Blog
Are You Spiritually Cooperative? How do you know?
- October 27, 2022
- Posted by: Marcel Sanchez
- Category: Developing Spiritual Disciplines
Do you consider yourself to be a cooperative person in matters of family, work, or other relationships? Would those who know you best agree? Cooperation is important. Without it, the most talented teams lose championships. A lack of cooperation in an activity, sport or project is evident to all, but so is full and unreserved cooperation.
In the spiritual world, cooperation is essential to your spiritual character, health, and productivity.
By yourself, you can do nothing spiritually productive. Only through Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit, can you produce the qualities of a life that is satisfied in God’s presence.
Spiritual Fruit
Let’s add a tenth component to the areas entrusted to us by God to protect, manage, and multiply for His eternal purposes and glory: spiritual fruit.
- Treasures are the financial means entrusted to you by God to manage wisely for His purposes.
- Time is the limited window of opportunity provided to work for the purposes of the owner—God.
- Abilities are the God-given capacity and power to do something well.
- Talents are extraordinary natural abilities given to you by God and originating from birth.
- Skills are learned abilities developed and mastered over time.
- Training matters. To achieve mastery, your disposition must be that of a student.
- Personality is how God has wired you; it’s the invisible you made visible.
- God’s Word is the will of God for your life. Everything you need to be an effective manager and live your life with purpose is written in the Bible.
- Inner Life is the immaterial part of you—consisting of your daily spiritual relationship with Jesus. Your inner life is your spiritual life.
- Spiritual fruit is the product an abiding life in Jesus Christ. It’s the internal and external evidence of spiritual alignment as you live in cooperation with the Holy Spirit.
Let’s circle back to our metaphor of the vineyard. As branches, you can do nothing apart from the vine. And nothing means, nothing.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5
So, when it comes to producing spiritual fruit, this principle certainly applies to your life. You will only produce lasting spiritual fruit when you abide in Christ and depend on the power of God’s Spirit to make changes in your life and more specifically, in your character.
This is the essence of spiritual cooperation.
“Spiritual fruit is the product an abiding life in Jesus Christ. It’s the internal and external evidence of spiritual alignment as you live in cooperation with the Holy Spirit.
The Apostle Paul identifies the internal and external product—spiritual fruit—of your cooperation with God’s Spirit. We’ve mentioned other kinds of spiritual fruit already. Paul’s list here is not meant to be exhaustive, but descriptive of God’s continuous work in you.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 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 keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” – Galatians 5:22-26
But the fruit of the Spirit is…
Love is an action not a feeling. Your love for God and others, is measured by the daily sacrifices you make to serve them. Love is characterized by sacrifice, selflessness, humility, generosity, compassion, mercy, and forgiveness. Love willingly serves to strengthen others.
Joy is an internal contentment that produces laughter, encouragement, singing, worship, praise, confidence in God’s power, and energy to live for God’s glory. You can’t hide your joy; conversely, you can’t hide when joy is not present in your life.
Peace is internal harmony with God and with others. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Peace removes all worry; it’s not shaken by circumstances. As God’s peace flows through your life, you can truly find rest in your soul.
Patience is about controlled endurance over time. It keeps you centered on following God’s will rather than being spiritually derailed. God’s Spirit produces the capacity for you to remain calm—and not freak out—during extremely difficult experiences. Patience trusts in God to work things out—in His perfect time—as you continue to abide in Christ’s presence.
Kindness is about being useful, gracious, good-willed, and helpful to others. It means providing practical help in a way that is relevant to someone. When God’s kindness flows through your life, you make things better for others. Kindness is others centered.
Goodness is excellent moral character. It means you display integrity internally—in your heart—and externally—with your words and actions. You can see goodness revealed through pure motives in action. There’s no hidden agenda, no deceit, or self-serving motive.
Faithfulness is a persuasive confidence of trust in God. It’s when you instinctively believe God, obey what He says in His Word, and become spiritually steadfast. It’s a contagious confidence that others develop because of watching your relationship with Jesus grow and thrive.
Gentleness is a posture of quiet, humble strength. It’s when you reign in and control the power at your disposal. It’s the God-given capacity to channel your strength for God’s purposes as He leads you to do so. When gentleness is present, you will overflow in humility.
Self-control is the equivalent of mastering a skill. In the spiritual world, it’s the skill of saying “no” to the desires and appetites of your flesh that war against God’s Spirit. It’s when—by God’s Spirit—you identify, control, and stop carnal desires before they increase in strength.
Why does it matter?
Spiritual cooperation matters because the impact you have on others matters. When we don’t cooperate with God, the people we seek to serve become obstacles in our work. We see people through an earthly lens. We begin to divide people into political, social, economic or educational groups. We take sides and defend our positions more than look for ways to love and serve others.
Spiritual cooperation keeps you focused on what matters most to God—His divine mission to glorify Jesus Christ through your life and reach people that are far from Him. When you cooperate with God’s Spirit, you live for God’s glory and you focus on knowing Christ and making Him known to others.
When you abide in Christ, you live and walk in the Spirit. As a result, God will produce the fruit of the Spirit in and through your life. Sin can totally mess up your spiritual cooperation. But notice the strong language Paul used to highlight the importance of having the right attitude towards sinful desires.
“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 keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” – Galatians 5:24-26
In Christ, the old you is dead and buried. Whatever sinful attitudes and behaviors marked your life before knowing Christ, should no longer be present in your life. Don’t entertain the sinful desires of your flesh. By God’s Spirit, you can control every sinful desire. You “have crucified the flesh” already, so, let these desires die once and for all.
You can now fully cooperate with God’s Spirit without the power of sin controlling your life. That’s worth celebrating!
Summary
To cooperate with God’s Spirit, your life needs to center—without reservations—on Jesus Christ. He is your Savior, and He is your daily sustenance for spiritual satisfaction, joy, and purpose.
The Holy Spirit will always lead you back to Jesus and His eternal words. Don’t get derailed by your sinful desires along the way. Don’t go back. Allow God’s Spirit to lead you forward to experience all that God has for your life.
Remember, spiritual fruit is the product of an abiding life. It is the evidence of life in the Spirit.
Open your heart today to all that God has for you in Christ. Seek the Lord with all your heart. Being a spiritual person is not the goal. The goal is to know the person of Jesus Christ and make Him known to others.
Spiritual fruit is the product of an abiding life. It is the evidence of life in the Spirit.
Marcel Sanchez, Imagine Coaching Academy Tweet
Invest in Yourself
Looking for a flexible and self-directed way to grow as a leader and thrive in life?
That’s one of the main reasons I created Imagine Coaching Academy. Get professional coaching and online training courses to accelerate your soft skills, equip your teams, and grow your relationships.
Speaking of growing your relationships, click here to sign up for our complimentary online marriage training, “Build a Stronger Marriage—With Zero Drama—in Only 30-Minutes Per Week.”
Strengthen Others
If you found this article helpful, consider posting it on social media or sharing it with fellow team members, peers, and clients.