All are welcome to join us for Sunday Service, August 18 at 10.  There is no Sunday School during the summer, however, there is still coffee and conversation after the service.  Looking forward to you joining us.

Following are a few notes on the upcoming service.

Marlene’s Rev. Notes:

“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 5:22-23

 This week we are looking at kindness as a fruit of the Spirit. In this passage from Galatians 5, Paul places a strong emphasis on flesh and Spirit. Capitalizing the word Spirit reminds us that Paul is referring to the Spirit of Christ; the risen Christ, now present as the Spirit. Paul’s morality is no longer taken from a lawbook, but from an internal Presence. He and we draw power from the indwelling Spirit.

The Spirit is given to safeguard humankind from bondage to the flesh. The word flesh for Paul stood for the raw “physical stuff of human life.” Contrary to those motivated by the flesh, Paul exhorts us to live a Christ-led walk in the Spirit. Walking in the flesh leads to bondage; when we walk in the Spirit, we are free.

Paul admonishes us to live in the Spirit so that the fruit of the Spirit grows in our lives. The virtues or “fruits” fall into three groups. The ones that relate to God are love, joy and peace. Those which speak of how we relate to others are long suffering, kindness, goodness and faith. In relation to ourselves are meekness and temperance.

When we embody these virtues, we reflect a quality of life that is above the law. We do so by welcoming Christ into our lives. In our new self, Christ’s presence is a power for daily cleansing and constant renewal. John 4:14 states that “The water that I give humankind shall be a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” When that stream flows as an inward stream, only then do we truly begin to live.

Rev. Marlene