Again, a greeting in Christ's name. He is the reason that we're here today. It's by His life, death, and resurrection that we have reason to rejoice. Turn in your Bibles to the book of Galatians. Galatians chapter 5. For some time already I've been looking at walking in the Spirit, And for the last number of times, the fruit, looking at what fruit the Spirit produces in our life. And today the title is one word. It is longsuffering. Galatians chapter 5 verses 22 through 26. Be cared to you can stand as we read in reverence to the word. Galatians 5 verse 22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. I'm wondering if we could read verse 22 and 23 together. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such there is no law. Thank you. You may be seated. The fruit of the Spirit is... What spirit? I think we all know the answer. The Holy Spirit. He is one of the Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit within the heart of a born-again believer who is walking faithfully with the Lord Jesus Christ will produce this kind of fruit. Out of our life will flow character qualities and virtues that bring glory and honor to God and they will surely enhance our relationships with one another. We notice here that fruit and spirit are both singular. This type of fruit comes from one source, the Holy Spirit. Every Christian is producing this fruit and should have all of this fruit in evidence in his life. all of this fruit. You know if we could pick and choose, I'd probably eliminate the long-suffering one. But I think that the Holy Spirit at work in our life will produce. This fruit should be evidence in our life. You know, we can use the excuse that we're weak in some areas and being long-suffering, that's just not who I am. Well, then you have not surrendered to the Holy Spirit, I'm afraid. Yes, we are maybe stronger in some areas than others. But we cannot use the excuse that it's just not who I am. God wants to produce that in your life and in my life. Non-believers cannot imitate this fruit. At least not all of it, all the time. Maybe some of it, some of the time. But when the heat is turned on, the non-believer miserably fails in trying to produce this fruit on his own. Who we are is better determined by the fruit we produce than it is by the gifts and talents that we have. the fruit is richer and fuller as we grow in the Lord Jesus Christ. Someone said to the grapevine, how do you make such good grapes? And the vine replied, I don't know, I just bear them. It's what the grapevine is supposed to do, is to bear good grapes. Well, we could ask the question, how can you be so loving, so joyful, so full of peace, and have long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control? How can you have all that? Well, I hope that the born-again believer can say, it's because who I am. I am in Jesus Christ. And that's why I can have all of this fruit coming from my life. It comes from being connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ. We cannot produce it on our own. Long-suffering. It means patience. Forbearance. Internal and external control in difficult circumstances. And the word non-resistance kept coming up in my study of the word as well. Patience. Is there anyone here that would like to have just a little bit more patience? Just a little bit more self-control. Just a little bit more of that desire and strength to be able to return good for evil. That's where I'm at. Maybe not just a little bit more, a lot more would be a better way of stating it. You know, we are naturally impatient. We have a schedule. We have a plan. We're wired. We've got a lot of things going on. We've got to do this and do that and we have to go here and there. We have a long list of requests to God and we want Him to answer. Maybe there's even some things on back order that we'd like for Him to do this week. People get in the way of our plans. Children are time-consuming. Oh, I hope we don't have that attitude towards our family. If others would just cooperate with us, of course. You know, our background is always pushing us. There's peer pressure, there's competition, there's things to do, there's places to go. Our days are full. The program is full. We've got to carry a calendar and make sure that everything meshes. Everything has to click to make the day come out right. Besides, my clicking has to mesh with your clicking. And if it doesn't, we're in trouble. The clicking stops and all of a sudden, we need patience, both of us. And guess what? We need it right now because our plans got messed up. Long-suffering. Here's what Aaron Lapp says. Long-suffering is precious fruit. It highlights faith. It matures in trial. More yield comes in combination with gentleness. Forgiveness then gives the fruit the right color." Beautiful picture of people getting along. even when the schedules clash and things don't line up. Long-suffering, patient endurance, and steadfastness when provoked, forbearance under ill will, without a thought of retaliation. Wow. Way back when there was a famine, and Abraham and Sarah went to Egypt. Later there was another famine and God told Isaac, don't go to