The Joy of Thanksgiving

Colossians 3:12-16 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

The life of the Christian is described in Colossians 3. Hiding in all the wealth of this chapter is a precious nugget of gold. It is found in verse 15: “…And be thankful.”

No matter the circumstances of your life. No matter you past or present reality, you have something for which to be thankful.

Habakkuk 3:17-19 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,

¹⁸ yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

¹⁹ The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.

The prophet Habakkuk, born six centuries before Christ, struggled with the injustices of the Chaldean regime over the Jews. He lived in a day of violence and people turning away from their beliefs.

The symbolism cannot be overlooked. The fig tree represented prosperity. When the fields produced no food, people starved. No sheep or cattle in the pen meant no control over the animals.

Habakkuk could have become embittered. Yet he discovered that some times, even the worst times, may be God’s time for us to draw close to Him. What did Habakkuk discover he could do in a difficult day?

1. Rejoice in the Lord.

¹⁸ yet I will rejoice in the LORD,

The principle source of our joy in God is that He is the God of our salvation, and, we may rejoice in Him as such in our greatest trials, since by them our salvation cannot be hindered, but may be furthered.

1 Peter 1:6-7 NIV84 …you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷ These have come so that your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

The trials we face in life are opportunities for our faith to be proved genuine.

James 1:2-4 NIV Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

We don’t often thank God for our trials, heartaches, and difficulties. Although we are willing to praise Him for His goodness, we sometimes fail to realize that even adverse circumstances are blessings in disguise.

What if we stop defining our blessings in terms of our circumstances?

When we count our blessings, we should include the weaknesses, the hardships, the burdens, and the trials we face. If we do, we might find that God has used our difficulties more than the “good” things to help us grow spiritually. Why is that? Because it is in those difficult places that we discover the sufficiency of His grace. In our trials, we turn to God. As we depend on Him, we find that His strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Cor. 12:9).

Often people start a spiritual journey but lose their joy because they have lost sight of the objective. Habakkuk realized he had to focus his attention on God. The battle he now faced might be difficult, but focusing on God created more thanksgiving in his heart.

Philippians 3:1 NLT Whatever happens, my dear brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you these things, and I do it to safeguard your faith.

It is the duty of Christians to rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ. This duty implies the following things:

We should rejoice that we have a savior who:

Can deliver us from sin;

Can save our soul from death;

Can rescue us from all danger, and bring us into safety;

Makes known the way to salvation;

Provides atonement;

Brings peace to a troubled life;

Is our constant support in trials and tribulations;

Comforts us when we grieve.

Our joy should be in the Lord. We should find our happiness not in riches, or vanity, or ambition, or books, or in the world in any form, but in communion with the Lord Jesus, and in the hope of eternal life through Him.

We have more reasons than anyone else to rejoice. As we have contact with the world, we should leave them with the impression that our heart is full of joy.

Philippians 4:4 NLT Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again – rejoice!

It is our privilege to rejoice, not a certain times or at distant intervals, but at all times!

Christians should be joyful people. Because when everything around us changes, Jesus does not change. We always have reason to rejoice.

2. Be joyful over your Savior.

¹⁸ yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

Habakkuk noted, “I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

When people fill a stadium and become quite excited, even ecstatic, in their enthusiasm over a sporting event, we see that as normal. Yet when someone expresses exhilaration about faith in God, we call that person a fanatic. Have we forgotten the words of Jesus, John 15:11 “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete”?

Jesus words most likely tell of the happiness He had due to the disciples obedience, love and loyalty. Their obedience to him was a source of joy.

Hebrews 12:2 NKJV looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

His joy was fulfilling the will of the Father.

“Joy is the byproduct of obedience.” —unknown

[Your joy may be complete] That you might be set free from your hopelessness and grief that I’m leaving. That you might see why I have to leave and let the Holy Spirit comfort you and sustain you in your times of trial.

