2. The fruit of the Spirit!

3. Galatians 5:16...
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
We are the temple
of the Holy Spirit!

4. Galatians 5:22,23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

5. Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness
The fruits of the Spirit are classified in three different groups.
The first group contains those graces which turn one's thought toward God..
Love, Joy and Peace.
The second group contains those graces that direct our attention to our fellow man
Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness

6. Do you have longsuffering?
Hebrews 10:35… For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:

7. Let’s talk about longsuffering.
Hebrews 6:12… that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Galatians 5:22,23… 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,kindness,goodness,faithfulness,23gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
Let’s talk about longsuffering.

8. LONGSUFFERING. From the Greek: makrothumia
"to be patient, longsuffering, to bear with," lit., "to be long-tempered," is the opposite of short-tempered.
Patiently enduring wrongs or difficulties.
The capacity, quality, or fact of being patient.
These nouns denote the capacity to endure hardship, difficulty, or inconvenience without complaint. Patience emphasizes calmness, self-control, and the willingness or ability to tolerate delay.

9. Patience can make you or brake you.
"Longsuffering is that quality of self-restraint in the face of provocation which does not hastily retaliate or promptly punish. It is the opposite of anger and is associated with mercy, and is used of God." (VINE)
Serious business?
Patience can make you or brake you.

10. He was in the days of Noah.
God has been longsuffering toward man.
He was in the days of Noah.
1 Peter 3:20… who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.

11. He was in His dealings with the
God has been longsuffering toward man.
He was in His dealings with the
nation of Israel.
Nehemiah 9:16-21…16“But they and our fathers acted proudly, hardened their necks, And did not heed Your commandments. 17They refused to obey, And they were not mindful of Your wonders That You did among them. But they hardened their necks, And in their rebellion They appointed a leader To return to their bondage. But You are God, Ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, Abundant in kindness, And did not forsake them. 18“Even when they made a molded calf for themselves, And said, ‘This is your god That brought you up out of Egypt, ’And worked great provocations, 19Yet in Your manifold mercies You did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day, To lead them on the road; Nor the pillar of fire by night, To show them light, And the way they should go. 20You also gave Your good Spirit to instruct them, And did not withhold Your manna from their mouth, And gave them water for their thirst. 21Forty years You sustained them in the wilderness, They lacked nothing; Their clothes did not wear out And their feet did not swell.

12. And He is longsuffering today as well.
God has been longsuffering toward man.
And He is longsuffering today as well.
2 Peter 3:7-9…7But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 8But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

13. 1 Timothy 1:15,16… 15This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. 16However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.
Romans 2:4… 4Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

14. Do we need longsuffering?
The necessity of Longsuffering.
Do we need longsuffering?
We need to have longsuffering is we wish God to be longsuffering toward us!
Mt 18:32-35…“Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33‘Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ 34“And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. 35“So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

15. Colossians 3:12-13…Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
We need to have longsuffering in order to maintain the unity of the Spirit.
Ephesians 4:1-3… 1I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

16. Longsuffering is necessary for teachers and preachers of the Gospel.
2 Timothy 4:2… 2Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
2 Timothy 3:10…10But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance,
2 Ti 2:24-26…24And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, 25in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, 26and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

17. Developing Longsuffering… How?
Through Love.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8… 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8Love never fails.

18. Developing Longsuffering… How?
Through Prayer
Colossians 1:9-11… 9For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;

19. Are you longsuffering?
Matthew 11:29… 29“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Psalm 86:15…"But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth."
Psalm 86:11… "Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth;"

20. Romans 2:4-6…
4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

21. James 5:10,11.
10My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 11Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.

22. Long----suffering do you have any?