Today’s Advent Reflection is from Barbara Brighton a Reader at Hallwood Ecumenical Church in Runcorn
Galatians 5:22-26
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.
Reflection
Do you have a favourite fruit you like to eat? For me it used to be apples but now I like those little Clementine or Satsuma oranges. Strawberries are a firm favourite too. But did you know that the Holy Spirit gives his fruit of a different kind, that we can have and share with others. The fruit that the Holy Spirit wants to see in our lives is a very different kind of fruit. Unlike a piece of fruit that after it is eaten is soon forgotten, this fruit will last and will go on producing qualities that will go on working in us and touch other people’s lives along the way.
Paul lists the fruit of the Spirit as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. As we are now in the season of advent let us consider how this fruit can be displayed and be active in our lives.
Love: the greatest display of love was at Christmas when God sent Jesus born in human form to be the Saviour of us all. John 3:16 says “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life”.
What tremendous love at such a great cost, God has poured out on us. The cost was the life of Jesus. He died on the cross for each one of us so that we would be forgiven and enter into a new life in Him. So where does the fruit of love come into this? These words of Jesus in John13:35 can help us. “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another”.
The fruit of love will be displayed in our lives as we know God’s love at work in us, and through us, to show all we come into contact with that we truly do love and care about them. As Christmas approaches, we all have the opportunity to allow God’s love to enable us - to let go of any bitterness, resentment and unforgiveness, and truly love people for the person they are. Paul says in first Corinthians 13:13 ‘now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.’
Joy: one of our carols at Christmas is “Joy to the World”. There is joy because Jesus has come but is His joy shining from your life today? Much has happened this past year to sap any joy from our lives. COVID-19 has changed all of this and life is not normal as we know it. How hard it has been to not be able to mix with our families and friends, to be in church but distanced from each other, wearing masks, and not being able to hug or greet each other in the normal way. So, this Christmas is an opportunity for us to see our joy levels increase and let our joy shine out to others.
Finding verses on joy in the Bible is a good way to do this. Here are a few to get you
started:
The joy of the lord is your strength (Neh 8:10)
For you shall go out in joy (Isa 55:12)
Your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart (Jer 15:16)
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing (Rom 15:13)
This is just a small selection of verses on joy but if you look up joy in a Bible concordance you will find many others.
Peace: the one thing the world needs today is peace. Many of us are living very busy and stressful lives, and when this is the case, we can lose calmness and serenity. Christmas can become a time when we become busier with the added stress of writing out Christmas cards, trying to find that perfect gift, the busyness of the shops - all these things can add to our lack of peace. So many of us treasure times of stillness and quiet. Those peaceful moments. In John 14:27 we read these words of Jesus “Peace I leave with you my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid”.
Jesus is offering us his peace and we can ask him for that peace today. One way to do this is found in 1 Peter 5:8 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you”. If we are anxious and troubled, we cannot experience his peace. Colossians 3:15 encourages us to “let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts”. True long-lasting peace comes from Jesus. Let go of what troubles you and let peace come in.
Patience: this is a fruit that many of us may long to have more of in our lives. We may be impatient when things take longer than expected, when we have to wait a long time in a queue, when trying to show someone how to do a particular job and it is taking you longer than you thought. There are other words used for the word patience, such as endurance, steadfastness, and perseverance. In Romans 5:3-4 we read that “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character”. When we find our patience being put to the test, God is building more character in us. Our patience may be tested at Christmas but with God’s help we can reflect the fruit of patience.
Kindness: showing kindness to someone can be displayed in all kinds of ways. There is no better time than Christmas to do this. Paul says in Ephesians 4:32 to be kind to one another. Let’s be open to the opportunities God may bring our way to show kindness to others.
Generosity: Do you have a generous heart? Do you love to give? We are presented with many areas of need at Christmas and one of these may be close to your heart. Rather than think what is the smallest gift that I can give, think what is the most generous gift I can give within the means that I have. We often hear the words ‘please give generously.’ Paul says it well, “each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion for God loves a cheerful giver.” (1Corinthians 9:7).
Faithfulness: this fruit brings to us the picture of someone who will always be there for us. Someone who will not let us down. At Christmas let us show our love and thanks to someone who has always been by our side through the ups and downs of life. Let us never forget the faithfulness of God to each one of us “for the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end: they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness”. (Lamentations 3:22-23)
Gentleness: a beautiful quality to have in our lives. It paints a picture of a person who is gentle and caring for or looking after someone eg 1 Thessalonians2:7, then in 2 Timothy 2:24 as someone who corrects with gentleness. Let us learn to be gentle in what we say and what we do.
Self-control: although this is the last in the nine fruits of the spirit mentioned in this passage, it is by no means the least. Christmas can very often bring pressure upon us, it would be very easy to let things annoy us and make us angry. We are encouraged by Paul to not let this be the case. He writes “put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger”. (Ephesians 4:31). If these things rise up in your heart, stop for a moment and pray. Let God help you and give any anger to him.
As with any fruit, the fruit of the Spirit takes time to develop. Let us allow the Holy Spirit to work in and through our lives producing this kind of fruit. Fruit that will last and that will enable us at Christmas, and always, to reflect Jesus to everyone we meet.