Jesus set the example for us all: Matthew 26:27-28 NKJV Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. ²⁸ For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

He thanked His heavenly Father for “the cup” of his suffering, for the offering of His body in death and the pouring out of His blood in sacrifice. In other words, He thanked His father for his suffering, crucifixion, and death.

Matthew 26:36-39 NKJV Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” ³⁷ And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. ³⁸ Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”

³⁹ He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

Hebrews 5:7-10 NIV During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. ⁸ Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered ⁹ and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him ¹⁰ and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Jesus learned obedience by His sufferings.

Jesus earthly life was not a script that He carefully followed. He willingly chose to obey the will of the Father, even when that obedience led to suffering.

Our way is to complain about the hard things in life.

Sometimes the will of God may lead to hardships.

It takes love and surrender to say to him, “Thy will be done!” It takes drawing a bigger circle around life and its circumstances to give Him thanks.

Psalm 23:4 NKJV Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil;

For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Romans 8:28 NIV And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Galatians 6:9 NIV Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

1 Thessalonians 5:16 NLT Always be joyful.

Romans 12:11-12 NIV Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

Habakkuk 3:18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

Habakkuk learned to be thankful for his Savior. Giving thanks to God for his salvation helped him to overcome the difficulties he faced.

3. Receive the strength of God.

¹⁹ The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.

Inner strength sustains us in times of trouble. Habakkuk saw God as his strength. The word used by the writer means strong, firm, and durable—the type of strength that will enable us to run like a deer or climb to new heights like wild sheep. We need to claim God’s power for our lives.

Psalm 18:32-33 NIV It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure. ³³ He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights.

Psalm 27:1 NIV The LORD is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 46:1 NIV God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

Isaiah 12:2 NIV Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation."

Nehemiah 8:10 NIV Nehemiah said, "… for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

Psalm 28:7-8 NIV The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy and with my song I praise him. ⁸ The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.

Ephesians 6:10 NIV Finally, be strong in the LORD and in his mighty power.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NIV84 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Peeled 9

Self-Control

We are examining the Fruit of the Spirit and discovering characteristics of a life changed by Christ.

Here’s what we know about fruit, fruit is never grown overnight, it must be cultivated.

Picture your life like a piece of fruit. When you are peeled is the fruit sweet or sour?

We are peeling back the layers of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Many say “fruits,” however there are not 9 “fruits” of the Spirit, the Fruit of the Spirit has 9 characteristics, 9 layers if you will. One Fruit with 9 attributes.

These Fruit taken together make up the character of Christ.

Some people try to pick and choose their way through the Fruit of the Spirit. Many pray and ask God to “give” them the fruit of the Spirit. Gifts are given. Fruit is cultivated.

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

The Fruit of the Spirit is a description of the character qualities found in Christ.

So far we have examined Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness,  Goodness, Faithfulness and Gentleness.

This week let’s examine Self-Control.

The Greek root word for self-control means “to get a hold of” or “to get a grip on.”

Proverbs 25:28 NLT A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.

Self-control is mastering every desire and impulse. It is inward strength to control the flesh.

This strength is NOT something we develop on our own, there are no strategies for self-control, self-control is Spirit empowered strength.

In fact, without the power of the Holy Spirit, we will not have self-control.

Galatians 5:16-17 NLT So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. ¹⁷ The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

When we allow the Holy Spirit to guide our lives and when we allow Him to cultivate fruit in our lives, our lives will begin to reflect the character of Christ.

As we become more like Christ, as we resist temptation, as we allow the Spirit to lead, we begin to demonstrate evidence of the fruit of the Spirit being cultivated in our lives.

Self-control is not just about temperament.

Self-control is about allowing the Holy Spirit to empower us to resist the temptation and desire to break God’s law, and to empower us to resist the temptation and desire to manage our emotions, conduct and actions.

People often say, “I don’t know what happened, I just lost control.”

Romans 7:18-25 NLT And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. ¹⁹ I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. ²⁰ But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. ²¹ I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. ²² I love God’s law with all my heart. ²³ But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. ²⁴ Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? ²⁵ Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.

