Are You Like Jesus?

Are you like Jesus?

Galations 5:22-23

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 

Are you like Jesus?  This is a good question for everyone to ponder and not just once in their life but daily.  

When you look at your life do you see Jesus?  Do others see Jesus in you?  Sometimes we get so focused on our “to-do” list for the day or week that we loose sight of the ultimate goal.  We have zoned in on what needs to be done today that we don’t realize what is going on around us.  But in reality we need to open our eyes to the true needs around us.  

Those needs that God wants us to see.  

Those needs that can be met by God using us.  

Those needs are the things that should be at the top of our “to-do” list.  

When we put that focus off of ourselves and put it on the needs around us, people will begin to see Jesus in us.  

When we begin to look at the characteristics of Jesus we can find so many to begin to emulate.  In Galations 5:22-23, it speaks about the Fruit of the Spirit.  Now remember the Spirit is Christ, so these are the fruit that pour forth from Christ that we can begin to emulate.  I have touched on these two verses before but in case you did not read that post let me remind you what I said.  “They are listed in an order that I find most interesting.  It is easy for me to love and more difficult for me to have self-control.  You see love is the first fruit we should display.  God knows that it is more difficult to show any of these without Him.”  When God gave the 10 commandments to Moses, we can see that the first four commandments are about loving God and the last six are about loving others.  When Jesus came to live among men, he was asked by the Sadducees which of these commandments was more important.  Jesus told them that we are to LOVE God with all our heart, soul, and mind and the second was to LOVE our neighbors as ourselves.  (Matthew 22:35-40)  

LOVE.  

LOVE is what it is all about.  

Without LOVE we can do nothing.  

Do you show LOVE to others everyday?  Not just those in your family or circle of friends but to those around you that are hard to LOVE.  You know that you have those people in your life.  They are the ones who challenge your walk daily.  They seem to test your patience, your self-control.  Really they probably test all the fruit listed in todays scripture.  But I feel God uses them in our lives for a reason.  For us to begin to really work on displaying the fruit of the Spirit in our everyday lives.  For us to learn to LOVE as Christ loves.  To learn to realize that we can do nothing apart from Him.  

So today, I pray that you will begin to show LOVE to others so that others will Jesus in you.  

Prayer:  Father, You know my heart.  You know where I struggle in showing love to others around me.  Open me eyes so that I may see those struggles.  Help me to begin to change so that I can be more like You.  Help me to take that first baby step towards being able to show all the fruit of the Spirit everyday.  In Jesus Name I Pray, Amen.