So...I...Uh...Haven’t posted since the 11th... I missed every day in the Fruit of the Spirit, so I am going to put them all into one mega post!!!
First off is...
Kindness!!
Being Kind means you are really caring, and nice, and help others! Here is a definition of the word “Kind” Or “Kindness”:
kindness [kahynd-nis] noun
1. the state or quality of being kind: kindness to animals.
2. a kind act; favor: his many kindnesses to me.
3. kind behavior: I will never forget your kindness.
4. friendly feeling; liking.
kind (kīnd) adj. kind·er, kind·est
1. Of a friendly, generous, or warm-hearted nature.
2. Showing sympathy or understanding; charitable: a kind word.
3. Humane; considerate: kind to animals.
4. Forbearing; tolerant: Our neighbor was very kind about the window we broke.
5. Generous; liberal: kind words of praise.
God wants us to be Kind to people, even our enemies, because it would show them His love, and His grace.
I usually say “There’s lots of verses about -Fruit of the Spirit-” so I’m going to make it a LITTLE different... ;)
There is like thousands to millions of verses about Kindness in the Bible.
Here are a few good ones:
Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32 (NASB)
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NIV)
Yes I know that’s about Love, but it does have “Kind” in it. ;)
The merciful man does himself good, But the cruel man does himself harm. Proverbs 11:17 (NASB)
So you see, Kindness is a great thing to be, in-fact, I think there’s something about Kindness in the Beatitudes...
Well, I mean it doesn’t say “Blessed are those who are Kind” But it DOES mean Kindness.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Matthew 5:7 (NASB)
Yes it says merciful, but read this quote:
"Being merciful and kindness Let’s go to the next Beatitude. ‘Blessed are the merciful.’ The corresponding fruit of the Spirit is kindness. We can see right away that these two words are very close in meaning. In the NT, we often find them together. Take for example Titus 3:4 where Paul speaks about the ‘kindness of God.’ Then in the following verse, we read that God saved us according to His mercy. Or take Ephesians 2:7. It is a verse about God’s kindness toward us. And in Ephesians 2:4, we are told that God is rich in mercy. In 1Peter 2:3, Peter speaks about ‘tasting the kindness of the Lord.’ And a few verses later, in v. 10, he says that ‘the people of God have obtained mercy.’ There is obviously an internal connection between the words ‘kindness’ and ‘mercy.’ One is simply the consequence of the other."
See? So be kind and merciful to one another!
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Second off is...
Goodness!!!
This is a definition of the word “Good” Or “Goodness”:
goodness [good-nis] noun
1. the state or quality of being good.
2. moral excellence; virtue.
3. kindly feeling; kindness; generosity.
4. excellence of quality: goodness of workmanship.
5. the best part of anything; essence; strength.
God wants us to be good, without sin, but we are imperfect, and it’s really hard to be perfect like Jesus, but the best way to be good is to:
Avoid temptation, (easier said then done, because temptation can come in many different ways and we may not even notice what is happening.)
Listen to God,
Pray and ask God to forgive our sins.
(I know, this is a little list, I tried to think of lots of things but these were the only ones I could think of)
But please do not get frustrated because you tried these things and you still sin, we cannot be
ABSOLUTELY PERFECT, it is simply impossible on this Earth, (however, we will be perfect in Heaven, where this is no sin) but Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, so be glad, Jesus saved you!
There IS A LOT of verses about Goodness in the Bible.
And here are a few:
And He said, “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.” Exodus 33:19
Now may the Lord show lovingkindness and truth to you; and I also will show this goodness to you, because you have done this thing. 2 Samuel 2:6
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:6
Be Good as best you can! (AND...Do not get frustrated if your not perfect! No one is, except our Lord! And don’t worry, you will be perfect in Heaven!)
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Third off is...
Faithfulness!!!!
You have probably heard of Faithfulness before...
Here is a definition of “Faithful” Or “Faithfulness”:
faithful [feyth-fuhl] adjective
1. strict or thorough in the performance of duty: a faithful worker.
2. true to one's
word, promises, vows, etc.
3. steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant: faithful friends.
4. reliable, trusted, or believed.
5. adhering or true to fact, a standard, or an original; accurate: a faithful account; a faithful copy.
God wants us to be Faithful to Him, meaning He wants us to be loyal to Him, (don’t worship false gods!) He wants us to pray to him, (Evening and Morning and at Noon I will pray and cry aloud and He shall hear my voice -Psalms 55:17)
He wants us to confess our sins to Him, He wants us to be kind, and gentle, and have self control(Fruits of the Spirit -Galatians 5:22-23) God is also Faithful to us, His Children.
There are lots of verses in the bible about Faithfulness, and here are a few of them:
3 Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday. Psalm 91:3-6 (NIV)
And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness Exodus 34:6
May the Lord now show you kindness and faithfulness, and I too will show you the same favor because you have done this. 2 Samuel 2:6
For I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on yourfaithfulness. Psalm 26:3
Be Faithful to the Lord your God!
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Fourth off is...
Gentleness!!!!!
Being gentle means that...Say you rescued a little baby bird that was laying on the ground, and you took care of it gently, and then you went to set it free, you set it down gently, and it flew away.
Here is a definition of the word “Gentle” Or “Gentleness”:
gen·tle [jen-tl] adjective, gen·tler, gen·tlest, verb, gen·tled, gen·tling.
adjective
1. kindly; amiable: a gentle manner.
2. not severe, rough, or violent; mild: a gentle wind; a gentle tap on the shoulder.
That is how God wants us to be. (not severe rough or violent) So be Gentle with all your heart. :)
There are lots of verses about Gentleness in the Bible...
One of my favorites is in the Beatitudes...
“Blessed are the [
d]gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5 (NASB)
And here’s some more:
You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, And Your right hand upholds me; And Your gentleness makes me great. Psalm 18:35
But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. 1 Timothy 6:11
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1
God wants us to be gentle, because Jesus was.
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FIFTH off is...
Self control!!!!!!
Self control means that you have control over what you do, and what you say, for some people it’s really hard, but ask God for help with self control, and He will help, even if it doesn’t seem like your getting anywhere, just trust Him.
Or as the Apostle John puts it:
"Fundamentally, self-control is the ability or power to rule or regulate one’s personal life so that we are neither driven nor dominated, as the apostle John puts it, by the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, or the pride of life (1 John 2:16; see also Gal. 5:19-21). These three, passion, pleasure, and pride, are those forces in the heart of man that energize his behavior patterns. It is to these inner forces that Satan and a fallen world appeal in order to promote a way of life that seeks to exist apart from God. The essence of such self-regulation is the ability to delay or refuse an impulse in the service of biblical truth, values, beliefs, and objectives.
Self-control means to be in control of one’s attitudes or thought processes, desires or passions, and patterns or habits so they do not dictate one’s behavior. Speaking scripturally, self-control is a matter of the control of the self-life from within by spiritual means, i.e., by God’s weapons of spiritual warfare as described in the Word of God (2 Cor. 10:3-5; Eph. 6:10-18; Col. 2:20-23)."
There are so many good verses about self control in the Bible, and here are a few good ones:
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT)
For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. Titus 2:11-14 (NIV)
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:3-8 (NIV)
So, do your best to have Self control, and if you have trouble, just ask God for help. :)
Love fiercely, Have Joy, Have Peace, Have Patience, Give Kindness, Have Goodness, Have Faithfulness, Have Gentleness, and Have Self Control.
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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 (NASB)