When we allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate the fruit of self-control in our lives He will lead us to a place of self-control.

Allowing the Holy Spirit to lead our lives and cultivate self-control will help us keep every passion under control.

Self-control is not a quick fix.

Self-control requires a lifetime of discipline for the purpose of godliness.

1 Timothy 4:7-8 NLT Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly. ⁸ “Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”

We must train daily for godliness.

We must daily makes decisions to be disciplined in our mind, emotions, words, actions, and hearts.

Self-control is not just about temperament.

Self-control is allowing the Holy Spirit to help us resist the temptation to live contrary to God’s word.

Self-control requires strength and stamina because the hardest person to say “no” to is your self.

Self-control requires discipline to do what must be done.

The discipline of self-control is developed as we allow the Holy Spirit to lead each area of our lives.

“The job of a football coach is to make men do what they don’t want to do in order to achieve what they’ve always wanted to be.”

“A coach is someone who tells you what you don't want to hear, who has you see what you don't want to see, so you can be who you have always known you could be.” – Tom Landry

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NKJV For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,

Why do we need self-control?

Self-control is the bonding agent for every other attribute of the fruit of the Spirit.

It takes self-control:

To love others like Christ loves us.

To maintain joy in the midst of hardship or difficulty.

To live at peace with other people.

To have patience in the mist of irritating imperfect people.

To show kindness to others.

To demonstrate goodness.

To continue a life of faithfulness.

To live with gentleness.

It takes self-control to enable each attribute of the fruit of the Spirit to be active in our lives.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NLT Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! ²⁵ All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. ²⁶ So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. ²⁷ I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

Paul points out that athletes are driven by a clearly defined goal.

All athletes understand that to reach the goal of winning the prize, they must resist the distractions that come from their bodily passions and desires.

Self-control is the result of allowing the Holy Spirit to empower us in moments of weakness.

When we are weak, we find strength through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 5:16 NLT So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.

Self-control is not a result of self-effort or learned strategies.

Self-control is cultivated as we let the Holy Spirit guide our lives.

How many diets have you gone on?

How many gym memberships have you purchased?

When we allow the Holy Spirit to lead our lives and to cultivate fruit in our lives, we also develop the potential for self-control.

As the Holy Spirit leads, we begin find that we can control our temper, our desires, we find we have the strength to say “no” to things that would not be Christ honoring.

We find we now have the willingness and the ability to turn-off forms of entertainment to allow more time for seeking God in His Word and through prayer times.

You don’t need to read a book or take a course to learn self-control.

Self-control is cultivated in our lives through our faith.

Fruitful Growth begins with faith.

2 Peter 1:5-11 NIV For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶ and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷ 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. ⁹ But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

¹⁰ Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, ¹¹ and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Fruit is cultivated in our lives through the Holy Spirit’s power and our effort.

The Holy Spirit works in us as we also do our part allowing Him room to work.

Peter cautions us to “make every effort” to cultivate Christ-like character qualities in our lives.

Too often we tend to focus on “what we want to do with our lives rather than “who” we are becoming.

The Lord is more concerned with who we are than what we do!

Who we are shows our character.

Each day we should focus on who God wants us to be.

When we are who God wants us to be, we will find that we are doing and accomplishing what He desires for us to do and accomplish.

“The fruit of the Spirit tells us God is far more concerned with who we are than what we’re doing.

Probably 99 percent of knowing the will of God is being the person God wants you to be.”

Dr. George O. Wood, Living in the Spirit, pg. 121

2 Peter 1:5-6 NIV For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶ and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;

Peter shows us that self-control comes through knowledge, which comes through obedience to the Word of God.

We must be diligent as we allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate the character of Christ in our lives.

Proverbs 16:32 NLT Better to be patient than powerful; better to have self-control than to conquer a city.

Galatians 5:16 NLT So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.

The foundation for cultivating self-control is daily walking in the Spirit. When we follow His leading, we are then positioned to cultivate fruit.

We successfully walk in the Spirit through self-control.

