Gal. 5:22-23 says, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

When you read the verse above, did it register as plural or singular? When you read the phrase “fruit of the Spirit, did you think of more than one when you read the list that followed?

The Greek word for “fruit” is “karpos,” and it is in the singular. Even though there is a list of 9 graces, they are a unit of 1; and, they are already yours through the presence of the Spirit of God.

According to 1 John 4:8 and John 14:23, God is love, and His love is present within His children. With this in mind, think of this analogy: Love is the tree and these 9 graces are the fruit that it produces.

This may be what Paul had in mind when he said:

“It is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” The fruit of the Spirit is the result of God’s divine power at work in you, and the words of Peter support my statement: “May grace and peace be yours in abundance through full knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord! His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the full knowledge of the one who called us by His own glory and excellence. Through these He has given us His precious and wonderful promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, seeing that you have escaped the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires (2 Peter 1:2-4).”

When you put the words of Peter under a microscope, you can see:

• God’s grace and peace is available to you—in abundance!
• Everything you need for life and godliness is already at work in you and is accomplished not by your strength but by His divine power.
• God does not make mistakes, and He has called you by His own glory and excellence.
• God has given you the gift of His precious and wonderful promises—claim them!

9 in 1: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; these are the fruit of the Spirit. Is this fruit seen in you?