Galatians 5:22-24
(22) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (23) gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (24) And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
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These qualities are aspects of God's character that we all need to have and use:
Love: Outgoing concern for others. True concern for all of mankind. Not being self-centered. Doing for others what is right, despite their character, appearance, social status, etc. (I Corinthians 13).
Joy: Related to happiness, only happiness requires right circumstances where joy does not. Jesus Christ felt joy though He faced heavy trials (Hebrews 12:2). We should all be joyful having been called by God.
Peace: Peace of mind and peace with God (Philippians 4:6-7).
Longsuffering: Bearing with others who are working out their salvation. Being slow to anger (Romans 15:1; Luke 21:19).
Kindness: Behaving toward others kindly, as God has behaved toward us (Ephesians 4:31-32).
Goodness: Generosity of spirit that springs from imitating Jesus Christ (Psalm 33:4-5).
Faithfulness: Being reliable. This describes a person who is trustworthy and will always stand up for God's way. We can count on, and should work at imitating, the faithfulness of God (Philippians 1:6; Hebrews 13:5).
Gentleness: Considerate and tactful in conduct and correction. Never angry at the wrong time (Matthew 5:22-24; Ephesians 4:26).
Self-Control: Discipline which gives us victory over the wrong pulls of our mind and body (I John 2:15-17).
— John O. Reid
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