Fruitful 8: Faithfulness
The 'faithfulness' in Galatians 5 isn't about our relationship with God, but rather our relationships with one another.
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Video notes
- Greek word pistis can mean believing in something/one (have faith in God) or a set of beliefs (the Christian faith)
- But here it means being trustworthy or dependable
- Whole of salvation story hangs on the faithfulness of God. He keeps his promises at ‘just the right time’
- Our natural position is to be self-serving and not worry about letting others down. But the Spirit changes us
- Although this could mean how we relate to God, primary meaning is horizontal – how we relate to others
- Being faithful means being someone others can rely on
- Neglected part of the fruit today for believers and for leaders
- We can write off faithlessness as an enduring trait, whereas it is actually quenching the Spirit
- What makes us lack faithfulness? It may be pride or selfishness.
- Either way we need the filling of the Spirit
Questions to think about
- How would others describe your reliability? If you are part of a leadership team, how would members of the church describe you collectively?
- What sins prohibit the exercise of faithfulness?
- How can we make sure we don’t take too much on and end up letting people down? What actions should we take when we can see things coming that will make faithfulness hard?
Prayer ideas
- Rejoice in the faithfulness of God and the way that all his promises are Yes! and Amen! in Christ Jesus.
- Confess situations where you have let people down (be specific if you can). Resolve before God to talk to those you may have hurt as a result
- Ask for the Spirit to fill you to help you plan your life and ministry well and have the God-given resolve to stick to your word
Further passages to reflect on
Use a favourite psalm that describes God’s faithfulness, e.g. Psalm 91
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