Glad we're here. So let's pray first before we start. Father, I'm so grateful for your word. I'm so grateful for your Holy Spirit in us. I am so grateful for the gift of salvation, and I pray that as we go through your word today, and as I share, that you would be honored and glorified. Lord, would you do a work in each one of us, help us to grow in maturity in Christ, and Lord, just be with us this morning. In Jesus' name I pray, amen. If you have your Bibles, you can turn to Galatians chapter 5. Our study this year is taking us through the fruit of the Spirit. So I'm going to read those verses in Galatians chapter 5, verses 22 and 23. It says, 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. Now, sometimes we might think to ourselves, you know, I'm really not too bad at joy. I have quite a bit of that in my life. Patience might be a little iffy. Love depends on the day. And this is where we go wrong. It's so easy to focus on us, to make it all about us. And it's not about us. It's about God working through us. It's God's joy, God's peace, God's patience. It's the fruit of the Holy Spirit who is God. So I don't care how much love or joy or peace or patience you think you might have naturally. It doesn't hold a candle to God's love, God's joy, and God's peace. And I think it's important to begin this series of lessons with a challenge concerning our sanctification. I don't know if this will be new information for you or not, but even if it's not, it never hurts to be reminded of it. There are three different stages to our salvation. The first one is, of course, the moment that we accept Christ as our Savior. That is called justification. And at that moment, we are free from the penalty of sin. We are on our way to heaven. And it's an amazing and wonderful truth. And that is all a gift from God. He gives us Christ's righteousness. He gives us the Holy Spirit as a seal. And we can't do anything to earn that. As Ephesians 2, 8, 9 says, it is a gift of God, not by works, lest anyone should boast. So we can't work for that. That's a gift of God, our justification. And at the end of our journey of this life, That's the third stage of our salvation, and that's when God will give us someday a glorified body. And I am so ready for that. I will be in heaven, and I will be saved from the very presence of sin. And that stage is called glorification. And it's hard to even comprehend what that will be like. When we won't even be bothered by the presence of sin, it'll be amazing. And again, that is all God's doing. I can't do anything to get that accomplished. But in between those times, we are in the second stage of our salvation. We are saved from the power of sin. And before we're saved, we have no way to fight against sin. But now with the Holy Spirit in us, we have that power to say no to sin. And this is the sanctification stage of our salvation. It starts at the moment of your salvation, and it ends when the Lord takes you home. But this time, we have to remember that it's not just God's work. It's our work as well. It has to be both of us working together. You see this in scripture all the time. On the one hand, there's verses like Philippians 2.13. that says, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. But then Paul tells us just before that in verse 12, to continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. So both of us working together to conform me to the image of Jesus Christ. And you can see the conflict right here in this chapter. Take a look at verses 16 and 17 in this Galatians 5 passage. It says, So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other so that you do not do what you want. So this is a maturing process. It's a journey. So a challenge to you today is, how is the maturity process going for you if you are a believer in Jesus Christ? Do you even care about it? And that's the question where we all have to ask ourselves, because I feel there's too many Christians that want to know that they're going to heaven. but they could care less about the sanctification process. They just want to be left alone. They may come to church on Sunday morning because that's what you do, but if that's the only spiritual food you get, it's just not enough. We have to start there with knowing that we have to work at this and that we care about that. So if you don't, make that your prayer. God, give me a desire to know you better, to know your word. And that's a prayer for all of us, whether we're caring or not. We need to ask God to help us to know him better. I've been reading a book this summer, and I'm still not done with it. It's not a small book. It's called An Infinite Journey by Andrew M. Davis, and it's the best book I have ever read on this journey of sanctification. And I'm going to use an idea that he shares in this book. He had a horizontal line with arrows on each side, and at the far right it said love, and at the far left it said hate. And he put a line in the middle that said, indifferent. And he challenges the reader to put down what you love, what you hate, what you're indifferent to. And he said, as you look at scripture, you see what God hates. You see what God loves. See if you align your ideas with what God says. And if you're honest with yourself on that line of love, hate, indifferent, where would you put God? reading the