peace, a side effect is we get along with others much better. When we are unsatisfied, we conflict with ourselves about our situation.
iv. Someone who is not content in life will have difficulty getting along with others and finding unity because they are in conflict within themselves.
v. A person in conflict within themselves cannot be at peace with others. There will be no unity.
c. As far as it depends on you
i. Some may say, “Yeah, but you don’t know so-and-so, and no one can get along with them!”
1. Some are more difficult to get along with. However, through the Spirit of God, as Paul states, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”
2. You have to “choose” to walk the narrow path and allow the Spirit of God and the Spiritual Fruit of Peace to be present.
3. YOU can have peace and unity, and contentment in any relationship with others, even when they won’t have it with you.
ii. Paul tells us about this in Romans 12 when he says we are to be a “living sacrifice.”
1. Living in a sacrificial way means we do not always get our way, we are not always getting the good end of the deal, we are not always going to win, but we live according to scripture regardless.
2. We sacrifice whatever desires our flesh is not getting, which leads to “living, holy, and pleasing lives to God.” Romans 12:1
Romans 12:1-3 “Therefore I exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice
—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may approve what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect.
For through the grace given to me I say to each one among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound thinking, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.”
CONCLUSION
Romans 12:14-19a
“Bless those who persecute you; bless, and do not curse.
Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep, by being of the same mind toward one another, not being haughty in mind, but associating with the humble.
Do not be wise in your own mind. Never paying back evil for evil to anyone, respecting what is good in the sight of all men, if possible, so far as it depends on you, being at peace with all men, never taking your own revenge…”
Through the Fruit of the Spirit, PEACE can bring you contentment, and unity with others.
Then we can have Philippians 4:6-9
“Be anxious for nothing,
but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is dignified, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, consider these things.
The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things,
and the God of peace will be with you.”
So let us not just say we believe. Put our trust in and follow that with action.
Next week:
Fruit of the Spirit Part 6: Patience
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