The Character of Jesus
Heavenly Father,
In you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget you but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
(A Collect for Guidance, Anglican Book of Common Prayer, 2019)
Galatians 5:22-26
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.
The fruit of the Holy Spirit is the very character of Jesus developing in us through the work of the Holy Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”[1]
Chrysostom
Nothing, nothing makes people so lovable as to be formed by the Spirit. And nothing so causes the Spirit to abide in us as the strength of love.[2]
A Prayer of Cyril of Jerusalem
May the very God of all, who spoke by the Holy Spirit through the prophets, who sent the Holy Spirit on the apostles on the day of Pentecost, send the Spirit at this time also; and by him keep us also, imparting his benefit in common to us all, that we may ever render up the fruits of the Holy Spirit, in Christ Jesus our Lord; by whom and with whom, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory to the Father, both now and ever, and forever and ever. Amen.[3]
Holy Spirit, Living Breath of God
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
[1] To Be A Christian: An Anglican Catechism, Crossway Publishers, 2020, Question 89.
[2] Ancient Christian Devotional Year C (InterVarsity Press, 2009, p. 160)
[3] Ancient Christian Devotional Year C (2009, InterVarsity Press, p. 157)
