Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
The fruit of THE SPIRIT begin with Love and end with self-control, the mastery of one’s desires and appetites. As we progress through the nine fruit of THE SPIRIT we will mature into Sons that FATHER can utilize in the times ahead. Walking in the nine fruit will result in you being fully lawful in the sight of FATHER and man. As you produce fruit in these areas you will be included among those who are Christ’s. What a privilege!
Self-control is the last fruit to be mentioned and may be the most difficult in the maturing process. Successfully controlling “self” to the point of crucifying the flesh was required of Jesus in its completeness at the cross. We too must master this final fruit to become a fully mature Son. Love begins the process and self-control completes it.
In the U.S. addiction is a huge problem. Addiction is giving way to the passions and desires of the flesh. It is all about “self”. Men and women want to escape reality even if only for a few minutes or hours and are willing to abuse their body in order to do so. They will spend their entire paycheck in order to get “high” whether it be drugs, alcohol, or sex. After the high wears off, they experience an even greater emptiness than before. Only Love will fill that void and as Love grows in their hearts, they will begin to experience the other fruit culminating in self-control. The Alcoholics Anonymous organization taps into the the expressing of Love toward others in its meetings. The attendees are unconditionally accepted and forgiven of their past. They confess their sins and conditions openly to the group.
25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
Once we are fruitful and gain mastery over “self”, we will now be led by THE SPIRIT. We must not let this walk cause us to become conceited, exalting ourselves in any fashion. We must not envy others who are also being led by THE SPIRIT. Love rejoices when good fruit abounds no matter who produces the fruit needed for the situation. As we are led by THE SPIRIT manifesting the fruit of THE SPIRIT, we will be entrusted with the Gifts of THE SPIRIT:
1 Corinthians 12:7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:
8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit,
9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,
10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
The gifts are given to profit all and that is the ultimate expression of Love. In the Age of Pentecost, men operated in one or more gifts but not to the extent that Jesus operated in the manifestations. Agape Love was not the primary focus in this Age. Generally speaking, faith was the focus in the last 100 years. Now that Love has come to the forefront, we should expect greater things, greater operations, and greater results. Only by self-control and dying to the flesh will those gifts operate at those levels. FATHER will not give power and authority to those HE cannot trust to walk in complete self-control.
Self-control means that you must overcome your will fully and completely and take on HIS Will. If you continue to have regrets associated with what you have given up to walk according to HIS Path, your passions and appetites have not been fully placed on the altar. As you take on HIS SPIRIT, you become focused on HIS priorities and you no longer are interested in the former passions and desires of the flesh. “Self” is now fully subjected to THE SPIRIT. Your mind is now a servant and not your master. FATHER will now impart the power and authority to bring forth HIS Kingdom on earth. We are moving rapidly to a time of reckoning and those who walk in THE SPIRIT will be the ones who have been prepared in all nine fruit of THE SPIRIT. There will be no regret.