Fruitfulness pt.3 - "Redirecting Our Efforts"

STOP TRYING TO LIVE RIGHT!

That is what I told one of my friends the other day as he poured his heart out to me about how he just couldn't seem to do what was right. He knows he needs to change but he can't, and the harder he tries the harder he falls. I explained to him how he and (all of us) have already proven that we cannot live right (on our own) no matter how hard we try. Paul said it best in Romans 7:15, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." This is the reality for all of us because we come from a fallen nature, and we are all in need of a savior.

This thought led me to Galatians 5:16-25. Paul addresses the Galatian Christians in the issue of living by the Spirit and gives them what I would call the "master key" to living right. He speaks of how the only way we can refrain from gratifying the desires of our sinful nature is by living by the Spirit (of God). He then goes on to paint the extreme contrast between the results of the two natures.
1. The ACTS of the sinful nature: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like. In essence, he covers the whole gamut. He goes on to talk about how anyone who lives like this will not inherit God's kingdom.
2. The FRUIT of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.

I want to highlight the difference between two words, ACTS and FRUIT. 'Acts' is an action word. It is a word that describes something that any person can do. We consciously 'act' in certain ways. To some degree, we have control over the way we act. 'Fruit' is not an action word, it is a noun. Fruit is not something we can do, nor can we control it (to any degree). Fruit cannot be forced, it is merely a by-product of something else.

The point that Paul is making is the same point I want to make: We can't live right (on our own). Living right is a by-product of our fellowship with the Spirit of the Lord.

My suspicion is this:
Most of us don't make enough time for the Lord to truly be led (continually) by the Holy Spirit. We make ourselves too busy to read or pray. We are too busy to go to bible studies or fellowship in God's word with friends. As a result we resort to trying to live right on our own. We run on the fumes that we have left over from last week's Sunday services, and wonder why we are completely carnal by the end of the week.

My challenge is this:
Begin to think of how you can redirect your efforts in your Christian journey. Take the time to put effort into your prayer life. Make the time to invest effort in reading and meditating on scripture. Create the time to fellowship with other Christians in a spiritually rich environment. We have to put ourselves in position to be LED by God. Remember, we can't force fruit; it is a by-product.

Now let me clarify: When I say "stop trying to live right" I am not saying cast off restraint and tell God, "you do it." I am simply saying that as long as we try to live right out of our flesh we will continue to stumble. Yes, we should give effort in this Christian journey, but many of our efforts are in vain because they are unrealistic and off target. We CAN live right, but only with the help of God. We were created to NEED God, and we can't ever forget it. It is designed this way on purpose.

Be blessed