Bible, praying, coming to church to worship with other believers and hearing God's word taught. And then he said to think back to a year ago or 10 years ago, and if those things are more on the love side than they were back then, you are in the maturing process. if they haven't changed, or maybe they're even worse. You know, God says in Revelation to a church that you've lost your first love. Sometimes when people come to know Christ, they're so anxious to get in the Word and be in it, and all of a sudden, that goes away. Then you're sliding back in your maturing process. So it's just a way to examine ourselves and say, am I on that maturing process, that sanctification process? Another way we can examine ourselves is by our desire to be obedient to our Savior Jesus said in John 14 15 if you love me, you will obey my commandments So, how are we doing on that? You know, it's easy to think of the biggies like I haven't killed anyone and I haven't stole anything But what about these things? Philippians 2 14 Do everything without complaining or arguing. How about Ephesians 4.29? Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up. Ephesians 5.10 says, find out what pleases the Lord, which means we have to be in the Word to find out what pleases Him. You know, that list could go on and on. And those things are a little bit more personal, aren't they? I kind of doubt if there's anyone here who would say that you've gone your entire life without complaining or arguing. If you have, I'd like to talk to you. But you know, as we mature in the Lord, then the Holy Spirit makes us aware of the times that we're doing that, and then we can confess it as sin. Now, I want to make a disclaimer here. Don't confuse, I mean, telling the truth with complaining. I mean, sometimes, you know, if you're having a bad day and somebody asks you how you're doing, feel free to tell them that. That's not complaining. An example, my hip's been giving me a lot of problems lately. So if somebody asked me, how are you feeling today? I might say, you know, boy, my hip's really hurting me today, but, you know, it's just the way it is. That's not complaining. It's telling the truth, and we can share with each other and pray for each other that way. But believe me, you might hear me complain with, well, my hip's bothering me so much, and I am so sick and tired of this, and I don't want to have another surgery. That's complaining, and I've been there, believe me. So anyway, just make sure you don't say anything negative or if you're having a bad day. That's not complaining, it's being honest. And gals, as you think of maturing, think of it in terms of only you. Each person's journey is different. Our circumstances, our backgrounds, everything is different. And so don't compare yourself to anybody else like, I'll never be as far along as so-and-so. Don't do that. God is working in you to mature you where you're at. And we all have work to do. So let's start now. As Paul said, forget what's past and going forward. You know, I went to Bible college and I would love, you don't know how often I think, I would love to go back and sit under Dr. Benton's teaching and Dr. Cheddar's and Dr. Jones because now I would get so much more out of it. I would pay more attention than when I was 19 or 20, those years, but you know, I can't. So just be thankful for it and move on. You know, it struck me a couple of weeks ago when I was, I'd been reading through Exodus in my Bible reading. And chapters three and four, where God met with Moses at the burning bush, and Moses finally said to God, please send someone else. In other words, leave me alone, God. And then, a couple weeks later, I was reading in Exodus chapter 33, and read that Moses said to God, teach me your ways. And he said, show me your glory. And I thought, Moses did a lot of maturing from Exodus chapter 4 to Exodus chapter 33. And it took years. A lot of different circumstances, a lot of hard times. But he grew to that point where he just loved his Lord so much. Just like Moses, we have to grow too. So let's grow. And speaking of growing, that's what fruit does, doesn't it? It matures. until it's ripe and then ready to enjoy. And the Holy Spirit grows this fruit in us as we work with him and allow him to have control of our lives. You know, it's kind of interesting to me what God says in 2 Peter 1, verses 5 through 7. Those verses say, for this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self-control, and to self-control, perseverance, and to perseverance, godliness, and to godliness, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, love. Now some of those things sound very familiar, don't they? Like the fruit of the spirit. There's goodness, self-control, kindness, love, and Peter says, make every effort to add to that. What Peter is doing here is emphasizing our part in this unity. But just before that, he says in verse 3, his divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness. So it's the Holy Spirit in us that gives us those things. But it's the two of us working together. Galatians 5 emphasizes the Holy Spirit's part. Second Peter emphasizes our part in it. So today we're looking at the first one, love. You know, in our English language, we throw that word around a lot. You know, I love ice cream, I love my spouse, I love whatever. You