by Lakepointe Church on Apr 08, 2024
In my sermon today, I began by expressing gratitude for everyone's presence, both in person and online, and reflected on the powerful service we had the previous Sunday. I shared a personal anecdote about riding a stationary bike during last week's sermon and how, despite not having ridden a bike for over a year, I managed not to pass out and felt great afterward. The service was a success, with many coming to know Christ, and for that, I am thankful.
I then introduced our new series on the fruit of the Spirit, emphasizing the importance of love and being other-centered as opposed to self-centered. I explained that we are naturally inclined to be self-centered, as evidenced by our tendency to prioritize our own interests and needs. I used the example of taking a selfie during the sermon to illustrate how we often look at ourselves first in a photo, which is indicative of our me-first mentality.
I recounted a personal story where I had the opportunity to be other-centered by doing household chores while my wife was out, but instead, I waited until she was almost home to start, so she would notice and appreciate my efforts. This, I admitted, was not true biblical servanthood.
I discussed the internal war that rages within us, as described in Galatians 5, between our sinful nature and our spiritual nature. This battle is not for our souls, which have been secured by Christ's sacrifice, but for our character. I highlighted the difference between religion, which tells us to do good to belong to God, and the gospel, which tells us we belong to God and therefore should do good.
I delved into Philippians 2:3, which instructs us to regard others as more important than ourselves. This verse challenges us to love others, even those we may disagree with politically or socially. I shared how the Holy Spirit convicts us to be other-centered, using the example of giving up a seat to an older person at a restaurant.
I emphasized that the fruit of the Spirit is not a pick-and-choose list but a singular fruit with multiple qualities that the Holy Spirit cultivates within us. I encouraged everyone to reflect on how well they are embodying the fruit of the Spirit in their lives.
Finally, I concluded with a prayer, asking God to help us be other-minded and to love as He has loved us, empowering us with the Holy Spirit to be other-centered.
Key Takeaways:
1. True love is not about warm feelings or grand gestures; it's about consistently choosing to put others before ourselves. This is a daily battle against our natural self-centeredness, but it's a battle worth fighting because it transforms us into the image of Christ. ([58:38])
2. The Holy Spirit is committed to transforming our natural instincts into supernatural responses. By yielding to the Spirit's guidance, we can overcome our self-centered tendencies and produce the character qualities of Jesus in our lives. ([01:05:50])
3. The fruit of the Spirit is not a collection of separate attributes to select from but a singular fruit with multiple qualities that must all be present in our lives. As we allow the Holy Spirit to work within us, we should see growth in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. ([01:07:43])
4. Our character is constantly being refined through the internal conflict between our sinful nature and our spiritual nature. This battle is not for our salvation, which is secure in Christ, but for our character, which reflects our identity in Him. ([56:09])
5. The gospel calls us to a higher standard of love, one that is not based on status or personal gain but on the humble recognition of others' value. This love is counter-cultural and requires a commitment to live out the teachings of Philippians 2:3 in every aspect of our lives. ([52:04])
### Bible Study Discussion Guide
#### Bible Reading
1. **Philippians 2:3 (NASB)**: "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves."