We conquer desires that work against the Spirit’s leading and we submit to the desires the Holy Spirit births in us.

Peeled - 8

Gentleness

We are examining the Fruit of the Spirit and discovering characteristics of a life changed by Christ.

Here’s what we know about fruit, fruit is never grown overnight, it must be cultivated.

Picture your life like a piece of fruit. When you are peeled is the fruit sweet or sour?

We are peeling back the layers of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Many say “fruits,” however there are not 9 “fruits” of the Spirit, the Fruit of the Spirit has 9 characteristics, 9 layers if you will. One Fruit with 9 attributes.

These Fruit taken together make up the character of Christ.

Some people try to pick and choose their way through the Fruit of the Spirit. Many pray and ask God to “give” them the fruit of the Spirit. Gifts are given. Fruit is cultivated.

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

The Fruit of the Spirit is a description of the character qualities found in Christ.

So far we have examined Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness,  Goodness and Faithfulness.

This week let’s examine Gentleness.

KJV – Meekness

Meekness – 4239 praüs (prah-ooce') ADJ. or 4235 praos (prah’-os), denotes "gentle, mild, meek"

Gentleness 4240 praütēs (prah-oo’-tace)  Noun. describes the quality of not being overly impressed by a sense of one’s self-importance.

Praütēs is a quality of gentle friendliness.

In Greek literature praütēs was sometimes used of fake, hypocritical concern for others that is motivated by self-centeredness.

But in the New Testament it is always used of genuine consideration for others.

The Greek language is a precise and expressive language. When they defined a word they also gave the word an illustration.

Praütēs was used in secular Greek writings to describe a soothing wind, a healing medicine, and a colt that had been broken.

In each illustration, there is power under control; for wind can become a storm, too much medicine can kill and a horse can break loose.

To the Greeks, prautes is the definition and word picture of power or strength under control.

Vine’s Expository Dictionary:

“The meaning of praütēs is not readily expressed in English …

Praütēs describes a condition of the mind and heart (Meekness).

Gentleness is more applicable to actions.

Meekness seems to be the better use of the word.

It must be clearly understood that the meekness manifested by the Lord and commended to the believer is the fruit of power.

The common assumption is that when a man is meek it is because he cannot help himself; but the Lord was meek because He had the infinite resources of God at His command.” (from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright © 1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

Meekness is not an easy attribute of the Fruit of the Spirit to cultivate.

It’s easy to have counterfeit Meekness/Gentleness.

Those who are easy going or have no ambition or drive are often labeled as gentle or meek.

Gentleness/Meekness have nothing to do with personality.

A person can have a gentle personality but be far from cultivating the fruit of Gentleness/Meekness.

1. Why Meekness?

Matthew 5:5 NIV “Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.”

The Greeks characterized meekness as power under control.

For Spirit filled believers, this means living under the control of the Holy Spirit.

Practically speaking, someone who is meek lives free from malice, bitterness, and any desire for revenge.

The best way to understand meekness is through in the context of relationships because meekness refers to how we treat others.

To be meek, implies that we live in submission to God.

Our submission is not a passive submission that shrugs its shoulders and says, “oh well, I can’t do anything about it anyway.”

Our submission is an active submission, willingly choosing to accept God’s ways without murmuring or complaining.

Meekness is not cowardice, complacency, or the willingness to have peace at any cost.

Meekness is not being wishy-washy or indecisive. It’s not shyness, or being an introvert. It’s definitely not just being nice.

Meekness is controlled strength. Having power that is completely surrendered to God’s control.

Meekness is an attitude of the heart in which all of our energies are brought into perfect control of the Holy Spirit.

The person who is meek accepts that everything comes from God.

They not only accept that everything comes from God, they also live their lives with behaviors that demonstrate and reflect gentleness.

Character always precedes conduct.

What we are determines what we do.

Conduct must flow out of character.

