J.D. Greear on intimacy and fruit of the Spirit
In Jesus Continued, J.D. Greear has a great illustration on intimacy with Jesus and how that impacts the fruit of the Spirit. It is a little longer so I am including it in a post by itself: Think of how a married couple produces physical "fruit." In the moment of conception, they are not thinking about the mechanics of making the child; they are swept up in love for one another! The "fruit" of that is a child. In the same way, when we get swept up in intimate interaction with Jesus in the gospel, the "fruit" that results is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self-control. Spiritual fruit comes not by concentrating on producing those attributes, but by becoming intimately aware of God's full acceptance of us in the gospel.