THE SPIRITUAL FRUIT OF FREEDOM
LESSON FOR THE JUNIOR CLASSES
STUDY SCRIPTURE: GALATIANS 5:16-26
KEY VERSE
If we live in the Spirit, let us also Walk in the Spirit.
GALATIANS 5:25
INTRODUCTION AND STUDY
The persons who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour are given a new life. The Holy Spirit comes to live inside them and works to change them to be like Christ. He guides them, teaches them about what is right and acceptable to God. He teaches them about what is wrong and how to avoid doing those kinds of things. He prepares them to one day meet God the Father in heaven so that they will join with the angels and others in heaven praising God and working with Him.
Believers have freedom in Christ. They are encouraged to love freedom and to love each other and persons in the world freely. The two commandments given by God on which all the other commandments rest are the first, to love God with all your heart, soul, and might, and the second, to love your neighbour as yourself.Believers have freeomB
With this new personality, believers are to remember they are living in the Spirit, that is, the Spirit is now part of them and His job is to guide, teach, control, and change the believers so that they become more and more like Jesus with each passing day. They will also walk in the Spirit. That means every day as the day begins believers must have the Spirit guide them during the day. When they put one foot before the other, that means they are walking, the Spirit should direct that walking. If they stumble in the walking the Spiritwould pick them up, dust them off, and help them onto the safe track.
Babies have to learn to walk. They need help. In the same way when you come to belief in Jesus you have to learn to make steps and the Spirit helps in that. As you learn to walk more and more it means you will grow spiritually and with growing strength the believer will not let their old nature put them into doing bad things like idolatry, taking drugs, getting into a rage and having outbursts of anger, arguing and shutting their mind to the truth they are being taught, fighting, showing selfishness, and all kinds of other sins.
Instead, in this freedom the believer will have the fruit of the Spirit which the Holy Spirit gives them. They will have the special kind of love that God has, called the “agape love”. This is not like love of family and friends. It is not based on emotion and whether you like someone or not. You have the freedom and the power to love even if you think that someone is difficult and is not easy to get along with. That is how God loves even when we are disobedient. He still loves His children and the Holy Spirit gently and calmly works to change them, never leaving them alone. God loves even His enemies and He does all that is needed to change them into becoming good and moral well behaved persons.
The fruit given by the Spirit is one fruit. It brings, joy, a deep seated gladness.
It brings peace, a quietness and lack of stress because the person knows God is all sufficient to help.
The fruit includes patience even when you are provoked and not treated well.
It brings the ability of goodness, helping others, being generous, and developing right relationships.
It makes the believer faithful and considerate to others.
It brings kindness and gentleness when dealing with others.
It brings self-control. It controls passions or very strong feelings, and does not allow outward expressions of inner desires with resulting bad behaviour driven by the old flesh.
The fruit of the Spirit says you must not be conceited. You must not be envious. No pride is acceptable.
Remember people of God do not live on automatic pilot. We are living in the Spirit and so we walk in the Spirit, doing one step at a time, learning not to stumble, growing stronger and stronger. The fruit is there. Follow where the Spirit leads. Jesus also has done great things for us