2. What about my rights?

2 Timothy 2:24-26 NKJV And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, ²⁵ in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, ²⁶ and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

Our culture says to step on people’s faces before they step on yours, that is how you get to the top. That’s how you become successful!

The real unspoken system is “do to other people before they get a chance to do to you.”

But God says, “that’s not how it works!”

While the attitude of our culture is all about “Assert Yourself And Take Care Of #1”… Jesus had a better idea. He called all of us to LAY DOWN OUR LIVES” in practical ways everyday for other people.

Laying your life down means putting others first. Things like helping around the house, spending time with your family, sometimes going out of your way to meet someone else’s need. Not popping off at someone when you really want to just let him or her have it.

LAY YOUR LIFE DOWN!

Quote from Blue Like Jazz – “If we are not willing to wake up in the morning and die to ourselves, perhaps we should ask ourselves whether or not we are really following Jesus.” Pg. 185

Jesus says, you are going to be blessed when you do that.

Matthew 5:5 NIV “Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.”

The Greek definition of “Blessed” means, “to be characterized by the quality and nature of God.” It means being so full of God that we begin to take on His nature causing His kingdom to be alive in us.

1 John 3:16 NIV This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.

John 15:5, 8 NLT “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”

⁸ “When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.”

When we allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate Gentleness in our lives, we are bearing fruit that characterizes the nature and qualities of God.

The Bible teaches that you have the right attitude when you say, “you know what I’m not going to assert my rights.”

Because our society says assert your rights, don’t let people tell you what to do. But Jesus says, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”

That’s why we have to submit to our boss, our parents and teachers, authorities put over us.

Jesus said that the person who wants to be first must learn to be a servant of all.

Jesus says in this culture you’re a blessed person when you swallow your pride and learn to serve other people and put others first.

Remember the Greek word for meekness? Praüs or Praütēs

Watch how Jesus walked and responded, even when He was mistreated and falsely accused.

1 Peter 2:18-25 NLT You who are slaves must submit to your masters with all respect. Do what they tell you—not only if they are kind and reasonable, but even if they are cruel. ¹⁹ For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. ²⁰ Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.

²¹ For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.

²² He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone.

²³ He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly.

²⁴ He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

²⁵ Once you were like sheep who wandered away. But now you have turned to your Shepherd, the Guardian of your souls.

Jesus didn’t work deceitfully.

He didn’t return insults with insults.

Even though He had more right than anyone to do so. (He created all those who were insulting and mistreating Him.)

Jesus simply prayed and kept His mouth shut.

He continually entrusted Himself to God, knowing that God knew about the insults and unjust treatment.

3. Meekness Modeled.

Genesis 50:19-20 NIV But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? ²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

Meekness allowed Joseph to look beyond the cruel intentions and murderous plot of his brothers. Meekness enabled Joseph to see the sovereignty of God in all situations.

Because Joseph walked in meekness, he was ready to accept all that God had allowed into His life without bitterness.

As his brothers feared for their lives, for good reason! Joseph was the perfect example of power under control:

The perfect example of meekness is Jesus.

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

A yoke was a wooden frame that farmers would put on the back of an ox. The yoke went on the back and around neck, joining two animals together, enabling them to work together to carry the load and pull a cart or plow a field.

When we are yoked with Jesus, guess who pulls the load?

Jesus does.

The best way for us to display meekness to the world around us is to be yoked with Jesus. He is the model of meekness.

He promises us that if we take His yoke, we will find rest. By attaching ourselves to Jesus, we find rest in His gentle and humble heart.

This word picture would have been very familiar to Jesus’ audience. In Biblical times, a young ox was commonly yoked to an older, more experienced ox.

The purpose was so that the older ox could basically “train” the younger ox.

For example, when yoked to an older ox, the younger ox could learn the correct pace at which to work and how to heed the direction of the master.

How does this apply to believers today? By being yoked to Christ, we learn to surrender every area of our lives to His will.

Jesus’ yoke is “easy”.

In Palestine, ox yokes were made of wood.

The ox was purchased and measurements were taken for the yoke.

