Lesson One
Have you ever read through the book of Galatians? Please take
some time now
to read through it. If you can't spare the time to read the
complete book,
please read the fifth chapter now. This is where our main
focus will be for
the next few weeks. As you are reading, would you especially
concentrate on
verses 19 through 24 in the fifth chapter.
Did you read it? How did yo feel when you read verses 19
through 21? How
about verses 22 through 23?
Verses 19 through 21 remind me of an evening news broadcast
here in
Atlanta.......scarey! But I'm oh so relieved when I read
verses 22 through
23. They're like a breath of spring air. They make me feel
alive, empowered,
and energized! But do you realize how many
people....Christians..do not live
a life controlled by the Spirit? They are not enjoying all of
the wonderful
benefits that He provides.
About two and a half years ago, I was one of those
people......a defeated
Christian....trying to make it on my own strength. I finally
became so "sick
of myself" that after a long battle in my mind, I gave the
Holy Spirit
complete control of my life. I won't go into the long details
of how this
came about, but if you're interested, email me and I'll give
you the long
verson.
Since I enjoy my spirit-filled life a lot more than the old
life, I'm anxious
to share with other. Therefore, these lessons I have prepared
are entitled,
"The Fruits of the Spirit: What Can I Expect? What Can I
Accept?" A look at
Galatins 5:22.
1) THE LAWS OF LOVE
We will be looking at three different types of love
Love of God
Love of Self
Love of Others
Please read Exodus 20:1-17
(The Ten Commandments)
After you've read the scripture, please note which
commandments apply to the
Love of God.
How do you feel about these commands?
Are there any command with which you "struggle"?
If so, are you willing to share with the group?
In your opinion, how does following these commandments bring
joy into your
life?
Right now please take a moment to whisper a prayer to God.
Remind Him how
much you love Him.
2) Love of Self
This is a tough one for many of us. I must be open and honest
at this point.
I have spent most of my life hating myself. My parents were
divorced when I
was four years old. This happened during the late 1950s
before divorce was
"popular". Not to beat on the "divorce drum", but divorce is
not a "winning"
situation especially for children. I know many dear people
who are divorced
and believe me, I'm not casting stones but I pray that you
will find support
from a dear Christian fried. My mother found no support from
the Christian
community; therefore, I did not either. Rather I spent most
of my childhood
feeling cursed, outcast, and dommed for failure. Some of the
church members
were kind enough to tell me that I would "never amount to
anything" because my
parents were divorced. Consequently, I failed or felt
inferior most of my
life. Those feelings, coupled with a life long battle with my
weight, really
gave me a good case for self-hatered.
What aspects of your life cause you pain?
Would you be willing to briefly share with the group? If not,
you may want to
e-mail one of us so that we may lift you in prayer.
Read through the Ten Commandments again.
Which one of the commandments could encourage you to love
yourself?
Read Genesis 1:26-31.
Be prepared to share what this passage means to you. By
reading this passage,
do you think that God values us?
Why or why not?
Read Psalm 62:11,12.
By reading this passage, who is strong?
Who is loving?
How will we be rewarded?
Will we be rewarded because of the way we look or dress?
Will we be rewarded because of our family heritage?
Will we be rewarded because of our wealth, our beautiful home,
or expensive
car?
Again, how will we be rewarded?
John 3:16 (NIV) tells us, "For God so loved the world that He
gave His one and
only Son, that whoever belives in Him shall not perish but
have eternal life".
Tonight as you prepare to go to sleep, tell yourself, "For God
so loved the
world that He gave His one and only Son, that since YOUR NAME
HERE believes in
Him, YOUR NAME HERE shall not perish but have eternal life.
Who keeps you from living a joy-filled life? As with Jacob,
is there a Laban
in your life? I call these people "joy robbers". Ladies, you
know how it
is........you've found the perfect dress and when you wear it
on Sunday
morning, POW........one of those joy robbers is sure to make a
negative
comment! DON'T let the joy robbers take any thing from you!
Take a moment right now and allow God to tell you how much He
loves you.
3) Love of Others
Read the Ten Commandments again please.
What commandments direct us to love others?
Let's go back to Galatians 5 for a moment. Read Galatians
5:14.
Hehe......"Love you neighbor as yourself". Got any other
difficult tasks for
us Lord? Or let's try to read it this way, "I love you ,YOUR
NEIGHBOR'S NAME
GOES HERE, as much as I love myself". You see how importatnt
step 2 becomes.
If you don't love yourself, can you love your neighbor?
Yes, this type of love also applies to that thorn in the
flesh.....you know,
the aunt who always has a smart aleck comment about that great
dinner you just
prepared for the family get-together.
Now, how about taking a moment to find a scripture to share
with the group.
Do you have a passage that encourages you to love your
neighbor?
I know these days can be particularly difficult for believers
who may be
working side by side, day in and day out with non believers.
Please read
Psalm 37 and ask the Lord to "apply it as oil" to your mind
and heart. After
reading this Psalm and realizing the consequences awaiting the
unbeliever,
will you be willing to love them enough to pray for their
salvation? Will you
love them enough to witness to them? How do you find joy in
loving others?
Whisper a prayer now. Thank God for giving you the ability to
love. Ask Him
to help you love the unloveable and ask Him to allow you to
find joy as you
pray for them.
Special notes: Mary Beth's computer crashed. She was only able to give us one lesson. We have been informed that because of this one lesson a believer has rededicated their life back to Christ. None of our efforts are in vain and Christ is still working even when we think He isn't.
Gary Swartzlander, Coordinator
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