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The Fruit of Faith
John Calvin writes, “Before we are in [Christ], we are dry and useless wood.” After we are united to Him through faith alone, however, we become living, fruitful branches. The doctrine of justification by faith alone frees us to do ...Read More
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Gentleness and Self-Control
Jesus, indeed, was a gentle man, but He was by no means a pushover. He denounced sin when He needed to and gave His life of His own accord, not because the Romans and the Sanhedrin forced Him to the ...Read More
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Patience and Kindness
Showing patience to others takes a significant amount of wisdom. There comes a point when even God ceases to be patient with us, and there are times when we will need to stop being patient with someone for that person ...Read More
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Joy and Peace
John says we should not be surprised that the world hates us (1 John 3:13). Still, we do not have license to give the world rational reasons to oppose us. We can do nothing about the irrational opposition unbelievers ...Read More
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Proving Our Salvation
Scripture often warns the people of God about those who cause dissension for dissension’s sake — people who cause problems not because they stand firm for the truth but because they are factional and generally disagreeable (Titus 3:10–11 ...Read More
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Children of Light
The fruit of light listed in today’s passage — goodness, righteousness, and truth — are examples of what Paul elsewhere refers to as the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–24). These things, along with qualities including love, joy, patience ...Read More
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Faith and Fruit
Scripture is clear that sinless perfection is impossible in this life (1 John 1:8–9), so we will never exhibit any of the fruit of the Spirit flawlessly on this side of glory. Nevertheless, there is a difference between ...Read More
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Growing Up in Love
Knowledge of truth and the practice of love, as two of the chief indicators of Christian maturity, must both be emphasized in our walk with the Lord. Consistent study of the doctrines taught in the Bible is vital for our ...Read More
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Faith and the Means of Grace
John Calvin offers these comments on today’s passage: “We, who have so frequently and so grievously offended, have nevertheless been received into favor, so we should manifest the same kindness towards our neighbors, by forgiving whatever offenses they have ...Read More
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Bearing Spiritual Fruit
Prayerfully examine your faith and spiritual fruit. Read More
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Living in the Spirit
Martin Luther offers the following application: God is no respecter of persons, and since all believers serve Him by the same faith with the same Spirit, the layman who faithfully uses the gift the Lord has given him pleases God ...Read More
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The Fruit of the Spirit
The love commended in Galatians 5:22–23 is also the greatest apologetic for the Christian faith (John 13:35) and is defined by the character of God, who loves us both when He commends our obedience and when He ...Read More
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Walking by the Spirit
John Calvin comments, “If we would obey the Spirit, we must labor, and fight, and apply our utmost energy; and we must begin with self-denial.” Walking by the Holy Spirit is the denial of the self and one’s fleshly ...Read More
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The Parable of the Tenants
Every professing Christian should read today’s passage as a warning. All who are truly in Christ, of course, cannot finally fall away from grace, but only those who bear fruit for the kingdom are truly in Christ. Believers may ...Read More
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The Parable of the Soils
Matthew Henry writes: “That which distinguished this good ground from the rest, was, in one word, fruitfulness. He does not say that this good ground has no stones in it, or no thorns; but there were none that prevailed to ...Read More