Egypt. So Isaac, Rebekah and two sons along with their flocks and herds and servants ended up in Gerar which was Philistine territory under the rule of King Abimelech. Now the Philistines were a very hostile kind of people and they caused a lot of problems and trouble for the children of Israel over the years. That's where Isaac found himself with his family and his flocks and herds and servants. He was a farmer so he planted crops right in and among these hostile people. The Lord blessed him and the first year, it says, he received 100 fold. There's a verse that says, He waxed great and went forward and grew until He became very great. Flocks and herds and a large number of servants were His. And the Philistines took notice and they envied Him. They envied him. It says that they shoveled his water wells full of dirt, and King Abimelech comes around and he says, Isaac, you're going to have to leave. You are mightier than we are and we can't have it. You'll have to move. So Isaac packed his bags, got his family together, and they moved. And the servants started digging another well. They needed water. After digging for a while, one of the servants complained to the team leader, if the Philistines plug this well, I think we should fight back. We can't put up with this. This is just ridiculous that we've got to dig another well for our flocks. The team leader said, oh, but Isaac won't fight back. He wants to make friends with these people. Uh-huh. I think he's afraid of these people. That's what's wrong. And the team leader said, no, the Philistines are afraid of us. They're afraid of Isaac. That's why they had us move out. And so he responded by, well, we'll see. Time will tell. Well, they soon found good water. It says, a well of springing water. And guess what? The Philistine herdmen found out that they had dug a well, and it was bubbling with water, and they showed up and said, this is our water. And Isaac's servants said, no, this is our water. We dug the well. It belongs to us. You know, we need water too. But we'll go back and we'll check with Isaac, see what he says. And he said, men, if they want the well, give it to them. We'll move over here and we'll dig another well. So that's what they did. They gave the Philistines the well and moved on and started digging. But they were very frustrated. Because the same thing happened. As soon as they had water, the Philistines were there and they claimed that well as well. Now the servants said, we're going to fight. This is nonsense. We're not going to put up with this. We're not going to keep digging wells and just give it away. We have all these flocks and herds that need water. We're going to fight. We're going to end up fighting these people. No way, said Isaac. We're going to be friendly to them. We're going to try to win them. We'll move on and dig another well." So they started digging away again. And you can guess what the servants probably said. Well, we'll go dig another one, but we're pretty sure what's going to happen. As soon as we find water, they'll be here and take this one too. Well, that didn't happen. They found water, but the Philistines didn't show up. And I'm not sure why not. Other than maybe they were... They might have been ashamed at how they were taking these wells from these hard-working men who dug these wells. Or maybe they realized by now that Isaac was serious about doing them no harm and winning their friendship. Either way, they didn't take the well. One day, a while later, after Isaac had moved out of the region, it was approximately 20 miles away, King Abimelech came to see Isaac. And he brought with him Ahazoth, one of his friends, and Phicol, the commander of his army. And can you imagine Isaac's servants seeing these three men showing up, dressed in uniform probably, and they think, uh-huh, we're going to have to fight these men after all. See what they're doing? They're showing up 20 miles away. I think Isaac might have been surprised too to see these men. He said, why have you come? You hated me so much that you forced us out of your land. You drove us away, taking one well after the other." King Abimelech probably smiled. He said, we want to be friends. We want to be friends with you. We have noticed how that God is with you, and that He has blessed you, and how that you mean no harm to us. We want to be your friends. You think Isaac was delighted? After digging all those wells, trying to win these people, it finally happened. They were there and wanted to be friends. He made a feast and put them up for the night. The next morning, I think they probably signed a peace treaty, and these men left in a peaceful manner. And it says, Isaac's servants were out doing what? Doing what they knew how to do. They were digging a well when these men showed up. And it says, that very day they found water. You think that was a blessing? Because of how Isaac responded to these men? He had water. He had his enemies as friends the same day. Can you almost hear those servants say, Isaac was right. Isaac was right. It's easier to make friends than it is to fight a war. Longsuffering. Was Isaac longsuffering? How many wells would you be willing to dig for your... Do you have enemies? Maybe people that you don't get along with? How long would you put up with someone coming and filling your water well with dirt? Or would you say, well it's your well and you would pack your bags and move and dig another one? You know, we can be pretty demanding of what we think belongs to us. Long-suffering, patient endurance, steadfastness when provoked. 