Christians, by their very profession, are held up to a high moral standard. After all, look at the One whom they profess as their model, Jesus Christ. Gal 5:22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." We are going to look at this "fruit of the Spirit"; that is, we are going to look at what happens to those whose lives are surrendered to God and who thus allow the Holy Spirit to work in them. "
'That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit' " John 3:6, NKJV). The fruit of the Spirit is what grows in us when we are born of the Spirit; it is what happens when we are "born again." Notice, Paul says that "The fruit of the Spirit is . . ." He's talking in the singular. Paul is not talking about separate traits that operate independently of one another but about a single reality. The fruit of the Spirit is what the Holy Spirit creates within us; it defines the type of person we are to become in Jesus. The fruit of the Spirit is like a precious jewel with many facets. Each facet is a characteristic of Jesus and represents a quality that He wants to produce in our lives. This is the heart of the matter. God's purpose is to make us like Jesus, and He has sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in us in order to make that change happen. You will see as we study these lessons that the fruit of the Spirit is not a theory, though we have made it a study. It is not a lifestyle, though a person who is cultivating the fruit of the Spirit will not live as he or she did before. Instead, the fruit of the Spirit is a change of being.
"Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new"(2 Cor 5:17). The fruit of the Spirit is the "new" in the life of a person who has passed from death unto life (1 John 3:16) in Christ. The purpose of this lessons is not to focus on how we can become more patient or more loving or more gentle or more faithful, but on how we can let the Holy Spirit make us more like Jesus, who is patience, love, gentleness, and faithfulness personified. You will be challenged to cultivate the graces of the fruit of the Spirit at all times, but especially at home. We will see that the key is surrender, a willingness to die to self and live for God and for others. Finally, we will see that all that we do, we must do under the realization that we are sinners in need of the covering grace of Christ, who loves us whether the harvest seems plentiful or sparse. We must never forget that the fruit of the Spirit is just that—the "fruit," the result of salvation, not the means. The means is always Jesus and what He has done for us, which we claim by faith. We are going to pick out of this hat, whichever one you pick you will teach a 15min lesson on in the beginning of bible study about your topic. Temperance – A Result of Abiding The world will never teach you to have temperance. We live in a society that teaches us to do what we feel like doing, regardless of who may get hurt in the process. This teaching is opposite that of the Bible. We are to have self-control. Our flesh and its desire are not to rule us, but rather to be brought under subjection of the Holy Spirit.
I. Bringing our bodies under subjection
A. Read I Corinthians 9:19-27 Our flesh needs to have self-control. This will never come naturally to us. How did Paul bring his body into subjection?
B. Your Spirit must be stronger than your flesh for you to have temperance.
How do we defeat the flesh?
II. Temperance necessary to bear fruit
A. II Peter 1:5-8 Peter lists several things that must be in our lives so that we will not be unfruitful. List them:
B. How many of these go hand in hand with the fruit of the Spirit?
III. Temperance in all areas of your life
A. List as many areas of your life as you can think of in which you must have temperance.
Conclusion
Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and show up the areas in which you need temperance. Immerse yourself in God’s Word and what it has to say on your specific problem areas. He will help you gain the victory! TO DO Temperance is having self control over the flesh. It is not giving into sinful thoughts and actions. Keeping our bodies and minds under control can be a very difficult thing. We are all born sinners. Knowing that through Christ all things are possible gives hope and strength to ensure each day and keep up the battle. Reading your Bible, praying and fasting can be such a big help in this area. It will keep you focused and your mind on Christ. Your Spirit must be stronger than your flesh. An area to focus on is the tongue. It can be wicked. It can destroy relationships. It can cause discord in our families and churches. The tempter knows we are weak in this area; he works even harder.Keeping your speech and actions in check is hard to do. It can be so easy to slip into murmuring, complaining and even gossiping. We have to be strong and ready. Sometimes you find yourself down a bad path in a conversation. It is not done purposefully. We start out talking and end up somewhere completely different. You find yourself battling speech and actions. We all know we do it. Therefore, prepare yourself. Here are some things to do to help in this area. Begin your daily devotionals asking God to guide your speech. And to open your eyes and ears convicting immediately when you are facing situations. As you are in a conversation, pray silently. It does not have to be out loud. Think of other things that would be pleasing to God – like His word. The best conversations I have had are talking about a God or how to better myself. I replace the topics presented with Godly topics. Try it. You will be amazed as to where you end up. Challenge Do you demonstrate the Fruit of the Spirit of Temperance? Ask the Lord to check you and seek out your heart. Be aware of your speech and actions. Take your problem area and seek God. Make it a point to do right and change your direction.
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