God pours out his love for his people in this passage from Isaiah, and says just how far he is willing to go to maintain a close relationship with them.
The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, and it grow in us through the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and lives. It is not a collection of fruits, but rather part of one larger fruit, like the segments of an orange rather than a bunch of grapes. Pastor Ryan gives a deep dive into these segments in this series from the winter of 2025.
“Heavenly Father, I pray that this day I may live in your presence and please you more and more.
Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.
Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
God is Love, and we are called to love each other — but not just as a task that we have to do. Love, as part of the Fruit of the Spirit, is an outcome of the Spirit dwelling within us, a way we reflect the image of God to the world. Our love for others gives evidence to our claim to have Jesus in our lives, as well as other things.
You can also download Pastor Ryan’s sermon notes (not a transcript). During the sermon he demonstrated a silly camp chant called “My Name is Bill”. Here is a similar one called “My Name is Joe”.
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The thief who was crucified next to Jesus was a criminal, a villain. Yet through the loving sacrifice of Jesus, the hero, he was not condemned but given new life. (sermon by John McGregor)
Pastor Ryan’s sermon “Before the Throne” invites us to imagine what it will be like to come before the Throne of God, based on the imagery in the books of Isaiah and Revelation.
Pastor Ryan’s sermon “Love Begins at Home” teaches that loving one another, within the family of God, is the first thing that must happen before anything beyond that can be fully and truly realized. Also, since our love for others comes from our love for and in Christ, we must fill ourselves with God’s love above all.
The CBWC Heartland “Theology of the Ordinary” podcasts include a series by Ed Neufeld called “Not Improving On Our Instructions“. It deals with this topic of loving each other as Jesus’s primary instruction to the church.
Pastor Ryan’s sermon “What Governs the Grey” looks at how we can navigate differences in the church about which things are right and wrong for believers to participate in.