1 Corinthians 13 says, charity suffereth long and is kind. Where does this idea come from anyways? This character quality of suffering long with others. Is it something that Isaac drummed up and he thought about this idea and he, well we're going to try it here on the Philistines and sure enough it worked. Is that where this whole thing comes from of being long suffering? Well, it's been around a lot longer than Isaac. Long-suffering was around as long as God has been around. And I'm not sure if that's a proper term. It says God is from everlasting to everlasting. God is long-suffering. 1 Peter 3, the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah while the ark was preparing. In Exodus 34, When Moses went to the mountain the second time for the tables of stone on which the Ten Commandments were written, it says, the Lord passed by him and said, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, In Psalm 86, But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion and gracious, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth. In 2 Peter 3, The Lord is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. That's our God. Patient, compassion, gracious, long-suffering, mercy, truth. All terms that we can use when speaking of God. It's who He is. And when we give our heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, that's what should come out of our life. being patient and suffering along with others. You know, it's not natural for us to do that. It's against our carnal nature. Our nature is to defend ourselves. It's to even the score and come out on top and we stand for our rights. We have rights, you know? That's our carnal nature. But let me say this, that suffering long does not mean that we're a pushover and that we stand in a corner somewhere as a coward either. We stand for truth. We stand for what is right. We patiently endure affliction. Difficult situations without thought of retaliation, of getting even, You know, one big problem with getting even is we always have to give back a little more than we received, right? External and internal control in all areas of life. You know, we can be pretty good at controlling the external. and hiding what we're thinking. People will pick up on that very quickly. We're homeschooling our three sons. Once in a while in their book they come to a place where the page says self-test. and it's kind of a review of what they've just had. I'm going to do a little self-test on you all. How many of you have ever been in a tough situation where you felt like Isaac must have felt? Things were very lopsided and unfair, and you were the victim. Someone shoveled your well full of dirt. You know, I have some rights here too. This is my well, but somebody was filling it with dirt. And you were faced with a decision. Will I fight back with resistance? Or will I grab a shovel, move away, and dig a new well? You ever been there? We've all been there. Where we felt like Isaac. that people were against us and they mistreated us. Things were unfair. They took advantage of us. Let's move on to the next part of the test. How many of you were ever the Philistine in a given situation? You were the cause that it was lopsided and unfair. You were the one filling the well with dirt. You were the one speaking ill of your brother or sister. You were the one that had the best idea and the last word. You were the one at fault. But you played the blame game and made it appear like it was the other one's fault. You ever been there? It takes a little more honesty to raise your hand this time, right? There is a much greater blessing and reward in being like Isaac, filled with patience and forbearance when we face the battles of life, versus being a Philistine and using force. Much greater blessing. Much greater reward for being faithful, for facing life with the attitude of forbearance and long-suffering. You know, Christ's way, returning good for evil, suffering long, being patient, is the best way. Oh, but it's not always the easy way. It's not always an easy way, but it's the best way. And you might say, really? Well, how do you respond when you're driving down the road and you might have a, if you're like I am, you have a cattle trailer behind full of heifers, a lot of weight pushing, and somebody pulls out right in front of you, you have to slow down, heifers come sliding towards the front, and he goes down the road about 300 yards, puts his left turn signal on, there's oncoming traffic and you gotta stop. How do you respond in a situation like that? Is that what the horn's there for, right? Or somebody sells you an inferior product at top dollar. You thought you were buying the real thing, only to discover that it didn't last very long, and