Monday, June 1, 2026

Opening Scripture

We pray that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:10-14

Opening Prayer

Gracious Heavenly Father, you are holy and exalted! May your kingdom come and your will be done in my life, home, and community, just as it is in Heaven. Help me to trust you today to meet all of my needs. Help me to forgive others just as you have forgiven me. Help me to resist temptation and overcome the evil one. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Daily Bible Reading

Galatians 5:22-23

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.

Reflection  

We’re going to become VERY familiar with today’s passage over the next two months. Our theme this summer is “Making a Difference.” We will be exploring a different aspect of the fruit of the Spirit each week. Our focal verse is John 15:8, where Jesus tells his followers, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

This week, we examine the first fruit of the Spirit identified by Paul in his letter to the Galatians: love. Yesterday’s sermon was about Jonathan and the relationship he had with David, as described in 1 Samuel 18. Jonathan was the heir apparent to his father, King Saul, yet Jonathan realized that God had rejected his father as king of Israel and had chosen David to be Saul’s successor.

Rather than viewing David as a threat to his own interests, “Jonathan loved David as himself.” Earthly pride, greed, and selfishness would typically have prompted Jonathan to try to destroy David as his competitor. Instead, divine love and friendship caused Jonathan to desire David’s blessing and success. Love is not self-seeking, but rather desires God’s best for others.

Today’s text sits at the end of Chapter 5, which begins, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

The New Testament holistically presents Christianity – the way of love – as the divine alternative to the man-made distortions of legalism and licentiousness. There is tremendous freedom in following Jesus. Freedom from being trapped in the pointless attempt to earn righteousness by keeping the law. Freedom from being trapped in the painful pursuit of pleasure, giving in to the sinful nature.

Earlier in this letter, Paul warned against legalism. “We know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:15-16).

He later warns against licentiousness: “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:13-14).

Right before today’s passage, Paul describes what “indulging the flesh” looks like. “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like” (Galatians 5:19-21).

Paul summarizes his message with a clear and powerful statement: “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6). Amen!

Flourishing Habit

Flourishing Christians

The fruit of the Spirit is a gift from the Spirit. These characteristics are developed in followers of Jesus as they grow in their relationship with Him. While we will look at each of them individually this summer, God desires for every believer to embody ALL of them in full measure.

Love can (and should) manifest itself in almost every situation. As such, it’s more than an independent action. Love is an attitude, perspective, and way of life. We might call it The Jesus Way.

Jesus commands His followers to love one another the way He loves them. In fact, love is the “litmus test” of Christianity. Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

Two weeks ago, when we looked at 1 Corinthians 13 (the great “love chapter”), we summarized Paul’s teaching with the formula: “Life minus Love equals Nothing.” Remember what Paul said about love in that chapter:

Love is patient. It can wait when it needs to. It can be hurt without retaliating. Love is kind. It is gracious and benevolent. Love doesn’t envy. It is not jealous or resentful of another’s good fortune. Love doesn’t boast. It is not arrogant or self-promoting. Love is not proud. It is not haughty or puffed up. Love is not rude. It is not disrespectful or morally out of line. Love is not self-seeking. It is not focused only on itself. Love is not easily angered. It is not quickly provoked. Love keeps no record of wrongs. It does not “keep score” in relationships.

In Ephesians 3:16, Paul prays that his listeners would be “rooted and established in love.” Does that describe you?

Have you truly begun to grasp “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ”? Are you experiencing the amazing love of Jesus personally each day?

As such, are you being “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God”? Do you sense yourself acting and reacting in ways that testify to the indwelling and empowering of the Holy Spirit in you?

Do you tend to drift toward legalism or licentiousness? Remember: it is for freedom that Christ has set you free! Ask your loving Heavenly Father to help you know and share His love today.

Remember: Nothing changes until something changes!