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Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-control

Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-control

Words of Faith 6-27-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Galatians 5

    [22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, [23] gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

 

      These last three virtues of the Spirit are really concerned with the inner life, how a believer is in himself.  Nevertheless, each of these qualities is relational as well.

      A believer who is surrendered to the Spirit will be characterized by "faithfulness"-- the quality makes a person one on whom others can rely.  It is the quality of trustworthiness or reliability. It is the word used in the Bible to describe a faithful servant, including servants of the gospel and of Christ.

      But this is a strong word and a durable quality.  Faithfulness is the character quality found in a person who will die for his confession of Christ (Rev. 2:10; 3:14).  This is the very character of Christ Himself-- the faithful witness (Rev 1:5).  This is the character of God the Father, who always acts faithfully toward his people (1Cor 1:9; 10:13; 1Thess 5:24; 2Thess 3:3).

     "Gentleness" is the quality of strength under control.  It is not a description of weakness.  Gentleness is from a Greek word that means a person who is so much in control of himself that he is always angry at the right time and never angry at the wrong time.  Moses was praised for being the gentlest or meekest among his contemporaries. Meek is not weak.

      Gentleness is the spirit in which we are to learn from God.  It is also the quality which must be applied when faults are corrected in another (Gal 6:1). It is the virtue of God within us when we meet opposition. Those who oppose him, he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth (2 Tim. 2:25).  

      Gentleness is the quality we are to exhibit when sharing our witness of Christ-- But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander (1 Peter 3:15-16).

       "Self-control" is the quality that gives victory over fleshly desires.  This is closely related to chastity, both in mind and conduct.  It is the quality which comes to a man when Christ is in his heart, which makes him able to live and to walk in the world and yet keep his garments unspotted from the world.

       Are you surrendered to the faithfulness of God's Spirit within you?  Are you surrendered to the gentleness of His way?  Are you surrendered to the Spirit of self-control such that you are finding victory over fleshly desires?

 

        Father God, I want to be all about Your Spirit.  I want more of You and less of me.  I desire a life that is surrendered to Your way and Your will-- but most of all to the qualities of Your Spirit.  Bring forth the fruit of Your Spirit in my life.  In Jesus' Name.

 

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, and our website, and our church app, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.  

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