In light of recent events in Charlottesville, Virginia I got to thinking about a recent article I wrote. See Fruit of the Spirit below. As I watched television and heard all the talking heads voice their opinions and read postings on Facebook I wondered where Christ was in all of the Chaos. I believe He was in the denouncement of hate filled rhetoric. There is no doubt that the cause of the death and injury lie at the feet of the protesters on the far, far right. The white supremacist movement stands for everything that Jesus Christ fought against in His ministry. Paul in his letter to the Galatians caught the essence of Jesus’ ministry in his example of The Fruit of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is nowhere to be found in the rioting and or hate speech that so many participate in, in media resource and outlets today. The Beatitudes in Matthew 5 give us another look at how our lives are to be lived. If you are a Christian in the world today you are called to be a peacemaker for then you shall be called a child of God!
Fruit of the Spirit.
If I quote scripture and say the Fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, Peace,
Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control would you then say well that is nine fruits and that should be plural as in Fruits of the Spirit. Paul, who wrote Galatians, was very specific about saying The Fruit of the Spirit. During our Bible Study we are watching a video by James Merritt about the Fruit of the Spirit. As I have thought about this and have incorrectly called it the Fruits of the Spirit, I can see why Paul specifically used the term Fruit instead of Fruits. If left to us to follow this scripture we would naturally look and see it as nine different categories of being in the Spirit. We would then start categorizing the Fruit and saying we have an abundance of this fruit but not enough of that fruit. Our judgement would be impaired by just that, our judgment. We could and probably would found churches on this fruit being more of who God calls us to be than any other and begin to ignore the others.There would be the Church of the Greater Fruits of Love, Joy and Peace. Then there would be the Church of the Minor Fruits of Patience, Kindness and Generosity. The Church of Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control would organize and advertise that they are the only and right Church of the Fruits of the Spirit.
So, if you don’t think it could happen just look at the division within the
Church world-wide. Many have staked a claim to having the only right way to worship God when He simply wants us to live in Love with our neighbor, to be filled with the Joy of knowing Him and His Son Jesus Christ, having the Peace that passes all understanding, being patient with those who will not commit, showing kindness to all, giving with a generous heart to those in need, committed to a life of faithfulness to His Way, reflecting the gentleness of Jesus to all and exampling self control in a world that says anything goes. Yes, I think Paul knew what he was doing when he wrote Fruit of the Spirit. Makes sense to me anyway. Being in Christ is being filled with the Holy Spirit and showing the world the whole Fruit of the Spirit.
Have a blessed Fruit filled day,
Pastor Randy
Wesley United Methodist Church, Orange TX 
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