The yoke was then roughed out and the ox was brought back for a fitting. Then yoke was then adjusted so that it would fit well. The yoke was tailor-made to fit the ox.

Our “yoke” is tailor-made as well. We learn meekness as we are yoked with the Master. As we walk with Jesus, we learn to be like Jesus.

Peeled - 7

Faithfulness

We are examining the Fruit of the Spirit and discovering characteristics of a life changed by Christ.

Here’s what we know about fruit, fruit is never grown overnight, it must be cultivated.

Picture your life like a piece of fruit. When you are peeled is the fruit sweet or sour?

We are peeling back the layers of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Many say “fruits,” however there are not 9 “fruits” of the Spirit, the Fruit of the Spirit has 9 characteristics, 9 layers if you will. One Fruit with 9 attributes.

These Fruit taken together make up the character of Christ.

Some people try to pick and choose their way through the Fruit of the Spirit. Many pray and ask God to “give” them the fruit of the Spirit. Gifts are given. Fruit is cultivated.

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

The Fruit of the Spirit is a description of the character qualities found in Christ.

So far we have examined Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness and Goodness.

This week let’s examine Faithfulness.

If you read our text in the KJV it says faith. All the modern translations use the word faithfulness.

In the Greek, the word for Faith is the same word used for Faithfulness.

[Greek] pistis – conviction, confidence, trust, belief, reliance

Pistis is the divinely implanted principle of inward confidence, assurance, trust, and reliance in God and all that He says.

Faith is believing God is who He says He is and He will do what He said He would do.

Faith is you trusting God.

Faithfulness is God trusting you.

Faithfulness is total commitment and loyalty to God that goes against all human reasoning.

Many people say they believe in God, but faithfulness means believing to the point that your belief changes your lifestyle.

Faith is a Gift of the Spirit, but it is also a Fruit that must be cultivated.

Romans 12:3 NKJV For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

Luke 17:5-6 NLT The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.” ⁶ The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and thrown into the sea,’ and it would obey you!”

Matthew 17:20 NLT “You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”

On two separate occasions Jesus makes a reference to “Mustard Seed Faith.” Jesus used a small mustard seed to figuratively teach about the power of faith in God.

It takes small amount of faith on our part to enable God to do mighty things because we believe.

Mark 9:23-24 NLT “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” ²⁴ The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”

Jesus says believe, and the man says, “Lord, I do believe, help my unbelief.”

Faith must be cultivated.

To cultivate faith, it is helpful first to know the source of faith.

Romans 10:17 NKJV So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

1. God is Faithful.

Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. ²³ Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. ²⁴ I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”

Deuteronomy 32:3-4 NLT I will proclaim the name of the LORD;

how glorious is our God! ⁴ He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!

Psalm 89:1-2 NIV I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations.

² I will declare that your love stands firm forever,

that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.

Psalm 89:8 NIV Who is like you, Lord God Almighty?

You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.

Numbers 23:19 NLT God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind.

Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?

1 Corinthians 1:9 NIV God is faithful who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

1 John 1:9 NLT But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

God is faithful.

He does what He says He will do. He is trustworthy.

He keeps His promises.

2. Cultivating Faith.

Hebrews 11:1 NLT Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

Faith is believing God is who He says He is and He will do what He said He would do.

Hope is the God given dream or desire of our hearts. Faith brings the dream to reality.

Hope is confident expectation. Hope is an extension of faith.

Hope is not wishful thinking, it is confident expectation based on absolute certainty.

Hope is a catalyst for cultivating faith.

Romans 4:18-21 NIV Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” ¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. ²⁰ Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

As Paul tells us about Abraham’s faith, he paints the picture of Abraham as a hero. And he is! He’s the father of faith!

But Abraham’s faith had to be cultivated!

Genesis 12:1-5 NIV The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. ² “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. ³ I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” ⁴ So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. ⁵ He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.

The object of Abraham’s faith was not the promise.

The promise was the motive for Abraham’s faith.

Abraham’s faith rested on God Himself.

