Who are the children of God and how do we recognize them? By our fruits, we are known. Others who have not come to Christ recognize us by our fruits, as scripture says and makes clear. Others glorify our Father, God, when we do good works and His reputation is largely determined by His children here and how we behave.
What are the fruits that show others that we belong to God and that bring Him glory? These are the fruits of the Spirit as listed in Galatians:
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Gentleness
- Faith
- Meekness
- Temperance
The lack of these fruits is why so many ask, “Why are Christians so unChristian?” Why so many say they love Jesus but not the church, Christ but not Christians, because so many of those who claim Christ’s name do not live His teachings and do not show the fruits of walking with the Holy Spirit.
Love
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently” — I Peter 1:22
Obeying the truth brought by the Holy Spirit purifies our souls and brings us to sincere love of the brethren, that love Christ admonishes us to possess that others may see we are His.
“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” — John 13:35
“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; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” — Matthew 5:44-45
We are to love our enemies, love each other, love our neighbor, and love the Lord. In loving our enemies, this is how we are children of our Father God. This fruit is required if we are to walk as children of God.
Joy
“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” — Psalm 16:11
“Thou has made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.” — Acts 2:28
In God’s presence is where we find joy. When we are full of joy, real joy, we carry God’s presence with us everywhere we go and into every situation we are a part of. Joy is established throughout the Old and New Testament as coming automatically with the presence of God.
This fruit is required for children of God because it is evidence of God’s presence with us.
“But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.” — Psalm 5:11
Peace
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful.” — John 14:27
Peace is the gift of the Lord Jesus and is known as the “peace that passeth understanding”, for even in our greatest trials and difficulties, God’s children are to be at peace.
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” — Isaiah 26:3
Peace is a direct result of trust in God and grows naturally from our walk with God and our faith in God. The longer we live with God and walk with Him, the more we see how He cares for us in our lives, how He answers our prayers and gives us understanding, and how loving a Father He is. As we keep our mind upon all that Christ has done for us and the good that He has brought into our worlds, we are at peace in every circumstance because we know that He will continue to care for us and love us.
Peace is the evidence of our trust in God. Peace is the proof that we believe in the God we claim to.
“Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief…” — Matthew 17:19-20a
We do not receive what we ask of the Lord if we do not believe in Him. We may not even go to Him and pray to Him if we do not believe truly that He will hear and answer us. And we will not have peace if we do not believe that because God is for us, “who can be against us?” In short, this fruit is required of the children of God, for without it, we are living the very opposite of what we claim to believe.
— Megan Payne