2. **Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)**: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
#### Observation Questions
1. What does Philippians 2:3 instruct us to do in our relationships with others? How does this challenge our natural tendencies? ([50:21])
2. According to Galatians 5:22-23, what are the qualities that make up the fruit of the Spirit? Why is it referred to as a singular fruit rather than multiple fruits? ([01:07:43])
3. In the sermon, the pastor shared a personal story about doing household chores. What was the main lesson he learned from that experience? ([01:04:02])
4. How did the pastor illustrate our natural self-centeredness using the example of taking a selfie? ([01:02:19])
#### Interpretation Questions
1. Why does Philippians 2:3 create an internal battle for the pastor, and how does this reflect the broader struggle between our sinful and spiritual natures? ([50:21])
2. How does the Holy Spirit help us transform our natural instincts into supernatural responses, according to the sermon? ([01:05:50])
3. What does it mean that the fruit of the Spirit is a singular fruit with multiple qualities? How should this understanding affect our approach to spiritual growth? ([01:07:43])
4. The pastor mentioned that the battle described in Galatians 5 is not for our souls but for our character. How does this distinction impact our daily lives and spiritual practices? ([56:09])
#### Application Questions
1. Reflect on Philippians 2:3. Can you think of a recent situation where you prioritized your own interests over someone else's? How could you have approached it differently? ([50:21])
2. The pastor shared a story about waiting to do chores until his wife was almost home. Have you ever done something similar to seek recognition? How can you practice true biblical servanthood in your daily life? ([01:04:02])
3. The sermon emphasized that the fruit of the Spirit is not a pick-and-choose list. Choose one aspect of the fruit of the Spirit to focus on this month. What specific action could you take to cultivate it in your interactions with your family or coworkers? ([01:07:43])
4. The pastor used the example of giving up a seat to an older person at a restaurant. Can you recall a recent moment when you felt a nudge to be other-centered but resisted? How can you be more responsive to the Holy Spirit's guidance in such situations? ([01:10:24])
5. The sermon highlighted the difference between religion and the gospel. How does understanding that you belong to God first change your motivation for doing good? ([01:14:12])
6. Think about a person who tests your patience. What is a short prayer you can say before the next time you interact with that person to help you exhibit the fruit of the Spirit? ([01:07:43])
7. The pastor mentioned the importance of recording progress in our spiritual journey. How can you start journaling your experiences with the fruit of the Spirit? What benefits do you think this practice might bring? ([01:19:35])
Day 1: Embracing Selfless Love
True love is an active choice to prioritize others above oneself. It is a daily commitment to selflessness that reflects the nature of Christ within us. This love is not defined by fleeting emotions or grandiose actions but by the consistent, humble practice of considering others' needs and interests as more significant than our own. It is a battle against our inherent self-centeredness, which can manifest in subtle ways, such as seeking recognition for our good deeds or prioritizing our comfort over others' needs. By choosing to love selflessly, we engage in a transformative process that molds us into the likeness of Jesus, who exemplified the ultimate form of selfless love.
"Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself." (Philippians 2:3)
Reflection: How can you demonstrate selfless love in a practical way to someone in your life today, without seeking any form of recognition or reward? [58:38]
Day 2: Yielding to the Spirit's Transformation
The Holy Spirit is dedicated to transforming our natural, self-centered instincts into responses that mirror the character of Jesus. This supernatural change occurs as we surrender to the Spirit's guidance, allowing our actions and reactions to be shaped by His influence rather than our selfish desires. The process of yielding to the Holy Spirit involves recognizing our tendency to put ourselves first and actively choosing to follow the Spirit's promptings to love, serve, and honor others. As we do so, the qualities of Christ become increasingly evident in our lives, reflecting the transformative power of the Spirit at work within us.
"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." (Galatians 5:16)
Reflection: What is one area of your life where you can yield to the Holy Spirit today, allowing Him to replace a self-centered habit with a Christ-like response? [01:05:50]
Day 3: Cultivating the Singular Fruit
The fruit of the Spirit is not a buffet from which we can pick and choose; it is a singular fruit that encompasses multiple qualities, all of which must be present and growing in our lives. As we allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate this fruit within us, we should see a holistic development of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. This growth is not selective but comprehensive, reflecting the fullness of the Spirit's work in transforming us into the image of Christ. The presence of this fruit is a testament to the Spirit's active role in our lives and our willingness to be shaped by His hand.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." (Galatians 5:22-23)
Reflection: Which aspect of the fruit of the Spirit do you find most challenging to exhibit, and what steps can you take to allow the Holy Spirit to cultivate this quality in you more fully? [01:07:43]
Day 4: Refining Character Through Conflict
Our character is continually refined through the internal struggle between our sinful nature and our spiritual nature. This conflict is not about our salvation, which is secure through Christ's sacrifice, but about the development of our character, which reflects our identity as followers of Jesus. The battle within us is a call to live out the gospel in our daily lives, allowing our character to be shaped and molded by our spiritual nature rather than our sinful inclinations. As we engage in this struggle, we become more like Christ, displaying His character in our actions and attitudes.
