- Evidence of God’s Holy Spirit
The only reliable evidence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a person is evidence of the ‘Fruit of the Spirit’. The 9 fruits of the Spirit are as described here in [Galations 5:22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control…………
- By Their Fruit You Will Recognize Them
Jesus said everything must bear fruit of its own kind [Luke 14:43] 43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”. And in Matthew 7:20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
The Nine Fruits of the Spirit
- The Fruit is the Proof.
So to see the evidence of the Holy Spirit in the life of someone, you look for the fruit of their life. If they love their fellows; if they have joy in the Lord; if there is peace in their life; if they are patient, kind, gentle, faithful, and so on, then you can believe that they indeed are led by the Holy Spirit of God.
- Words are Not Enough
It doesn’t matter what a person says about themselves, how plausible they may sound, what documents or certificates they might show, or what others may tell you or believe about them, the only real evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit of God is the way they behave!
- Prayerful Consideration
If you need to discern the evidence of the Holy Spirit in someone, then use the same methods as described in How To Preach, take it to the Lord in prayer!
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[...] them]. So if the visible fruit in the life of the person you are listening to are the fruits of Love, Joy, Peace, etc, of the Spirit, described in Galations, then you can be sure that the Spirit of God is directing that [...]
How true-how many times have we seen a pastor/preacher who says one thing but acts in a totally different manner. These are the hypocrites that Jesus Christ warns us about. Remaining Christian in truly stressful/trying situations is what I strive for. And it’s difficult, but necessary.
@SurfinGhost
You said; “Remaining Christian in truly stressful/trying situations”
That’s the one that gets me, I catch myself thinking nasty thoughts when someone cuts me off in traffic, for instance; and then remember, “Hey, that is another child of God you are being nasty to here”. Bad Fruit! It is very humbling to find how easy it is to react the wrong way!
Rhys´s last blog ..How To Preach The Gospel