The Fruitful Life Ch.

3 to revive the spirit of the lowly,

and to revive the heart of the contrite.
Life by the Spirit | Galatians 5
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You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be Isaiah 66:1-2 | The Humble and Contrite in Spirit
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free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the Thus says the LORD:
flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For “Heaven is my throne,
the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command:     and the earth is my footstool;
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 15 If you bite and what is the house that you would build for me,
devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed     and what is the place of my rest?
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by each other. All these things my hand has made,
16      and so all these things came to be,
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the
desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is declares the LORD.
contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to But this is the one to whom I will look:
the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that     he who is humble and contrite in spirit
you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 18 But if you are     and trembles at my word.
led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19  Breathtaking promises! The infinitely high and lofty One
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual
immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and who lives forever promises to dwell with them, to
witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish esteem them, to give them grace, to lift them up, and to
ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; exalt them. (see also James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:6, Luke 18:14)
drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did
before, that those who live like this will not inherit the Not only does God commend humility in His people, our
kingdom of God. Lord displayed it in His humanity. (Philippians 2:8)
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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, - He died for us
peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, - Exemplified it through His life
faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such - He taught it.
things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ - Certainly a Christ-like trait!
Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and
desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step How do you define humility? How is it different from
with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become the belief that one is worthless or unlovable?
conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Chapter headings:
HUMILITY I. HUMILITY BEFORE GOD
For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and II. TREMBLING AT HIS WORD
he who humbles himself will be exalted. III. HERE BY THE GRACE OF GOD
-Luke 18:14 IV. SUBMISSION, SERVICE, AND HONOR
V. PRACTICING HUMILITY
Humility is the key!
Without HUMILITY we cannot hope to cultivate the rest
of the fruit. I. HUMILITY BEFORE GOD
It opens the way to all other godly character traits. It is Begins with a high view of God’s person. As we see God
the soil in which the other traits of the fruit of the Spirit in His majesty, awesomeness, and holiness, we are
grow. humbled before him.
Though it is not mentioned explicitly in Galatians 5:22-
23, humility is surely a fruit of the Spirit, the result of We are to humble ourselves under His mighty hand,
His ministry in our hearts. approaching every relationship and every circumstance
in reference to Him – basic to all our relationships in
Isaiah 57:15 life.
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up,
who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: Good and favorable – humbly receive from His grace.
“I dwell in the high and holy place, Bad and difficult – humbly accept from His wisdom and
and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly love.
spirit,
When we are conscious of our sinful creature
relationship to an infinitely majestic and holy God, we
will not selfishly compare ourselves with others. And to
the extent that our awareness of our lowly place before
God is an abiding one, we will avoid the temptations of
pride and competition.
II. TREMBLING AT HIS WORD
Humility before God is also humility before His Word.
3. Honoring one another – it is placing the other
We must allow the Scriptures to search us, to sit in
judgment of our character and conduct. Treat the
Scriptures as, not only as a source of knowledge, but
also the expression of God’s will for our daily lives.
III. HERE BY THE GRACE OF GOD
We must realize and gratefully acknowledge that all
that we are and all that we have come from the hand of
God.
It begins with our understanding of personal salvation.
Do we find any credit for ourselves for it?
Humility with regard to ourselves, then, consists in
ascribing all that we are, all that we have, and all that
we have accomplished to the God who gives us grace.
4. Practicing Humility – learn humility in practical
IV. SUBMISSION, SERVICE, AND HONOR
A believer who is humble before God will also be
humble toward other people.
Ways this is seen:
1. Mutual submission to one another – it is one of the
evidences of being filled with the Spirit.
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Ephesians 5:21
Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another.
1 Peter 5:5
It means to submit to instruction as well as
correction from other believers; to be teachable or
to be humble enough to admit that we have erred
when another believer corrects us.
The Spirit does not make us humble; He enables us
to humble ourselves in these difficult situations!
2. Serving one another – Jesus did not come to be
served but to serve. True greatness in the kingdom
of God does not consist in position but in serving
one another.
It requires the grace of God. We should do it with
the strength that God provides, so that in all things
God may be praised through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter
4:11)
We all know people, even unbelievers, who seem to
be natural servants. But God does not get the glory;
they do. It is their reputation that is enhanced. BUT
when we serve in dependence upon the grace of
God with the strength He supplies, God is glorified.
person above ourselves in matters of position,
concerns, or needs.
Do we maneuver for first place in line of for the
best seats at public meetings? Do we frequently
assert ourselves at the expense of others, or do we
consider their interest as well as our own?
Review the past couple of days, looking for
situations in which you were tempted to act in a
self-centered way instead of putting others before
yourself. What did you do in each case? What do
you observe about yourself?
Again, the Spirit does not make us humble; He
enables us to humble ourselves in these difficult
situations!
ways
Renew your mind by memorizing one or more
passages of Scripture, choosing those you believe
address most directly your areas of greatest need.
As we memorize and then meditate on Scriptures in
this way, the Holy Spirit transforms us inwardly,
changing our values. Let it teach us, convict us, and
transform us.
Confess any prideful ways as the Holy Spirit convicts
you and pray for sensitivity to seeing yourself as
God does. Pray for the Holy Spirit to change you
inwardly.
Take whatever specific steps necessary to obey
God’s direction to humble yourself. It may be as
specific act of putting another first, such as in a
supermarket checkout line… it may be as drastic as
telling our friends we have taken the credit for
success that rightfully belongs to God.
Whatever the area of humility we need to work
on, it is important we do so in dependence upon
Him who is at work in us.