"For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do." (Galatians 5:17)
Reflection: Can you identify a recent situation where your character was tested? How did you respond, and how can you align your future responses more closely with your spiritual nature? [56:09]
Day 5: Living the Gospel's Higher Standard of Love
The gospel calls us to a higher standard of love that goes beyond personal gain or social status. This love is rooted in humility and the recognition of others' inherent value. It is a counter-cultural love that challenges us to live out the teachings of Jesus, treating others with the same regard and respect we desire for ourselves. This commitment to gospel-centered love requires us to look beyond our differences and to serve others with a genuine heart, reflecting the love of Christ in every interaction and relationship.
"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves." (Philippians 2:3)
Reflection: How can you practice this higher standard of love in a situation where you disagree with someone, whether politically, socially, or personally? [52:04]
Hey, good morning! We are so glad that you're here today. Thank you for being a part of our service, and those watching online, we are honored that you're here to watch wherever you might be. And it's so good to see you.
Yeah, man, last Sunday was incredible. Awesome weekend. And you know, if you were here last week, you saw me ride a stationary bike. And if you missed it, you know, that's okay. It wasn't very pretty, you know, while I was doing it. But I had a stationary bike, and I had people ask me, "How did I feel after three services of riding a bike?" And let me just say this: I hadn't ridden a bike in over a year, and that was the first time I've been riding a bike in a while.
And so, I had a... about a year ago, I was pumping my tire. It was flat, and kind of misjudged the air, and I was like... and a pop goes the tire. And so, I just had a minute riding the bike, and so up there, and people asked me, "So, were you bowlegged for a week?" And I said no, I felt great. You know, God was good, and I'm so thankful that I was able to not pass out. And it's a minute of a sermon, but so thank you for wondering and curious about that.
But man, God used that service just last week to see many come to know Christ, and we're excited about that. And I'm so thankful. And yeah, today, we're starting that brand new series on the fruit of the spirit.
Hey, no, I'm a student of history. I love studying history. And I'm fascinated. Growing up, studying about the Civil War, I think it was interesting. You know, in the past couple of years, since we moved to this location, the property right here, this was back in the 1860, during the beginning of the Civil War, there was an encampment, an encampment of Union soldiers right here. And I find that interesting, right here in our woods. And it's pretty cool.
And right here in the corner, I always heard this rumor, but I got a big... you know, someone told me last night, or yesterday afternoon, and they said that's true. And but right here at the corner, where the CVS is, there used to be a general store lodge back in the 1860s, and Ulysses Grant had stayed there in that corner. So, you know, it's a fascinating thing. It's a fascinating history. I love that kind of stuff. I love learning new stuff.
And I'm fascinated by studying World War II and all that entails. And all these wars, you know, it's sad, you know, history, it's a sad part of our history. But I'm fascinated by all these wars. And I remember the very first time in my life that there was a war, and it was televised. You know, it started on all the news channels. It was Operation Desert Storm, and we were taking on Saddam Hussein and taking over Kuwait. And that was back in the 90s, and I remember that so vividly. And it happened so quick too. It wasn't, you know... you know, we had this general, a commander named Norman Schwarzkopf... Schwarzkopf, I don't know how you... I don't know if I said it right or not, but Stormy Norman was his nickname. And I just loved it, man. That guy just went in and took care of business. You know, it just settled the deal.
And I watched that. We've seen the war, the Iraqi war after 9/11. I've been seeing those different things. And I've seen the horrors of war. We get to see that now. You know, we don't read about it. We see it on television. You know, this war is going on, going on even right now in Ukraine, war in Israel. And we have all these wars, and wars are happening all around the world.
