THE HOLY SPIRIT
and other spirits 

PART I.—THE HOLY SPIRIT

Fruits of the Spirit

  "For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth." Eph. 5:9. The fruits of the Spirit we are unable to bear without the tree upon which they grow; viz., the Holy Spirit. A man to grow apples must have an apple tree; and a man to grow peaches must of necessity have a peach tree. So with the spiritual fruits—to grow them we must have the tree on which they grow. For a man to try to produce the fruit of the Spirit would be like trying to gather grapes from a bramble bush, or figs from thistles. We are in our natural state corrupt; and "a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit" (Matt. 7:18), hence in our natural state we cannot bring forth the fruit of the Spirit, which "is in all goodness and righteousness and truth."

  Being destitute of any means whereby we might come into possession of the Spirit, God uses the grafting process, by which we are grafted into the true and fruitful vine, Jesus Christ. "I am the true vine." John 15:1. There is a peculiarity about this grafting, in which it differs from natural grafting. Paul says concerning it: "For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild (sinful) by nature, and wert grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?" Romans 11:24.

  "Contrary to nature." To understand this we must first understand the natural law which governs grafting. In natural grafting the fruit is always according to the nature of the scion, and not according to the root or stock. In spiritual grafting we are grafted into Christ, and, "contrary to nature," we bear the fruit of the Spirit, or the fruit of the true vine, Jesus Christ. Christ says, "I am holy" (1 Pet. 1:16); and Paul says, "If the root (Christ) be holy, so are the branches (His people)." Again Christ says, "I am the root." Rev. 22:16.

  Here is formed a syllogism which proves conclusively, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that we may become holy, and be enabled to bear the fruit of the Spirit. "If the root be holy, so are the branches." Rom. 11:16. Christ the root is holy (Rev. 22:16; 1 Pet. 1:16), and men in him are the branches (John 15:6); consequently men who are in Christ are holy.[96]

  A holy tree brings forth good fruit. Luke 6:45. Men in Christ are holy; consequently men in Christ bear good fruit. This may seem to some to contradict the text which says, "There is none good but one, that is God." Mark 10:18. But we must remember that the Word also says that Joseph was a good man. Luke 23:50. N is also said of Barnabas, that he was a good man and full of the Holy Spirit. God only is good in an independent sense; all men that are good, are good because God has made them so. Without God "there is none good, no not one."

  While we cannot bear fruit without the help of the Spirit, every child of God must bear fruit in a justified state. In a justified state, of course, we have not the fullness of the Spirit, and yet we are led by the Spirit, and by Him enabled to bring forth fruit unto God. The fruits of the Spirit are named in the fifth chapter of Galatians as follows: Love, joy, peace, long. suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Here we have a magnificent cluster of precious fruits. Every justified person must bear all these fruits, and yet justification is not the more fruitful.

  LOVE.—When we are forgiven "we love God because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19. We love our brethren also; for "we know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death." 1 John 3:14. "He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." John 4:8.

  JOY.—Joy is a very strengthening fruit. "For the joy of the Lord is your strength." Neh. 8:10. As well as having joy in times of prosperity we often find, as a poet has said, "A joy in sorrow." Like the apostle we should rejoice with joy unspeakable when we are permitted to suffer for Jesus' sake. Of course without the Spirit we would be unable to rejoice in trials; but with His gracious presence we are enabled to count all things joy for Jesus' sake. James says, "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations." James 1:2.

  "Count it all joy." This brings to our minds the idea of counting. Below will be found two examples which will illustrate the example of joy.

	1,000		Afflictions.
	5,000		Persecution
No. 1	8,572	No. 2	Financial trials
	3, 050		Evil reports
	17,622		JOY

[98]

  In example No. 1 we have several numbers added, which gives us the sum of 17,622. Naturally the larger the numbers the larger the sum. In example No. 2 we have the example of "counting divers temptations all joy." As in example No. 1, the larger the numbers the larger the sum; so in example No. 2, the more the trials and the temptations the greater the joy and the richer the blessings; for "blessed is the man that endureth temptation." James 1:12. However, the blessing and the joy are not merely to the man that has temptation, but to "the man that endureth."

  "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them that are exercised thereby." Heb. 12:11. After the chastening we are allowed to eat the fruit, and in this the joy is found. As David says, "Weeping may endure for a night: but joy cometh in the morning." So we should hope on till the morning dawns with its light of joy, and not faint. Bear the divers temptations, and count them joy. Suffer the chastisement, and eat the fruit of righteousness. Weep through the night, and see the morning of joy. As the brightest morning may follow the darkest night, so the sweetest joy may follow the hardest trial.

