Foundations of Faith
GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT (VI)
In the previous issue we showed how the Lord Jesus Christ displayed the ninefold fruit of the Spirit:”love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Gal. 5:22,23). The Holy Spirit wants to teach us about our Saviour and attract our hearts to Him. The more we get to know and appreciate our Lord, the more we shall show that fruit in our lives.
In this issue we shall try to define these nine characteristics by way of contrast with their opposites.
1. Love. The most obvious opposite of love is hate (1 John 3:14-16). Another opposite of love is selfishness:”Love seeks not her own” (1 Cor. 13:5). This “agape” love is a very active quality. It seeks the blessing and benefit of others, often at a cost to itself. Therefore, a third opposite of love is indifference. (See Feb94 for more on love.)
2. Joy. Opposites of joy are sadness, gloom, depression, or despair. 1 Thess. 5:14,16 brings the opposites together:”Comfort the fainthearted [or depressed]…. Rejoice evermore.” David, when King Saul sought to kill him, despaired of ever being free of those trying circumstances (1 Sam. 27:1). At the opposite extreme, Paul and Silas “sang praises unto God” in the jail of Philippi (Acts 16:25). How do you respond to the difficult circumstances in your life?
3. Peace. One opposite of peace is war or fighting. Rather than having “a quarrel against any,” we are to “let the peace of God rule in [our] hearts” (Col. 3:13,15). The Lord Jesus proclaims, “Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matt. 5:9). This includes (1) those who seek to bring peace between warring parties (1 Sam. 25:24-35; Phil. 4:2); (2) those who try to live peaceably with all people (Rom. 12:18; 15:19); and (3) those who bring the “gospel of peace” to lost souls (Rom. 10:15). Another opposite of peace is anxiety, worry, or fear. A woman came to the Lord “fearing and trembling,” and was told, “Go in peace” (Mark 5:33,34). The apostle Paul writes, “Be careful [or anxious] for nothing, but … let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God … shall keep your hearts and minds” (Phil. 4:6,7). Joy has to do with our response while in the middle of a problem. Peace has to do with our attitude in the face of a possible problem that may–or may not–happen in the future.
4. Longsuffering. Since this word in the original Greek language means “long-tempered,” the opposite obviously is short-tempered. The Bible tells us to “put off … anger, wrath [or short temper]” and to “put on … longsuffering [or long temper]” (Col. 3:8,12). There may be people in our lives who are difficult to get along with. We must pray often to the Lord for the ability to be longsuffering (Eph. 4:2,3) and “slow to wrath” (Jas. 1:19) toward such people.
5. Gentleness. This word is generally translated “kindness” in the New Testament (Eph. 2:7; Tit. 3:4). “Be kind [or gentle] one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another” (Eph. 4:32). The opposite is cruelty, harshness, or severity (Heb. 11:36).
6. Goodness. The opposite of this word in the New Testament is not badness or evilness. Rather, it is lack of concern or apathy. The Lord’s parable of the Good Samaritan clearly shows the contrast (Luke 10:25-37). You all remember the story. The priest and the Levite lacked concern for the robbed and wounded man lying in the road. The Samaritan, on the other hand, was good in the sense that he helped the man. (See Dec93 for more on goodness.)
7. Faith. “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7). So the opposite of faith is the attitude, “Seeing is believing.” In order to be saved, we place our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ who died for our sins on the cross. We did not see Him do it, but we believe what the Bible says about it. Once we are saved, we continue to live and walk by faith. We have confidence in God to supply all our needs (Phil. 4:19). However, we are often tempted to trust in objects that we can see rather than in God whom we cannot see. These objects may include walls, swords, our fellow man, and ourselves (Deut. 28:52; Psa. 44:6; 118:8; Prov. 28:25,26). (See Assignment 4)
8. Meekness. The opposite of this is aggressiveness or assertiveness. A macho person would be the opposite of a meek one. The macho man or woman does not admit to any weakness or wrongdoing. Such a person is generally very defensive (and often offensive). A meek person will receive reproof or insult or injury without defending self and without trying to get even. A meek person will give up his/her rights, if necessary, to magnify God’s rights and God’s glory. (See Assignment 5)
9. Temperance. Since another word for this is self-control, the opposite is out-of-control. What part of our bodies is most likely to get out-of-control? James 3 tells us it is the tongue. “The tongue is a little member and boasts great things…. The tongue is a fire…. It defiles the whole body…. The tongue can no man tame…. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing” (verses 5-10). Another opposite of temperance is incontinence (2 Tim. 3:3). This word in Scripture seems particularly tied to lack of control of one’s sexual desires (1 Cor. 7:5). The apostle Paul reminds us that our “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19). We must always use every part of our body, soul, and spirit to bring honor and glory to God (1 Cor. 10:31).
This concludes for now our study of God. We have discussed the nature and attributes of God, the Holy Trinity, and details concerning the Person and work of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Later we shall return to a consideration of the death of Christ as it relates to the doctrine of salvation. In the next issue we shall begin a study of created beings, starting with Satan and other angels, and then going on to a study of man.
Running the Race
Assignment 4: Write out verses in Psalm 52, Proverbs 3, and Jeremiah 13 that speak of man trusting in something other than the Lord.
Assignment 5: Write out a verse in Numbers 12 in which a man is described as being “very meek.” Also, write out a verse in this same chapter that illustrates this man’s meekness.