Romans 4:16-17 NIV Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. ¹⁷ As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.

Romans 4:18-19 NIV Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed … ¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith,

Abraham and Sarah didn’t have what it takes to make a great nation!

As time passes by, hope begins to fade.

Genesis 15:1-6 NIV After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”

² But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” ⁴ Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” ⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

Romans 4:19 NIV Without weakening in his faith,

² But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?”

– “God, You said, but I don’t see how!”

When God says but you don’t see, it’s very hard to hold on to hope.

It’s difficult to keep hope alive when God said and then weeks, months, & years pass by.

³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” ⁴ Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” ⁶ Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

– God showed Abraham the stars, and Abraham believed.

You believe what you behold!

“Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.” – St. Augustine

“When what you see doesn’t match what God said, Focus on what God said.”

If you focus on the facts, the facts will weigh you down.

We face the facts, but we don’t focus on them!

Hope begins to fade when the facts work against you.

Hope begins to fade when you know about the failures.

Hope begins to fade when you don’t feel faith.

Romans 4:18 NIV Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

For Abraham’s faith to be strengthened, he had to have something to push against.

Nothing gets stronger without resistance.

Your faith needs a fight. Your faith needs something to fight against to make you strong.

Romans 4:19 NIV Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.

Faith does not mean not facing the facts.

Hope that doesn’t face the facts does not last!

Abraham had the unique ability to face the facts but keep his faith.

This is the essence of Hope: The ability to face the facts of the things that are against you but keep your faith in the God who is within you.

Fruitful:

Genesis 17:1-6 NIV When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. ² Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” ³ Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram ; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.

Genesis 17:15-19 NIV God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. ¹⁶ I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” ¹⁷ Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” ¹⁸ And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” ¹⁹ Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.

If enough time goes by and that thing you’re hoping for from God doesn’t come to pass, you’ll just take matters into your own hands and do it your way!

Romans 4:18-19 NIV Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed … ¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith,

Hope is the God given dream or desire of our hearts.

Faith brings the dream to reality.

Hope is confident expectation. Hope is an extension of faith.

Hope is not wishful thinking, it is confident expectation based on absolute certainty.

Hope is a catalyst for cultivating faith.

Keep hope alive when:

…the situation is going down.

…the facts are against you.

…the world is against you.

…what you see does not correspond with what God said.

Genesis 17:17 NIV Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”

Abraham laughed at God, but he is still called the father of faith!

You don’t have to feel faith to have faith!

2 Corinthians 5:7 NIV For we live by faith, not by sight.

What was it that made Abraham useful to God?

Even though the facts, failures, and feelings were stacked against him, he gave glory to God.

Romans 4:18-21 NIV Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” ¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. ²⁰ Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

Glory – [Hebrew] – kabod – used 376 times – literally means weight

Abraham gave more weight to what God had said than to what he saw.

Give glory to what God said not to what you see.

When what you see doesn’t look like what God said, remember what God said.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NIV Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

You’re giving too much weight to the wrong things that you’re losing hope.

Put all the weight on Jesus.

Many people who are going through difficult seasons look for a ray of hope; some little sign of change.

Our problem is we LOOK for signs of hope. We want to see something to inspire hope. We want something to believe in!

We say things like, “If I could see things begin to move in the right direction.” Or, “If I could just see a little proof that God is working on my behalf.”

Maybe your thought is, “How do I have hope when time passes by and nothing changes, in fact, the longer I wait the worse things seem to get!”

The problem is, you are searching for visible signs of hope.

Romans 8:24-25 NIV For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

Faith is cultivated as we wait patiently, believing God is who He says He is and that He will do what He said He would do.

Hebrews 6:18-19 NLT So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. ¹⁹ This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.

Hope is giving God glory because of His promise in spite of my current circumstances.

Hope is a catalyst for cultivating faith.

When we Hope in God who is faithful, He begins to cultivate faith in our lives.

Faith when it has been cultivated becomes faithfulness.

Faith is me trusting God.

Faithfulness is God trusting me.