How Can We Know We Have Holiness Within?
In my holiness posts so far I have attempted to define the term holiness, show its absolute necessity, explain how to obtain it, and then tell how to maintain it in our Christian walk. In this post I would like to begin describing what the Bible teaches us about how holiness manifests itself within us.
His Holy Spirit In Us Bears Fruit
Holiness first appears and begins growing in our inner being. We know that God is holy as Leviticus 19:2 says, “Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.” He dwells in us as the Holy Ghost that fills us when we first begin this journey of holiness I detail in my post about becoming holy. I know of many who, after receiving the Holy Ghost, had their whole demeanor and outlook change. They may have been a mean, hot-tempered, or greedy person before, but when Jesus comes in them and shines through, they immediately radiate love, forgiveness, and generosity.
As we allow the holy spirit of Jesus to change and direct our life, he begins bearing long-lasting, mature fruit from the inside out. This is commonly called the Fruit of the Spirit. The nine attributes of this fruit are listed in Galatians 5:22-23. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
I don’t intend to go into depth on each of these characteristics, as there are many sources whose purpose it is to do so. But let me touch on each of them and give you some scripture to think about as you read this post and hopefully begin a more thorough study later. The ultimate definition of love or charity as the King James Version names it, can be found in 1 Corinthians 13. It challenges any Christian to self-reflection. For example, one small section of this chapter is verse 5 which tells us that charity, “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil.”
Peace and Love Intertwined
The inextricable way in which the attributes of the fruit of the spirit are intertwined can be seen throughout scripture. For example, the Bible says, “There is no fear in love; perfect love casteth out all fear.” 1 John 4:18. If we are filled with love, we will not have fear, but instead we will experience its opposite, peace. 1 John 4:8 explains that, “God is love” and in 2 Thessalonians 3:16 “Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means.” Therefore, Jesus is both perfect love and as such, our source of peace, vanquishing fear.
Faith, Joy, and Longsuffering Interwoven
Joy and longsuffering are described as inseparable as well. Romans 12:12 says, “Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation…” Is it no wonder that we are to have joy when the joy of the Lord is our strength and he is the hope of our salvation according to Nehamiah 8:10 and 1 Thessalonians 5:8. Patience in tribulation is basically the definition of longsuffering. In fact, James 1:2-4 ties faith in with joy and patience/longsuffering. “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” The definition of faith can be seen in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Because we have faith we can endure longsuffering with joy.
The Overcoming Ministry of Gentleness & Goodness
2 Timothy 2:24 instructs, “And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient.” Regarding goodness, the Bible tells us, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith (Galatians 6:10), and in Romans 12:21 it says, Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Thus, gentleness and goodness are requirements in our relationships both within and without the body of believers in order to teach, minister, and overcome evil.
Meekness: Strength Clothed with Humility
Meekness can be seen, not as weakness as some may think, but rather as strength clothed in humility. Psalms 37:11 gives its reward, “But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Jesus echos this in Matthew 5:5. Numbers 12:3 declares that the great leader “Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.” He understood and exhibited his dependence on God to give him strength and wisdom to lead his people and defend him against unjust accusations.
Temperance to Obtain a Crown
Finally, temperance, also known as self-control or moderation, is spoken of as necessary to obtain an eternal reward in 1 Corinthians 9:25. “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.” We all would do well to check our own lives for “temperance in all things.”
It's All or Nothing
It is interesting to note that the fruit of the spirit is singular. As we have seen, the characteristics of this fruit are mentioned together numerous times throughout the Word of God. This indicates that you can’t have one part of it without the other. Someone can’t have love but not be gentle, for example. They may temporarily act in public as though they have love, but they won’t be able to maintain that act and have it carried over into the other aspects of their character such as patience or temperance. If we see one of these areas lacking in our life, we can know that the fruit of the Holy Spirit as a whole is weak and it is time to draw closer to our holy God and be refilled.
Stay Connected to the Vine
You can’t work to produce the fruit of the Spirit as a goal. We can’t make ourselves more peaceful, joyful, or longsuffering. You must instead work to get and stay more connected to the vine in order to bear this fruit. Jesus, in John 15:4-5, explains this clearly when he states, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” This means you must work to get more full of the holy spirit which automatically increases fruit production. I focused on this topic of growing and maintaining holiness in my last holiness blog.
Called to be Fruit Inspectors
The maturing fruit becomes more obviously sweet and beautiful to all around observing it over time. The scripture demands we, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:” Hebrews 12:14. If we declare we are Christian, yet fail to display the fruit of his holy presence within us, then we do a great disservice to the name of Jesus and those seeking to know the one true and living God.
We may verbally declare that we love and know God, but if we deny his power to transform our lives and produce fruit, then others may doubt his power and goodness. As a result, they may choose not to seek him for themselves. This may be, in part, why Paul in 2 Timothy 3 lists several carnal, sinful characteristics of people in the perilous last days, then in verse 5 admonishes, “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”
God in us has the power to multiply the fruit of his spirit through us. We can, and are in fact instructed, to be fruit inspectors. In 1 Thessalonians 5:21 the Bible directs us to, “Prove all things, hold fast to that which is good.” 1 John 4:1 warns, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out in to the world.” Even Jesus said in Matthew 15:8 that “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.” No matter what someone might say of himself and his Christianity or even his position in some church, if he isn’t bearing the fruit of the holy spirit in his daily life, we can know that he is a branch disconnected from the vine, (Jesus), that produces the necessary nutrients. Thus, we should “turn away” from and not be associated with someone who professes godliness yet displays fleshly, sinful attributes.
Examine Holiness Using the Biblical Description of the Fruit of the Spirit
Finally, when we are holy, or set apart unto God, as my first holiness post explained, we have separated ourselves from carnal things and behaviors and now abide in the vine or Spirit of God. Right after listing the attributes of the fruit of the spirit, Paul in Galatians 5:24-25 expounds on this by saying, “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.” So, when examining, (as we should), the state of our inward holiness in the eyes of God, we don’t have to rely on comparisons to dictates or opinions given by men, we can rely once again on the Word of God when it tells us that the manifestation of his Spirit living within us is “Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” Then we should investigate what each of those characteristics looks like by reading about them throughout scripture. As a result, our desire to get closer to Jesus will surely grow as it should.
I must credit my husband with much of the meat of this blog on the fruits of the spirit. He has taught and preached numerous times on the essential presence of the fruit in the lives of those who call themselves Christians. Our hearts have been broken watching lives devastated by those who profess Christianity yet lack any semblance of these characteristics produced by God’s Holy Spirit within them. We believe the church has not taken seriously enough the command by God to turn away from those who have a form of godliness but have not allowed God to transform them by his power.
If you agree and would like to comment, I would love for you to do so and subscribe to this blog. May we all connect more completely to the source of holiness, Christ Jesus.
Mercedes
Praise God! This is beautiful and really helps focus on the important eternal things.
Tina Rosario
Awesome post 😊 Thank you
Manuel Hernandez
Very wel put! Amen!
Christy
Thanks!
Mindy
This is beautiful ! Well written and explained. I will be praying your blog grows immensely ! God bless you!
Christy
Thanks. I truly appreciate prayers!