Dec 14, 20242 min read

Saturday, December 14 || PUT YOUR LOVE INTO ACTION

Read: Galatians 5: 13-15

“… patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. ...”

- Galatians 5: 22, 23

The third truth that we derive from this verse is that love leads to actions namely, patience, kindness and goodness. Patience is translated as ‘long-suffering.’ It includes forbearance towards those who are demanding and exasperative. It never forgets the unlimited patience of Christ towards us. (I Timothy 1:16) “Kindness is benevolence, generosity of thought, wishing good to people, while goodness is beneficence, generosity of deed, and actually doing good for others the good we wish them,” writes John Stott. All these three qualities are characteristics and outworkings of love. The fourth truth is that love leads ultimately to faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Faithfulness is trustworthiness in such areas as keeping our promises, and fulfilling our undertakings. Gentleness is often meekness. But it is not a spineless unprincipled kind of meekness. It certainly means being gentle, humble and considerate towards others. “Self-control expresses the power of lordship one has either over oneself or over something.” It includes disciplining our instincts and restraining our temper and our tongue. Love, self-giving, the first quality of the fruit of the Spirit and the last one, self-control, complement one another. Our self has to be mastered before it can be offered in the service of others. It is significant therefore that the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit, begins with self-giving and ends in self-control.

Dear friends, let us not just memorise this verse but let us put it into practice.  Let us yield to the Holy Spirit and live by Him every moment of our lives.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, help me to put my love into action. Let me be as patient as You are. Let me not only be kind but also good to everyone and serve them with love. Help me to master my ‘self’ and crucify my ‘flesh’ with Christ on the Cross and live by the Spirit every moment. Amen.

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