And I want to talk to you today about a war that's brewing in my life. Inside my life, there's a war happening. And at times, I feel like I'm winning the war, I'm winning the battle. There are times in my life where I feel like I'm overwhelmed, I'm being defeated by the opposition. And in reality, I'm fighting... you. I'm fighting the people I love. I'm fighting the people that I... I'm calling the pastor. Not only am I fighting you, I'm also doing battle with my wife, battle with my kids, battle with my co-workers, the board. You know, I'm doing battle with every person that I come in contact with. Because... because I bumped into a little verse in the New Testament called Philippians 2:3. Philippians 2:3, it says, "In humility, value others above yourselves." I love the NASB version, "Regard one another as more important than yourself."
And you wouldn't think, right? You wouldn't think that this little verse would start a battle in my life, but it does. And it all comes down to this one little phrase. The phrase "one another." One another. There would not be a battle in my life if it wasn't for that phrase, "one another." Everything's good, everything's fine in my life, until I read "one another." One another.
Now, there would not be a battle brewing in my life if the verse read differently. In the Scott Blanchard version of Philippians 2:3, if it read like this: "Regard celebrities or VIPs as more important than yourself." Now that's easy. I would have no problem obeying that direction, that directive, that instruction from God, if it said VIPs or celebrities.
For example, you know, the past year, we... you know, the Detroit Lions had a really good football team. We're all pumped, right? We're all, man, you know, finally, you know, we had a real good team. And the head coach, you know, is Dan Campbell, right? I mean, he's the toast of the town. Everybody wants to hang out with Dan Campbell, right? He's the man, right? I mean, every man that loves Detroit Lions football have a man crush on this guy. I mean, this guy got guts. You know, he's like, "Go big or go home." And, you know, fourth down and ten yards, he's going for it, right? I mean, he's like, "I'm going for it." And we're kind of like, "Oh no." But then there's a part of us that says, "Oh yeah, let's go for it. You know, what we've got to lose?" I mean, it's just... that's Dan Campbell.
Now, what if... if I were to tell you that Dan Campbell was going to come to my house tonight for dinner, I promise you, listen, I promise you, I would be the model host. I would be the best host of all time. I mean, I'd be waiting for him out the window. I'd be looking out the window the whole time. I'd be pulling in the driveway, I'd pop out, I'd open the car door for him, I'd open the house, I'd open the door to the house, I'd open the closet, I'd open the bathroom door. I'd even open the bathroom door for the guy, you know. I'd make sure he sits at the head of the table. I'd make sure he has the most generous portion of food. I'd make sure his glass is filled to the brim. You know, I would listen and hang to every word. I would laugh at every funny thing he said, even if it wasn't funny. I'd just laugh, you know. I mean, I would just be there. And then, you know, he would be done, I mean, and he would walk out the door, you know, open the car door for him, I'd wave goodbye to him.
You see, there's no battle, right? There is absolutely no conflict going on in my life when I treat a celebrity as more important than... you see, the battle begins to brew when I am asked to treat you as more important than myself. And this happens all the time. If I'm not careful, I can begin to put my interests, right, my needs, above your interests, above your needs. And I live my life, sometimes, if I'm not careful, you see, there's a battle, right? There's a war, there's conflict that's going inside of me.
And we go to Galatians chapter 5, and we see this conflict, this spiritual conflict, this battle. Now, this battle that we see in Galatians chapter 5, this is a battle between believers. This is a believer's battle that's going on. If you're a non-believer, if you don't know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then this battle that's in Galatians chapter 5 is not happening in your life. There's a different battle. If you're a non-believer, if you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, there's a different battle. There's a battle for your soul. There's that battle. But in Galatians chapter 5, this is for the Christian, for the follower of Christ. There's a battle going on, and it's not a battle for your soul, because your soul has been secured by what Jesus Christ did on the cross, and by you accepting his salvation. That's been secured. Your soul has been secured. But there's a battle for your character. That's what's happening in Galatians chapter 5.
