Pea Ridge Baptist Church with Dan Londeree Pea Ridge Baptist Church

God the Father nailed our sin debt to the cross as Jesus became sin for us. This first execution was carried out so that we could be reconciled to Him. A second execution takes place when we put to death our own selfish desires, but we can only do this in the power of the Spirit. When we do, we follow the Spirit as he leads us on the path of obedience.

We see God's patience, kindness and goodness through His plan of redemption. He has withheld his judgment so that people have a chance to repent. When we consider that no one deserves his forgiveness, his mercy is evident. And his generosity is seen through the gift of his Son and the gift of the Spirit.

As we begin to examine each type of fruit that the Spirit produces in the life of a believer, we see that God's love, joy and peace are given to us as we allow the Spirit to control us. We must remember that we cannot produce these on our own.

Paul wrote that the works of the flesh were obvious, but he still took time to list some of them. Understanding how these evil behaviors affect our relationship with God and others can help us see the seriousness of these sins and remind us to pursue Christ instead of our own selfish desires.

Paul wrote that believers are to "walk by the Spirit," and doing so will keep us from satisfying our own selfish desires. This week we turn to Matthew 7 and John 15 to gain insight from Jesus about this central truth that empowers us to live out our faith.

It is possible to know the ways of God without living in obedience to Him. Focusing only on the commands of Scripture without cultivating a change of heart will leave us trapped. When we submit to the Holy Spirit, he begins his transformative work that leads to producing the fruit of God's kingdom in our lives.