you paid top dollar. Someone puts a ding in the tailgate of your brand new truck. Or somebody drops your cordless tool and breaks the battery because of negligence. How do you respond? How do you deal with these situations? How about that suggestion at a brother's meeting, at a men's meeting we call it, that was much better than the one you just presented? How do you react? How do you respond? When your children come bouncing through the door with wet shoes, dirty shoes, grass clinging to their shoes, and they don't even notice that the floor was just mopped. Or somebody drops and shatters your favorite glass bowl, and it was your great-grandmother's bowl. Or there's a tasty dish at the carry-in, and everybody is talking about this dish, and wants the recipe for it, and it wasn't yours. How do you respond? You know, we think some of these are, you're smiling, but some of these things hurt, right? And you might have more that you can think of. I asked some questions at home and I didn't get much response on, you know, what hurts and what doesn't hurt and how do we react. True character emerges under test. And it can be good or bad. It shows who we are in those kinds of situations. And not only is the church looking on, but the world is looking on. How do you respond in difficult situations? Long-suffering. It's a spiritual fruit. Meaning to be patient, and steadfast when mistreated. Without the Lord, it is impossible. It's a matter of surrender. It's a matter of surrendering our life to Him. It's a matter of surrendering our will to Him. And by that surrender, it opens up the door to access of the power of the Holy Spirit in our life. And it's by that power that we can show love, that we can be forgiving, that we show forbearance, and that we're long-suffering with others, even in difficult situations, even when things don't go our way, even when people fill our well with dirt. We're able to do that by that power of the Holy Spirit. It gives us power to return good for evil. Maybe we should give them a meal while they're filling the well. Keep yourself in the Word of God. Keep yourself in the Word of God. Be consistent in daily Bible reading and prayer. Ask God for wisdom each day to help you make right choices when you face these difficult situations. Don't spend time thinking about those unfair treatments back here. And let them simmer in your life. Bring them to the Lord Jesus Christ. Lay them at His feet. And walk away from it. There's better things to do in life than to lick your own wounds, my friends. Place the future in God's hands. Live one day at a time. Let Him guide you through these difficult times in your life. He will make a way forward for you and for me as we surrender to Him. In conclusion, be an Isaac. Be an Isaac. Dig a well. Be a well digger. Be a fountain of water, a fountain of life to those around you. No matter how they treat you, let them know that there's a better way. You are trying to win them as your friend and as a believer to the Lord Jesus Christ by the way you live. Be long-suffering, be patient, return good for evil. Love is more powerful than hate. Love is more powerful than hate. And you may be surprised how many people might knock on your door. How many Philistines might knock on your door and want to be your friend? When you treat them the way Christ taught us to treat them. In Luke 6.31 it says, As ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. Jesus said in Matthew 5, Ye have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you that ye resist not evil. In verse 43, you have heard that it has been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. Why? That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. Let's kneel and pray. Holy Father, we come to you today. We thank you for the blessings of life. Thank you for bringing us together. For each one that is present, O God, give us a heart full of compassion. Help us to be long-suffering to those who have mistreated us. God, I pray that you would forgive where I have failed in this area. Just cleanse us, Lord, as a group from ill will. Fill us with love, joy and peace, long-suffering gentleness, goodness and faith, and meekness and temperance. That our life, as we go from here, not only today, but in the next week, that our life could minister to the people we meet. Many are looking on. Oh God, we know that You are looking on. You know our heart. You know the struggles we face, the hard things in life we all face. We need You, Lord. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit. Help us to surrender to Your will. Our will to Your will. So that we could receive that power to live a life that brings glory and honor to You. Thank You, God, for redeeming us and for giving us hope. and peace in our heart and life. Bless this congregation in a special way. Keep us from the world, from the enemy that is out to destroy us. Help us to be that light, that city that is on a hill. Our light could not be hid, that your love and mercy would flow through us and touch many lives in the days ahead. We give you glory. We give you honor. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.