And we look at verse number 16 in Galatians chapter 5, 17, 18, 20, verse 21, verse 22, verse 23, verse... verse 26, verse 27, verse 28, verse 29, verse 33, verse 38, verse 39, verse 41. Listen, to about a year... one... ymm... you make you do, you know, to make you do what you want, what looks good for you, to do what you want to do, what gives you pleasure. It is a no-brainer, but it takes some real stuff, takes some real stuff to regard another person as more important than yourself. That takes some real commitment. In fact, I submit to you that Philippians 2:3 is the best definition of love you will find, regarding one another as more important than yourself.
See, the rest of the definition of love is superficial. It's shallow. You hear the phrase, you know, "I fell in love." I don't know what that is. You fall, you know, you trip. "I fall in love." Some people say, "Hey, love is like a warm hug." You know, love is like a nice smile. You know, love is like a Hallmark card. And that's not what love is. It doesn't really cut it. If you take a note, love, this is what love is: Love is becoming other-centered and not self-centered.
None of us have to be taught, right, to think about ourselves. See, we were born with a "me first" mentality. I mean, think about, you know, if you had a baby, you know, one day, you know, at one time, you had a baby. You know, the first word that the baby might say might be, say, "mama." And then he'll say "dada." This is the third word. You know what that word is? "Mine." "Mine." We're just born to be self-centered people. I know I am. I know I can be the most selfish, centered person around. And I'm constantly struggling with this, with my family, with my co-workers, with other people in my life. I have a tendency, in fact, we all have a tendency, to think about "me, myself, and I." Instead of thinking about others, we think about this: We ask the question, "How does this affect me? What's in it?" Right? "What's in it for me?"
I'm going to do a so-so experience right here, social experiment. I'm going to invite Frank and Kelly to the platform. Frank, Kelly, come up to the platform. Come up, come up. They're like, "Oh, what's happening?" Come up to the platform. Yes, Alyssa, come up to the platform. Julie, Julie, come up, come up, come up, Julie. She can be great. We're going to do this. We're going to do this thing. All right. How you guys doing? Good, good, good. Kelly, how are you doing? Alyssa, by the way, what happened last night? Oh, I got engaged. She got engaged. All right. All right. How exciting! What? How exciting! And you're letting me do the wedding, aren't you? You don't know? Okay. Hi, I'm her uncle. We'll see if that works out. Julie, good to have you up here.
Hey, listen, let's give it up for these guys. We're going to do a selfie. I mean, isn't that appropriate for this message? We're going to do a selfie. All right. And I'm going to do it right here, right? So let's huddle up right here. And come on, give me your best look here. Ready? All right. Oh man, what a good looking group. Now let me ask you a question. Let's check that out. What do you think? Hi. Hi, me ask you this. Let me ask you this. Who is the first person you look at in that picture? Yeah. Good answer. Right here. Right here. All right. Let's just be honest though. The first person we like to look at is, right, we look at ourselves because we've judged the picture how good it is based on how we look in the picture. We don't care about anybody else. You know, if everybody else looks terrible, we look great. That's fine. That's fine. That's great. Hey, let's give it up for these guys right here.
You know, Christmas season, I get the Christmas cards from people, right? And it's me. You know, in every Christmas card, the mom looks great. I mean, the husband's staring up at the sky, right? The kid's clothes is a mess. But the mom looks wonderful. You know why that is? Because she picked the card. She's the one that picked the card. You see, we have a tendency to think about self more than about the picture. And I think that's a good thing. I think that's how we're wired. We're just wired in our natural tendency to be that way.
