All of the Fruits of the Spirit culminate in the final two, Gentleness and Self-Control. The reason God wants us to grow fruits in our lives is to express Him. As we walk in the Spirit and others observe our behavior, they should see a gentle, self-controlled person. Even in today’s world, these are characteristics that attract souls to the Gospel of Christ and those souls will one day live with us in eternity. The most humble and self-controlled man to ever walk the face of this planet was Jesus of Nazareth. The best example of both gentleness and self-control are seen by us as we view Jesus on the Cross. Gentleness is simply power under control and Jesus could have called down legions of angels for assistance. Rather, He used His amazing power to save us by remaining on the Cross and thereby paying our price for our sins. To accomplish this, Jesus exercised the most amazing feat of self-control by not using His Omnipotence to crush his oppressors. Believe it or not, God wants us to copy Him and Ephesians 5:1 says this explicitly – “Therefore be imitators of God”.
First Southern Baptist Church of Yucca, AZ