to

Chapel

and our THEME:

"Living and Enjoying the Fruit of the Spirit"

Day 6

Fruit:  Gentleness

Day Verse:

"As the Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you:  continue ye in My love.  If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love, even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love"--John 15:9, 10.

Because it is sometimes easier to describe what a thing is not, rather than what it is, the Bible often contrasts "be not" with "be."  Speak no evil of no man, to be no brawlers (contentious), but gentle (yield unselfishly to others), showing all meekness (a forgiving spirit) unto all men" (Titus 3:2).  "The servant of the Lord must not strive (ride roughshod over others); but be gentle unto all men" (II Timothy 2:24).

In order to have room for gentleness in our lives we must rid ourselves of vulgar, noisy, sinful things.  Suppose we compare some sins in our lives to repulsive little insects and worms which attack branches of the vine and destroy the fruit:

"Rid yourselves, therefore, of all ill will

and all deceitfulness,

of insincerity,

and envy,

and of all evil speaking."

I Peter 2:1 (Weymouth)

What an imp ILL WILL or MALICE is!   Ill will sours every relationship.  Ask the Lord to help you toss it out.  Twin brothers, DECEITFULNESS and INSINCERITY, are liars and hypocrites.  They pretend to be what they are not.  They twist the truth, not only by what they say, but by sly actions that give wrong impressions.  Get rid of them, with the Lord's help.

This green-eyed imp, ENVY or JEALOUSY, ruins the testimony of even strong Christians.  How easy it is to be jealous of someone who is more popular than you.   Perhaps ENVY is the most difficult of all the imps to get rid of--for as soon as you toss it out, it's watching for a chance to bounce in again.  Then, there is the imp of EVIL SPEAKING.  God's Word describes your and my tongue as "a fire," a world of iniquity...an unruly evil, full of deadly poison" (James 3:6, 8).  Evil speaking breaks hearts and ruins lives and homes and churches.  Toss it out and ask the Lord to fill your heart instead with His blessed fruit of GENTLENESS.

When you feel your own weakness, that is when the Lord can help you. If you lack wisdom, ask God for it.  Have faith to believe that He will do His part if you do yours--believe, pray, read His Word, and trust His every promise.  He will give generously as much wisdom as you have faith to receive (James 1:5-7).

Since you are an "abiding branch" of the true Vine, act like a branch.  Christ, who kept all His Father's commandments and always abided in His love, urges, "Continue ye in My love."