  PEACE. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5:1. Peace is a fruit unknown to the children of this world. "There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked." Isa. 57:21. When Jesus was about to depart from this world and be with the Father He spoke to His disciples of this fruit of the Spirit and said, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33.

  LONG SUFFERING.—How spontaneously does this precious fruit grow out of a life sweetened and controlled by the Holy Spirit. Long suffering in trials, long suffering in sickness— long suffering in all things. When we see the long suffering of God, how he waited in the days of Noah, and how He suffers long with this present sinful generation, it should exhort us to treat one another "with all lowliness and meekness, with long. suffering, forbearing one another in love." Eph. 4:2. "Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and long suffering, with joyfulness." Col. 1:11. It means quite another thing to have "long suffering with joyfulness"; [99] to suffer long and with joy in the deepest and sorest trial. But even in this the deep rooted tree of life will spring forth abundantly.

  GENTLENESS. "Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great." 2 Sam. Z2:36. What a priceless jewel is gentleness! and what is more pleasant than to be gentle to all we meet? Yea, the Holy Spirit will enable us to be gentle to all men, even to those who despite fully use us and persecute us.

  GOODNESS.—As we have before said, all our goodness must come from God, for without Him all our goodness is as filthy rags. But God is good, and Paul says that He is above all and through us all and in us all; consequently we (God's people) are all good. Paul in writing to the Romans said, "And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness." Rom. 15:14. Let us then be filled with goodness, that "others seeing our good work" which God works in us "may glorify our Father which is in heaven."

  FAITH.—Faith is the Christian's motor power, and is abundantly produced by the Holy Spirit. In one sense we must have faith to receive the Holy Spirit, and even to receive justification; but faith is much expanded by the Holy Spirit. Faith like all other fruits of the Spirit is a practical fruit; for "the just shall live by faith." If all that might be said of faith were written volumes would not contain it.

  MEEKNESS. "Meekness signifies a temper of mind that is not easily provoked and suffers injuries without desire of revenge, and quietly submits to the will of God." The servant of God must "show all meekness unto all men," and "in meekness instruct them that oppose themselves."

  TEMPERANCE.—Temperance as here used does not only mean to abstain from intoxicants, but means to be temperate in all things; to let temperance pervade our entire life. The very nature of the Holy Spirit is temperate, and this blessed fruit is brought forth by those who are led by Him. Paul was not only a temperate man, but he also taught it to, and required it of, those over whom the Holy Spirit had made him overseer. "And," says he, "every man that striveth for mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible." 1 Cor. 9:25. Paul here refers to those who strove for masteries in the Olympic games of the Greeks.

  "Temperate in all things." These men spent the best efforts of their lives training for the contests in which they were [100] to engage; such as boxing, wrestling, racing, etc. They were also very temperate in their eating; eating only such foods as would give them the needed strength.

  "A corruptible crown." When they had put forth such extraordinary efforts, and deprived themselves of so many things, if they were able to gain the victory over their opponents, all the reward they received was a crown of leaves, made from the wild olive, which began to wither as soon as they were plucked. But the crown we strive for is an incorruptible one. The following stanza from one of the poets will give the reader a faint idea of what they endured:

"A youth who hopes the Olympic prize to gain,
All arts must try, and every toil sustain;
The extremes of heat and cold must often prove,
And shun the weakening joys of wine and love." —Francis.

  Paul's argument is this: If they would suffer want and deny themselves of almost every pleasure to gain a fading crown of wild olive leaves, how much more should we live a temperate life to gain "a crown of glory that fadeth not away."

  THE MORE FRUITFUL STATE.—After we have been grafted into the true vine—Jesus Christ—and have borne fruit, we have this promise from the Lord: "Every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit." John 15:2. After this cleansing we are not to bring forth a new kind of fruit, but "more fruit." When we are first grafted in we bear the fruit of love; after we are purged we bear the fruit of perfect love. I John 4:18. In the former state we have joy, but in the "purged" state we have fullness of joy (1 John 1:4); and so on through the whole catalog of the fruits of the Spirit. So then in the more fruitful, purged, or sanctified state, we not only "bring forth more fruit," but our love is perfected, our joy is made full, etc. [101]           

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