by Jerry Lewis

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

Romans 8:9-11

Your body is dead—that old thing that caused you the sin problem is dead! Why are you serving a dead body? Why are you enslaved to a lifeless existence? Romans 8:5-8 is a description of your life before Christ. Look at it!

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:5-8 ESV)

Did you know that Jesus did not even raise Himself from the grave! The Holy Spirit raised Christ from the grave! If Jesus depended on the Holy Spirit to raise Him from the grave, then you and I must depend on the Holy Spirit to raise us up to live an entirely new life!

We have been sold a bill of goods. The enemy has made us as a body, so conscious of sin that we are inoperative as a body of believers righteous before God, ready and equipped to move on.

chuck swindoll

We focus way too much on our lives before Christ–rather than focusing on the fact that we have been raised with Him. We need to live under the awesome power of God! The  result of that kind of living: So then brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh to live according to the flesh. We have an obligation, not to the flesh, but to the Spirit. We choose moment by moment whether or not we will respond to the Spirit or to the flesh.

Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

(Romans 6:13 ESV)

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

(Colossians 3:5 ESV)

And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

(Galatians 5:24 ESV)

Your response to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is to put to death the sinful deeds of the body. It is a relationship of incredible balance—where the Holy Spirit constantly works to rid us of sin in our lives. Through His work, we are empowered to say “No” when sin presents itself. Notice also the outcome. You will either live or die. You cannot ride the fence, here. You will either live according to your old desires before you came to Christ–and die. Or you will live by the power of the Spirit who indwells you–and live.

Father, thank you that your Spirit lives in me, and where he lives there is victory. Over sin. Over my sinful nature. Over temptation. Truly, greater is he who is in me than he who is in the world! I will live with that in mind today. You are not a guest, my heart is your home. In Jesus’ name. Amen!

by Lisa Ellis

Scripture tells us the greatest commandment of all is to love.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

matthew 22:36-40

You can never go wrong spreading love. When you show love towards the people in your life, it’s an expression of the same love God has shown to you. Love God, love your neighbor, and love yourself. That’s what the Lord commands for us all.

The ultimate gift was the love Jesus showed us by giving up his life to take our sins.  We were so underserving of that love but He did it anyway.  Through Jesus, God’s love brought us salvation and what an amazing gift of love that was!  

Love is expressed in so many different forms and in many ways.  You can love your children, your spouse, your parents, and your friends but God expects us to also love our enemies.  Now that can be a hard one. There are two reasons we should love our enemies. One is simply because God said to, but the other is because God loved us first.

“We love because God first loved us.”

1 John 4:19

Every day in my prayers I try to end with “show me today Lord where I have the opportunity to love and encourage others.”  Everyone has a cross to bear, sometimes many crosses in their life, and a simple hug, smile or encouraging word can make such a difference in someone’s day.  Be intentional about spreading the love to others that our Lord has given us. Here’s a prayer to get us started.

Dear Lord, we come to you today with open hearts.  Thank you for being such a loving, gracious God.  Thank you for loving us enough to send your son to die for us.  That was the ultimate gift of love.  It is perfect, it never fails, and nothing can separate us from that love. We pray you gift us with the overflowing power of your love to make a difference in this world and to bring honor to you in everything we do.  Help us to love others as you love us.  Help us to see our enemies through your eyes Lord.  Thank you for equipping us to face each day with your love, your forgiveness and your grace. We love you Lord. In Jesus’ loving name, Amen.

by Noah Siak

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

proverbs 15:1

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is Jesus’ kindness toward the adulterous woman in John 8. When the Pharisees bring a woman into the temple who had just committed adultery, Jesus has a simple response: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone.” The Pharisees, stumped by this, all file out one by one. Jesus, being the only one remaining says “neither do I condemn you. Now go and sin no more.” 

What Jesus shows us here is an immeasurable amount of gentleness and grace toward the adulterous woman. Because he was the perfect Son of God, he alone could condemn this woman – but instead, He was gentle with His words and told her to no longer sin. 

Jesus sets an amazing example of what it means to be gentle towards others. As He was gentle toward the adulterous woman, we are to be gentle toward the people around us. As you start your day, I encourage you to pray this with me:

Jesus, I am so thankful for the gentleness you have shown me time and time again. Whether that be through calling me out of sin through your Spirit, or by encouraging me through your word – I can’t thank you enough. As I go on with my day, I want to grow in the fruit of gentleness. Would you be with me as I walk with You? Would You help me to show gentleness to those I may come across? Would you give me the courage to speak truth in love and to encourage my friends, family, and coworkers? And specifically, would you help me be gentle toward ___________? (Who is someone you struggle to be gentle toward?) Thank you for using me. I’m not worthy – but You are. Amen

by Dave Snider

You sit down at a restaurant to order. The wait staff is shorthanded so it takes them a minute (or 10) to get to you. You finally place your order. It eventually it arrives, wrong. Your daughter decides to help wash clothes, she starts a load. The next morning, you realize that the soured smell coming from the laundry room is your wet clothes you planned to wear that day. You’re in line at Lowes to check out and someone just cuts directly in front of you. 