know, but in the Greek language, there are different words that are used for love. There is phileo, which is a friendship kind of love. And there is eros, which is a romantic love, but here the word is agape, which is the word for love that describes God's love. And that's the kind of love we're supposed to have. And I think, for me at least, the hardest thing to get a handle on is that it is not a feeling. Are some of you like me that when you think of love, you think of feeling a certain way? It's just natural that we think that way, but God's love is not that way. God's love is a choice. It's a mindset, not a feeling. My Bible dictionary says it this way, and I want to quote that. It says, God's love lifts you from the realm of natural affection to become the affirmation of the ideal. We see God's love, which is sacrificial, redeeming, unmerited, an expression of the character of the lover rather than dependent on qualities in the beloved. And I love that last part. Let me say that again. It's an expression, an expression of the character of the lover, God, rather than dependent on the qualities of the beloved. In other words, it doesn't depend on What's in us that makes God loves us? He loves us. Period. It's an amazing truth. Scripture tells us that God is love. So when we have the fruit of the Spirit, love, it's His character coming through us. And the person that we are to show that love to is totally unmerited to receive it. Just by the way, we're totally unmerited to receive His love. But He gives it to us anyway. And it's a beautiful thing. And now, more than ever, our world needs to see God's love shine through us. Have you ever seen so much hate in the world? I mean, it is just awful. We need to show God's love. So let's get down to where the rubber meets the road. How do I let God's love show itself through me when the last thing my sinful nature wants to do is to love that person. You know, it's easy for me to love you guys, and this is why I should retire from speaking, because whenever I'm speaking on something and studying it, God shows me how for sure I am of the reality of what I am studying. I have a confession to make. Nancy Yoder has a mean streak in her. Sometimes I just find it real satisfying when a person gets what I think they deserve. But as I've been studying this, an example that God has put in my heart and mind, and I'm not going to name any names, but certain people in the field of politics that just make me very angry. I just hate what they're doing to my country, and that's hard to separate that hate from my feelings for that person. Again, it's my feelings that come into play. I can't tell you how many times I asked God as I flopped into bed at night to show me what His love through me would look like. as I think about that person. And maybe you have difficulty loving someone as well, and maybe yours is on a much personal level. Maybe it's somebody that you have to meet face-to-face, and that makes it even harder. But as I ask God to show me how I should respond to those feelings I have, He gave me some passages of scripture that have helped me a lot. There's a couple in Ephesians, which is the book right after Galatians, so if you have your Bibles, you can turn to Ephesians chapter 6, verse 12. It says, and by the way, I'm using the NIV, so it might be a little different than the translation you're using, but it's the version I'm used to. It says, for our struggle, is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. So I have to remember that people are not my enemies. We are in a spiritual battle now more than ever in our personal lives, in our nation, in our world. Remembering that my struggle is not against flesh and blood helps me to remember to pray for them, to see God's truth and His love. And when I pray for them, those feelings that I have of getting so mad go away. And then there's Ephesians chapter 3. These verses have helped me a lot too. Ephesians 3, starting in verse 16. This is a prayer that Paul has, and I love this. He says, I pray that out of his glorious riches, he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you being rooted and established in love may have power together with all the saints. to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." What incredible verses. You know, there is so much meat in those verses. But Paul says that as a believer, I have been rooted and established in love, and Then he later prays that I would have the power to grasp that love. And then he says, and that love surpasses knowledge. So we'll never get to the end of it, gals, but that should be one of our goals. As we know God better, know his love better, it's easier to extend that to the people that are around us in the world that we think about. So the question remains for all of us. Are we desiring to go in Christ and mature in Him? Then His fruit will shine through us. You know, one of the key passages of Scripture that tells us what love looks like is, of course, 1 Corinthians 13. And as I read verses 4 through 8, make a checklist in your mind. Think of it in terms of your family, your friends, your neighbors, et cetera. How are you doing? I read these in 1 Corinthians 13. Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast. It is not proud. It is not rude. It is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. So I don't know about you, but those things make me realize that I might not be quite done with my sanctification process, that I have some growing to do. And there's one more quick thing I want you to remember about love. What does Hebrews 12, 6 say? Whom the Lord loves, he disciplines. God's love through us is not a permissive love. I have another book too that I've had for years and I've read it a couple times because it's been good for me. It's called The Mind of Christ by T.W. Hunt. And he states the fruit of the spirit and the opposite of those, but there's also a perversion of that fruit. Like the opposite, of course, of love is hate. But the perversion might be permissiveness or possessiveness, you know, and that's not what God wants for us. In other words, it's not a lifestyle that just lets things slide through, because I love you and I'm not going to say anything to you that'll make you feel bad. We don't want to hurt their feelings. It's a love that wants the best for them. So that means dealing with and letting go of sin that they are entangled with. So it's not a permissive love. So gals, we need to keep going back to the basics, being in the Word of God consistently, and really listening to what God has to say for us and being willing to be obedient to it. And I realize there's different age groups in here and it looks different for you. The journey we're on is different. Some of you have little kids. And someday you might be as old as I am where you can get a cup of coffee or tea in the morning and sit down with the Word and not be interrupted by anything. But some of you are not there. But find something, a devotional book that has a short passage of Scripture that you can read and a thought about it. Or if you have the time, just sit down and read a couple chapters of the Word and see what God has for us. We need to be in the Word. That's where the power is. I read something recently that I thought was really neat. Some of you may know the actor Tim Allen. He played the tool man on his TV show. And I saw this quote from him the other day. Listen to this. He said, and I quote, I never took the time in all my years to read, really read the Bible. Currently almost through the Old Testament, almost done with the prophets. Next up is the New Testament. So far, amazing and not at all what I expected." You know, and after I read that, I just stopped and prayed for him. I don't know if he knows Christ or not, but obviously God is working in his life. So I just prayed that he would come to know Christ. God's word is powerful, ladies, and we're so privileged to have it. So let's be in it. And other basics are talking to him throughout our day. Again, you might be a young mom and don't have 15, 20 minutes in the morning to sit and visit with the Lord, but just through the day, you know, talk to him about things. Doing what we're doing now, getting encouragement and fellowship with other believers, it's important in our maturing process. So I challenge you, and I challenge myself, just think through of my maturing process, how am I doing as far as letting God's Spirit show love through me and just wanting to grow in His love? I'm going to challenge you with something from God's words for each month as we go through these lessons of the fruit of the Spirit. I'll hand them out later. It's a memory verse challenge. Phyllis will be so pleased. Phyllis told me that if you read a verse of scripture for 27 days, I believe she said, that it will be in your mind. And so I have these. I'll get one out. I just put in a Ziploc bag some index card. There's 10. I gave you 10. If you mess up one, you can have an extra. If you mess up more than once, you're on your own. But anyway, for love, I have a couple passages of scripture that have love on there. You can pick the one you want. Maybe those are too simple for you. Maybe you'd love to do that Ephesians 3 passage. That's a great one. There's tons of them you could find on love. So write it down on the card. Put it on your fridge where you just read it every day. I'm not asking you to spend hours on it. But as you read it, it will remind you that am I showing God's love through me by this scripture, and so on, as joy, peace, patience. And pick your own. Use your concordance. If you don't like these verses, pick another one that have these qualities in them. Also, I have to put a disclaimer on this because, like, for a couple of, goodness, for me, that second Peter passage was the best one. But I realize that's what my NIV says goodness is. Like, ESV uses the word virtue, which is fine. You know, you don't have to have that exact word, but you can look around and find what word you want. And also, if some of the things I've talked about today are new to you, and you have questions for me, feel free to come and talk to me. I would love to talk to you about it. And I'll pass these around on the table when I'm done. But first, let's pray. Father, again, I just thank you so much for your word. I thank you. that the Holy Spirit is in us. And Lord, we know that our sinful nature often gets in the way. I pray that you would help us to grow, to be like Christ. Thank you for your patience with us. I pray that we would honor and glorify you in the way we live our lives. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.