Daily Devotional “Good Person on My own?”
Be different!
February 20, 2022
Galatians 5:22-26 The Holy Spirit is vital to the Christian life. Read about the fruit of the Spirit in today’s passage, and ask, Can I be such a good person on my own? We need divine intervention to live as God expects.
That’s why He gives each believer a Helper, whose job is to produce Christlike character in us. The heavenly Father knows that His children need assistance to comply with His commands.
Even Jesus Christ’s most faithful followers were, on their own, helpless to obey—for instance, Peter, who pledged to be loyal until death, denied even knowing Christ (Matt. 26:69-75).
Before returning to heaven, Jesus ordered the disciples to put their missionary work on hold until the Holy Spirit arrived (Luke 24:49).
Only with the Spirit’s aid could Peter the coward become Peter the rock and preach a challenging sermon that convicted many (Acts 2; see also Matt. 16:18).
The Holy Spirit enters a believer’s life at the moment of salvation and immediately sets about the work of producing spiritual fruit. This is the outward expression of a transformed heart.
When we yield to God’s nurturing hand, our actions and attitudes become more loving, more joyful, more kind, more gentle … (See Gal. 5:22-23.)
He reaps a harvest of service from our life—good works that grow our own faith and expand His kingdom.
Allowing the Holy Spirit to bring forth Christ like character is not passive. Our part is to meditate upon God’s Word so we can learn about His character and apply His principles.
Then, instead of satisfying our flesh, we must make wise decisions each day that allow the Spirit to develop godliness in our lives.
God of lasting forgiveness, You are not surprised to find us standing before Your throne once again, asking for Your forgiveness. It’s true, Father: we have sinned again. In our thinking, in our doing, in our negligence, and in our self-righteousness, we ask once more for Your forgiveness. O God, we harbor an unfounded fear that one day Your grace will run out; that Your forgiveness will be exhausted. But each time we come before You, You once more welcome us with open arms. Thank You for a forgiveness that has not failed and will never fail. In the Name of Jesus Christ, who has forgiven all, we pray, Amen.
Loving and gracious God, we know we do not always live the life to which we are called: We turn away from You, and from our true selves. You command us to shine Your light, but we often hide it instead. We are prideful and self-righteous, and desire control instead of trusting You to guide our steps. We know that You love us, that You do not abandon us, and that You pursue us even when we turn away from You. Thank You for loving us unconditionally, Forgive us, we pray, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Daily Devotional “Good Person on My own?” | Daily Devotional “Good Person on My own?” | Daily Devotional “Good Person on My own?” | Daily Devotional “Good Person on My own?”
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