KEEP IN STEP pt 7
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV “But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy,peace, forbearance, kindness ,goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
Galatians 5:24-25 NIV “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”
One more Year!
God wants you to THRIVE, Not just survive.
To THRIVE means that you become fruitful in your life.
Colossians 1:9 (NLTSE) “So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.
A thriving church is a:-
1. Praying Church that Pray’s accurately (Worship / Word / Godly Values)
2. Church that Knows God’s WILL: (Soul Winners / Disciples / Making an Impact)
3. Church that flows with God’s Wisdom & Understanding.
Colossians 1:10 (NLTSE) “Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.
Being fruitful in your life honor’s God & so it pleases Him, it brings forth growth as we get better in the way we live daily.
Colossians 1:11 (NLTSE) “We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy,”
To thrive and be fruitful takes effort, but prayer makes us strong in His power so we have the Endurance, Patience & Joy we require to “keep in step” with Him.
Our 10inOne promise is about Thriving & getting Better & Better & it’s for everyone.
It makes us Trust the Lord & becoming fruitful in our lives, our ministry and therefore in our community and Nation!
John 15:1-2 NKJV ““I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
We can and should be Productive and Fruitful.
John 15:3-4 NKJV “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
These verses clarify that the origin of true fruit is been in living connection to the vine which is Jesus!
2 Kings 3 v 16 – 18 NKJV “And he said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ And this is a simple matter in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand. “
Dig it/ Dung it
D =Delight yourselves
Cultivate your hearts so that it desires the things of God more than anything else.
I = Intentional
It takes faith to see things happen in the kingdom. Faith doesn’t happen in your comfort zone… You need to step out and dig for water in your valley.
Don’t get tired. Get excited… To see how God will do it.
G= Grace
“God ritches at Christ expence”
Delight and rest…
John 15 :16 ESV “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
1. What does God want?
2. What is God’s will for my life?”
3. What is my purpose and calling?
4. What can I do to please God?”
In the New Testament, Jesus provides the answer to those questions by telling His followers to love God and love people.
In the Old Testament, the prophet Micah—empowered by the Holy Spirit—summarized God’s will for Israel by saying:
Micah 6:8 ESV “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to DO JUSTICE , and to LOVE KINDNESS , and to WALK HUMBLY with your God?”
These words were penned during a time when God’s people were trying to please Him with sacrifices, offerings, and going through religious motions, while living lives of deception, violence, and pride.
But as the prophet Hosea 6:6 NIV “I [God] desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.”
God is after our HEART MOTIVES , not our outward religious activity or begrudging obedience to a law….
Great commandments
Matt 22 v 37 Ref only
Love God… With all your Heart…. Soul & Mind
Second :
Love your neighbour as yourself.
Let’s break down what God desires of us:
– DO JUSTICE .
Doing justice requires faith and actions working together: helping the hurting, defending the weak, dealing fairly with the people we encounter, and speaking for those who cannot speak for themselves. In other words, to do justice, we must love others as we love ourselves.
– LOVE KINDNESS .
The mercy of God is an extreme kindness. And because we’ve been shown undeserved kindness by Him, we can show undeserved kindness to others. God desires these things more than endless “I’m sorry” speeches. God is kind to the grateful and the wicked, so we should be, too.
Luke 6: 32-36 NKJV “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”
– WALK HUMBLY .
Be teachable. Be moldable. Remember: You’re not God. You have limitations. You need a Creator and Savior.
Jeremiah 1 v 5 NKJV “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”
You’re only here because God spoke you into existence. So confidently embrace who you are, and who you are not, because it’s when we live fully surrendered to God that He does incredible things through us.
Seeking justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly—that is what God wants from us.
So in a world that’s saturated with injustice, hatred, and arrogance, let’s be people marked by these three things.
“The Beautitudes”
Matthew 5:2-12 ESV
2And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
5:3 “Blessed”– this is a translation of a Greek word meaning happy. However it does not mean here a feeling of happiness in the heart, but a happy state, a blessed condition, one that will mean at last eternal joy in God’s presence.
This, too, is the basic New Testament meaning of “blessed.” It means an inner peace, an inner bliss, an inner happiness, an inward joy that is not produced nor affected by circumstance. This state of unshakeable well-being is how God desires His children to live.
The word when used in the NT of people speaks of spiritual blessing, the blessing that comes to those who are in God’s kingdom and ruled by God. They have a share in God’s happy condition.
This does not mean that the blessed in God’s kingdom on earth will never know sorrow or will always experience the emotion of happiness. The fullness of their joy awaits the future.
But they have a foretaste of it now, for God shares His joy with His people (John 15:11###;
True blessedness comes only when we are linked with the true God and His blessedness. The whole Bible was given that men might know of this and come to share it.
See other notes on “blessed” at
Luke 11:28 NIV “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
Acts 3:26 NIV “When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
Who are the blessed in this world? The rich? The proud and powerful? Those who are self-confident and feel very good about themselves?
That is the way men think, but God’s thoughts are different from theirs (Isa 55:8-9;
Isaiah 55 v 8,9 NKJV “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”
Luke 16:15 NIV “He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.”
Jesus says the blessed ones are those who are “poor in spirit”. This means those who know their spiritual poverty and are humbled before God because of it.
Why are they the blessed ones? Because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. Repentance is necessary to enter God’s Kingdom
Jesus speaking: “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near”
The poor in spirit are the ones who repent. They do so because they are convicted of their sins, they see the poverty of their spiritual condition, and they know they have no righteousness, no merit to plead before God.
So they humble themselves in the dust before the Lord Jesus and receive Him into their hearts and lives.
This is put first of the blessings because this is the way into God’s kingdom and the only way. And they who are in God’s kingdom, every one of them, have experienced this, and so Jesus calls them blessed.
These blessed ones are not those who think highly of themselves, but those who think lowly of themselves. See Luke 18:10-14.
See the opposite of all this in Luke 18:9; Acts 8:9; Rev 3:17. God puts very great value on this quality of humility
The poor in spirit have true enlightenment – in some measure they see themselves as they really are and God as He really is.
Far from thinking they are God (as some people like to do), they feel themselves to be among the worst of people and worthy of no good thing from God.
Only God’s grace can produce this quality in us. We certainly do not have it by nature. Neither this nor the quality of meekness (v 5) has anything to do with a natural sense of inadequacy, or timidity, or a feeling of inferiority.
John 15 :16 ESV “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.”