These are the small things that can absolutely get the best of us! We bite our tongues. How we respond in these situations is crucial! There are many aspects of the fruit of the Spirit that I could be addressing, but sometimes this can be a tough one for me.

Kindness. 

It’s mentioned in scripture over 200 times. Ironically, the same amount of times per week that I have to encourage it with my children! Like most of the fruit of the Spirit, it just doesn’t always come naturally. 

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, KINDNESS, humility, meekness, and patience” 

colossians 3:12

Hmmm, I have to put it on? It’s not already on me if I’m a believer? Nope. 

That is what Paul says. I have to put it on. I have to choose to make it a part of who I am. Thats tough because sometimes I don’t want to. I want to be right, not compassionate. I want to have what I need quickly, not be inconvenienced, or just not be involved. To be kind or meek would mean that I would have to put someone before myself.       

Ouch. That stings a bit.

So many times we simply choose to leave the jacket that is kindness in the closet. We think if we just say nothing at all, or bite our tongues, then we are ok. We stay in neutral because thats safe and easy. Its not messy. That’s an issue though. We need each other. We need encouragement. We need to know we are valuable. We need to help one another. We need Christ! Gods Word says that His kindness is what leads us to repentance. Thats such good news for us! We need to share that kindness.

So how do we do it? Well, fruit grows best when we care for the plant and water it. Be in the Word and in prayer. Pray for a soft heart and thoughtful words and actions.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave us. 

Ephesians 4:12

Who needs you to be tenderhearted today? Zechariah 7:9 says that we should show kindness and mercy to everyone.

Who needs your forgiveness today? Romans 2 says the Gods Kindness leads us to repentance. 

Who needs to hear about Christs kindness today? Maybe the waitress was the only one working and she was doing her best. Encourage her and tip her well. Your daughter meant well but forgot to load the dryer. Thank her anyway and tell her how proud you are that she took the initiative to help. The lady that cut you off in the checkout line has a story. Pray for her. There’s no telling what she’s been through this week.

Take it a step further. Who do you know that might be lonely and would appreciate a call this week? Did your neighbor have surgery? Do they need a meal? It’s not always having to respond to bad situations in a kind way. Sometimes its just thinking beyond ourselves and noticing those around us.

Pull that jacket out of the closet this morning and try in on. Don’t worry, kindness always fits. 🙂

Father thank you so much that Your kindness led me to repentance! Help me to never get over how kind and merciful You have been to me through Christ. Lord, please help me to put on a compassionate heart, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience today. Thank You that you call me holy and beloved because of Christ’s sacrifice. Help me to love others today like You do.

Amen.

by Jerry Lewis

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Psalm 118:24

Until recently I thought of this verse as applying to every single day, regardless of what comes our way. And indeed it does. But I only thought of this verse in that way. Until I read the two verses before it while working on a sermon.

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing, it is marvelous in our eyes.

Psalm 118:22-23

The day that the Lord made was the day the builders rejected the stone. Jesus quoted this verse in Matthew 21 to reference his own rejection by the Pharisees and his subsequent crucifixion. God made that day.

Let that sink in.

God made the day the Pharisees would shout “crucify him.”

God made that day.

I could write so much more but it’s Sunday. Can’t wait to see you in worship.

by Dave Snider

You sit down at a restaurant to order. The wait staff is shorthanded so it takes them a minute (or 10) to get to you. You finally place your order. It eventually it arrives, wrong. Your daughter decides to help wash clothes, she starts a load. The next morning, you realize that the soured smell coming from the laundry room is your wet clothes you planned to wear that day. You’re in line at Lowes to check out and someone just cuts directly in front of you. 

These are the small things that can absolutely get the best of us! We bite our tongues. How we respond in these situations is crucial! There are many aspects of the fruit of the Spirit that I could be addressing, but sometimes this can be a tough one for me.

Kindness. 

It’s mentioned in scripture over 200 times. Ironically, the same amount of times per week that I have to encourage it with my children! Like most of the fruit of the Spirit, it just doesn’t always come naturally. 

“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, KINDNESS, humility, meekness, and patience” 

colossians 3:12

Hmmm, I have to put it on? It’s not already on me if I’m a believer? Nope. 

That is what Paul says. I have to put it on. I have to choose to make it a part of who I am. Thats tough because sometimes I don’t want to. I want to be right, not compassionate. I want to have what I need quickly, not be inconvenienced, or just not be involved. To be kind or meek would mean that I would have to put someone before myself.       

Ouch. That stings a bit.

So many times we simply choose to leave the jacket that is kindness in the closet. We think if we just say nothing at all, or bite our tongues, then we are ok. We stay in neutral because thats safe and easy. Its not messy. That’s an issue though. We need each other. We need encouragement. We need to know we are valuable. We need to help one another. We need Christ! Gods Word says that His kindness is what leads us to repentance. Thats such good news for us! We need to share that kindness.

So how do we do it? Well, fruit grows best when we care for the plant and water it. Be in the Word and in prayer. Pray for a soft heart and thoughtful words and actions.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave us. 