Have you ever had a moment where you could be an other-centered person and not a self-centered person, and you blew it? Have you ever had that moment? I know I've said it before, but you know, I was at home, Karen had gone for the day. She was running some errands. And I'm sitting at the house, sitting on the couch, and you know, of course, I notice the floor, the floors could be vacuumed. I could be a real good husband, vacuuming the floor. And then I noticed there were some dishes piling up in the sink. You know, I could probably do the dishes. And I talked to... I have good intentions. I want to show kindness. I want to show, you know, that I can be a selfless person. And so I pull out the vacuum cleaner. And then I stopped, and I began to think. I said, "Wait a minute. I'm by myself. She's not here to give me any applause. She's not going to know that I did this." And so I pulled up my Find a Friend app. I want to see where she's located. And I see, "Oh, she's still at the store." So, you know, I put the alert on, "Hey, let me know when she leaves the store." Right? And then I get the alert. She's on her way home. I said, "This would be a good time to start the work." Because then she'll walk in, she'll see me. I mean, she'll see me sweating hard. I mean, it's all good. Because listen, I'm all about me and how this looks like in my life. And by the way, that is not biblical servanthood. It's not. I blew it. I had the opportunity to just do it out of the goodness of my heart, without any glory, without any recognition. But by design, I have a tendency to be self-centered.
And this is where the Holy Spirit comes. See, the Holy Spirit of God, when he comes in your life, he's helping us be aware of these moments. And I love this. The Holy Spirit, he is faithful. If you're taking notes, you know, God, you know, the Holy Spirit, God is committed to take you, take me, to change your natural instance into supernatural instance, and to produce in our lives what we see in his character. That's what the Holy Spirit's doing. And God is doing this in our lives. And that's what we're going to do for the next eight or nine weeks. We're going to talk about this series called "Fruition." We're going to talk about these, we're going to talk about the fruit, the fruit of the Spirit. Notice I didn't say fruits, plural. It's called the fruit of the Spirit, not fruits of the Spirit. They're not separate fruits. It's one, what we see in the Scripture, it's defined as one fruit. God is working on all the fruit, all these nine character qualities, into our lives. And we see it here in Galatians chapter five, verse 22: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control... against such things, there is no law."
I meet people all the time. They say, "You know, I am a believer. I know Jesus Christ. I'm involved in church. I go to church. I serve in church. I give to church." And yet, what they say and what they do are two different things. Could that be you? Could that be me sometimes? You see, here's what God is committed in Galatians chapter five: God is more interested in who you're becoming, and not what you're doing. You can do all the things, but not become who God wants you to be. And that's just the fruit of the Spirit.
And see, Galatians five is not some Walmart, Kroger, or Meyers type verse here. It's, you know, we go in, you know, we don't go and pick and choose, you know
Begins to die. Here's how to summarize this whole thing. It's this little poem I found. It's called, "The pole of sin is strong, but the living Christ is stronger. So open yourself to his spirit, and you will bear his fruit."
Now, here's what else happens when we cooperate with the Holy Spirit. It delights and moves the heart of God. God finds joy. You know, God is a God of emotions. He smiles. There's joy. When we live out this fruit of love, being other-centered.
Here's another one. When I respond to the Holy Spirit of God, love registers deeply in people's lives. It makes an impact. People begin to think, "Wow, there's something different about him, different about her." Because being other-centered is countercultural to the world. But the gospel impels us. To love. To love others.
Here's another thing that happens. It will open the door of opportunity to share with others what Christ has done and is doing in your life. You open doors.
So now, I'm going to give you two challenges. I'm going to challenge you to give you know the two takeaways with the first message on love. Two takeaways.
Number one, ask yourself the two-three questions. Ask yourself the two-three questions. Think about it. Think about that. Ask yourself. And again, it goes back to Philippians 2 verse 3. You know, one of the ways to learn scripture is to personalize it. Right? Personalize your scripture.
So what if you personalize Philippians 2:3? What if you say, "Do I regard blank?" And you fill in the blank. "Do I regard blank as more important to myself?" You put your spouse there. "Do I regard my spouse, do I regard my wife, do I regard my husband as more important than myself?" You can put in the blank the person that you're dating, your best friend, your boss. "Do I regard my boss as more important than myself?"
Let me press a little bit harder here. "Do I regard Democrats as more important than myself? Do I regard Republicans as..." Hey, it's starting to get real here, doesn't it? "Do I regard Republicans as more important than myself? Do I regard minorities?" Well, you know, "They're illegal. They shouldn't be here." Don't go there. Philippians 2:3, it calls us to regard them, no matter who they are. Regard them more as important as yourself.
