Fruit of the Spirit

7th Fruit of the Spirit:

Faithfulness

God’s Spirit then imparts the nature of God, which develops in us gradually, like fruit ripening on a tree. The “fruit” that God’s Spirit produces is composed of many wonderful virtues. Rather than “faithfulness,” the earlier King James Version has the word “faith”. This is consistent with the way the Greek word “pistis” in this passage is usually translated elsewhere in the New Testament including numerous occurrences in the book of Galatians. “Faithfulness” has two different meanings. If we mean the faithfulness of God or Jesus, it refers to “steadfastness”, “honesty”, “firmness”, and God’s utter dependability based on His unchanging character. If we mean human faithfulness, it refers to our steady allegiance to God and our trust in Him. A “faithful” individual is “full of faith” who believes in the reality of God as revealed according to Scripture. Faithfulness is part of the fruit of the Spirit; it is created within us when we allow the Spirit to work in us. Not only does the Spirit induce us to be faithful, He explains why we should be faithful. John 16:13–14 says, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you” In which the Spirit discloses Jesus’ character to the world. 1 John 5:6–7 says, “This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify.” The Spirit testifies that Jesus is the Savior.

Faith or a faithful commitment to who God says He is, is basic to walking with God. As Jesus traveled, He responded to people’s faith and curtailed His involvement where there was no faith. Faithfulness is believing that God is Who He says He is and continuing in that belief despite the vagaries of life. Functionally, that means we trust what God says in the Bible, and not necessarily what the world or our own eyes tell us. We trust He will work out everything for good. We trust He will work His will in us. And we trust that our situation on earth is nothing compared to our future reward in heaven. The only way we can have such faith is by the Holy Spirit’s influence. He testifies to the truth and impels us to seek God. The Spirit makes us faithful. Hebrews 11 gives a long list of faithful men and women in the Old Testament who trusted God. Abel’s understanding of God made his sacrifice real and authentic. Noah trusted God’s word about the coming judgment as well as God’s promise to save his family. Abraham and Sarah believed against all evidence that they would have a child (Genesis 21:1–34). Rahab trusted God to protect her family when the Israelite destroyed Jericho (Joshua 6). Gideon’s mustard–seed faith routed an entire army (Judges 6–7).

And Hebrews 10:15 says, “And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying”. That the Spirit bears witness to salvation. Faithfulness is steadfastness, constancy, or allegiance; it is carefulness in keeping what we are entrusted with; it is the conviction that the Scriptures accurately reflect reality. Biblical faithfulness requires belief in what the Bible says about God, His existence, His works, and His character. Faithfulness is a fruit of the Spirit; it is the result of the Spirit working in us. But the Spirit is also our seal of faithfulness. He is our witness to God's promise that if we accept the truth about God, He will save us. Faithfulness is necessary when God’s promises seem to completely contradict what we see. When God’s ways are hidden from us, as evil strikes, and hardships begins to come against us with one attack after another that’s when we need the Spirit to produce His fruit of faithfulness in us. Faith is the adversary of distrust, sorrow and uncertainty. Faith protects us from fear, on the other hand, fear will destroy our faith. Faith is a shield that protects us from all seen and unseen dangers. So, if our shield of faith is strong enough to put out all the flaming arrows of the enemy, we are spiritually invulnerable. God is faithful, and He will grant this quality to His children.

“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible” Hebrews 11:3 (NKJV). Abraham never saw his descendants become “as numerous as the stars in the sky.”The Old Testament saints also had faith in the invisible work of God. Moses never entered the Promised Land. And none of the Old Testament saints lived to see their Messiah. But they all remained and were faithful until their death, yet, they believed God would do as He promised. They lived by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). It is a list of Old Testament characters who knew God and steadfastly believed His promises. None of these figures saw God’s promises completely fulfilled. Abraham and Sarah were able to witness the birth of Isaac, but neither lived long enough to see their line become a mighty nation. Joseph had faith that the Israelite's would escape Egypt and return to the Promised Land, but that didn’t occur until four hundred years after his death. Moses trusted God that his service would bring Israel to the Promised Land, but he never lived to see God’s people become a settled nation.

The Holy Spirit produces in believers His faithfulness. As a result, we believe God is Who He says He is and that He will do what He says He will do. His faithful character directly affects our lives. We have nothing to fear as we wait for Him to fulfill His promises. In that list in Hebrews 11 is the example of Enoch, who obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God. And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him, according to Hebrews 11:5b–6). Faith, or a faithful commitment to who God says He is, is basic to walking with God. As Jesus traveled, He responded to people’s faith and curtailed His involvement where there was no faith. This assurance is a fruit of the Spirit that God gives each of us different abilities and opportunities, and He expects us to thoroughly use them in His service. He will generously reward us according to how much we have spiritually grown and served in this life. And God does not accept excuses, not even fear of failure.