Ephesians 4:12

Who needs you to be tenderhearted today? Zechariah 7:9 says that we should show kindness and mercy to everyone.

Who needs your forgiveness today? Romans 2 says the Gods Kindness leads us to repentance. 

Who needs to hear about Christs kindness today? Maybe the waitress was the only one working and she was doing her best. Encourage her and tip her well. Your daughter meant well but forgot to load the dryer. Thank her anyway and tell her how proud you are that she took the initiative to help. The lady that cut you off in the checkout line has a story. Pray for her. There’s no telling what she’s been through this week.

Take it a step further. Who do you know that might be lonely and would appreciate a call this week? Did your neighbor have surgery? Do they need a meal? It’s not always having to respond to bad situations in a kind way. Sometimes its just thinking beyond ourselves and noticing those around us.

Pull that jacket out of the closet this morning and try in on. Don’t worry, kindness always fits. 🙂

Father thank you so much that Your kindness led me to repentance! Help me to never get over how kind and merciful You have been to me through Christ. Lord, please help me to put on a compassionate heart, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience today. Thank You that you call me holy and beloved because of Christ’s sacrifice. Help me to love others today like You do.

Amen.

by Jerry Lewis

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. (Romans 7:14-15 ESV)

The flesh is the earthly part of man, representing lusts and desires. The flesh is contrary to the Spirit (Galatians 5:17). Those who are in the flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:8). Galatians 5:19-23 contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit.

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

Galatians 5:19-23, ESV

The flesh is a dangerous enemy within. For some of you this is the starting place. You need to say: I am of flesh. I have lusts. I have desires. I want to do things that are ungodly. I want to sin.

In Victor Hugo’s Ninety-Three, his novel about the French Revolutionary War, a ship is caught in a terrible storm. The crew’s problems worsen by the realization that a cannon is loose below deck. Every wave turns the unchained cannon into an internal hazard. Two brave sailors risk their lives to go below and secure the loose cannon. On their descent into the ship, they discuss the fact that the cannon within is more dangerous than the storm without. Although there is much to fear in life, our greatest danger is the sinful nature within us.

Sold under sin is a phrase is borrowed from the practice of selling captives taken in war as slaves. The slave, in this situation, has no choice. He is a casualty of war.

For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. (Romans 7:15 ESV)

If it was ok for Paul to say, “I do not understand,” then it’s ok for you too. Paul did not understand. Paul, who trained under Gamaliel, the esteemed scholar of his day, did not understand. Paul, who started churches in virtually every place he traveled, did not understand. Paul, who wrote the majority of the New Testament, did not understand. And if Paul did not understand, it’s ok if you don’t understand. Get used to saying, “I don’t understand.”

What does Paul not understand? He does not do what he wants to do. He sins when he wants to do the right thing. In verse 17 Paul identifies the problem: For the longest time I thought this verse sounded like a cop-out. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. (Romans 7:17 ESV) But it is not. In the original language, there is a word that is not rendered in the translation. It should read: “So now it is no longer I who do it, but the sin that dwells in me.” Paul is referring to the sinful nature. When he sins, he (the new Paul after Christ) is no longer the one doing it, but the sinful nature (the old Paul before Christ). For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. (Romans 7:18)

Let’s pray. Father, I think you that you saved me out of my bondage to sin. Yet, as you well know, my sinful nature still longs to dominate. Right now, I acknowledge that apart from you I can do nothing, but through you I can do all things. I surrender (yet again) to your Spirit to have full control in my life. I long for the fruit of the Spirit to be produce. So today I die to myself and live for you, and watch your Spirit do his work in me. Thank you so much for putting up with me! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

by Jerry Lewis

Mondays are Mondays. The first day of the work week. Kids coming back to school having experienced all kinds of weekends. Some of you face the week ahead with dread, others with anticipation. It’s Monday.

And while you slept last night, God was working. Remember our paradigm shift in thinking of the fruit of the Spirit. God is at work in the silent, hidden spaces. Where no one can see, God sees best. Where nothing can impact, God can.

Have you ever seen a tree growing through a sidewalk? At some point, underneath the concrete in the dark soil, an acorn split open and an oak tree began to grow. Oh it didn’t look like an oak tree. It actually didn’t look like anything to anyone because no one could see it. Yet all the time it was growing. On this Monday, be reminded that the Father is working though you may not feel it or see it. That’s why Paul used the metaphor or fruit. Remember that spiritual growth is gradual, but thankfully inevitable. After all, how could someone as great as the Spirit live in you and not cause you to grow! It is also internal and symmetrical. You won’t be kind and lack self-control. You won’t have peace and also be impatient.

Here’s a prayer to start your Monday…and your week.

Father, I thank you that you see what I can’t see. You know me better than I know myself, understand my thoughts from afar. As your word says in Psalm 139, before a word is on my tongue you know it all. I cannot hide from your presence nor do I want to. Today I run to you and wait for you to do what you alone can do. I celebrate your work in me, yes, Christ in me the hope of glory! In the name of the one who died, resurrected and ascended, making this kind of life possible. Amen.