We're called to be people of God. We're called to be people of God to live this out because that's what God did to us by sending His Son to us.
Here's the second takeaway. I'm going to challenge you to record your progress. Record your progress. I mean, you got to journal this stuff. Determine that you're going to pray, you know, Galatians chapter 5, you know, the fruit of the Spirit. Determine that you're going to pray Philippians 2:3. And then ask God to help you to seize the moment.
When you start to hear those voices, that's what the Holy Spirit's doing. He's saying, "Hey, don't you... you should..." I don't know. It's a battle, right? Listen, seize the moment. When the Holy Spirit nudges, when the Holy Spirit speaks, when the Holy Spirit kind of... do it. And then write it down. Write it down.
I promise you, if you do this, there'll be a page of notebook, at least a page of notebook paper every day of your life when you start to record every moment, the different moments every day. Again, the Spirit of God. He's able. And the reinforcements are there. And He will win the battle.
Our job, and my job, is to cooperate with Him, to get off the throne of our lives and to put others in that place. Because that, my friend, is what true love is called on us to do.
Our Heavenly Father, we ask you to help us today. Help us as we kick off this brand new series on the fruit of the Spirit. Help us in the conflict that's inside of us. Help us to be other-minded, to be other-centered, to love just as you have loved us. So we go out and love. Whether we're unlovable, or perhaps we say, "Well, I'm an unlovable person." God, help us with the Holy Spirit power to do what only you can do in our lives. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
"We're just born to be self-centered people. I know I can be a selfish, the most selfish-centered person around. And I'm constantly struggling with this with my family, with my coworkers, with other people in my life. I have a tendency, in fact we all have a tendency to think about me, myself, and I." [01:00:42]( | | )
"I had the opportunity to just do it out of the goodness of my heart, without any glory, without any recognition. But by design, I have a tendency to be self-centered. And this is where the Holy Spirit comes. See, the Holy Spirit of God, when he comes in your life, he's helping us be aware of these moments." [01:05:50]( | | )
"God is more interested in who you're becoming and not what you're doing. You can do all the things, but not become who God wants you to be. And that's just the fruit of the Spirit. And see, that's what God is committed in Galatians chapter five." [01:07:43]( | | )
"Philippians 2, 3, it calls us to regard them no matter who they are. Regard them more as important as yourself. We're called to be people of God, to live this out, because that's what God did to us by sending His Son to us." [01:18:37]( | | )
"Love is becoming other-centered and not self-centered. None of us have to be taught, right, to think about ourselves. See, we were born with a me-first mentality. Philippians 2.3 is the best definition of love you will find regarding one another as more important than yourself." [58:38]( | | )
"We don't pick and choose. We can't say, you know, I tend to be a peaceful person, but love, that's not me. That's not my fruit. Oh, patience? Nah, I'm the least patient person in the room. That's not for me. It's one fruit with nine qualities, all of them." [01:09:15]( | | )
"The Holy Spirit begins to nudge, begins to speak. He said, hey, there's an older person right there who could use your seat. I eyeballed that guy. I said, I don't know, he looks okay. I said, no, you should probably give him your seat." [01:11:43]( | | )
"Do good so that you will one day belong to God. But the gospel says you belong to God. Now go and do good. Do you see the difference? The key to winning is so that we can be the people we want to be. It's not trying harder to be good." [01:14:12]( | | )
"When we cooperate with the Holy Spirit of God to love people, stuff happens in your life and mine. Number one, a little more of the old self dies. Your old flesh. The old self. It begins to die. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with his passions and desires." [01:13:30]( | | )
"This battle that we see in Galatians Chapter 5, this is a battle between believers. This is a believers' battle that's going on. If you're a non-believer, then this battle that's in Galatians Chapter 5 is not happening in your life. There's a different battle for your soul." [55:42]( | | )
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