Signs that follow a believer

In reading Matthew 7:16, which I paraphrase here : 'by their fruits you will know them', I looked at the context in which it was written as seen in the preceding verse 16 which outlines a warning against false prophets.
The truth is that 'signs' follow every human being. The signs are an expression of personality, character, belief system and choices made. It is therefore fair to conclude certain things based on the 'signs' someone exhibits. I wonder how this relates to 'judging people' , and if I could run the risk of judging and pigeon holing people when I look at their 'signs'.
I know that what our Saviour did was to acknowledge the person's short comings while at the same time speaking an alternative path into their lives bundled in His forgiveness. To be a Christian is to be Christ-like so I must emulate Christ's behaviours towards ' negative signs' and at the same time beware of false prophets.
The 'signs' that I would , (so help me God ) have evident in my life are described in
Galatians 5:22 New Living Translation (NLT) . This is no easy task, and in my walk I have found that i display some of these signs some of the time. I think it is impossible to display them all of the time as long as I am in this earth suit, and living in a fallen world. I am not talking about passing the buck here, but being honest and forthright enough to acknowledge that ' it ain't easy!'

The great thing is that I can keep coming back, to the source of all the power in heaven and on earth, my creator, my manufacturer has given me access to His power, but I must be in covenant with Him in the first place. It is like a club which has rules that govern membership, and I cannot draw down on benefits without following the cardinal rule of being obedient. Easier said than done, right?

Let's take a look at Galatians 5: 22 

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

I heard from a bible teacher many years back, that this scripture is often slightly misquoted in its use and understanding . I used to think of this list as 'different fruits' almost like a menu list to draw down from but the bible teacher pointed out that it is 'one fruit' and that the list are aspects of it. This is consistent with the concept of multifaceted personality of God, who is one.

The most important thing is that it is evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the essence of God in Christ, and God in the life of a believer. To me Galatians 5:22 is essentially 'the great commission'. 


FURTHER THOUGHTS
The opportunity to develop, strengthen and use this list of the believer's attributes as seen in the fruit of the spirit, present themselves in every sphere of my life, at home, at work, driving my car, at the hair salon,at church, at fellowship, in all my relationships with friends , family, colleagues and people I meet for the briefest moments. What this means in practical terms is that I will be exposed to someone or situations which will get on my last nerve, try my patience until I feel I cannot bear it any longer. It is very uncomfortable, and one might feel inclined to find every means to get even. However, through this kind of experience, under God, patience is being developed.

Patience leads to perseverance which will strengthen your spiritual muscles like an awesome six pack! 

I have learnt that I must not always listen to my feelings. Feelings have their role and are an important aspect of our human experience, but feelings are not Christians! 

So, the message I have received through various trying times, applying the meat of what I've outlined here, is that :

• 1) It is all good
• 2) All the hard knocks of life are defining moments of opportunity