I had the opportunity back in college, to visit several different denominations during their worship. I had a wonderful time worshipping with each of them, but one in particular really stuck out to me. It was different than I was used to, but even more, it raised a question I had never considered before. Did I have the Holy Spirit in my life? Is it even possible to know if I had the Spirit? And if I could know, what would be the proof?

God reveals the difference between the life led by the Spirit and the life void of the Spirit. Notice what was told to Saul as he was anointed king, “Then the Spirit of the LORD will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man” (1 Samuel 10:6). Here is the foundation of a Spirit-filled life: you will be changed. When the Holy Spirit comes into your life, it will never be the same.

Of course, some might argue that the prophesying was the proof. What about Jesus’ warning that there would be false prophets in the last days? Prophesying, by itself, could not be proof if there will be both true and false prophets. Instead, like we just read in 1 Samuel, Jesus said in Matthew 7:15–18 that there would be a difference in the fruit. The proof of a tree is in its fruit; the proof of the Spirit is also in its fruit.

Image by Maja Petric

So what does this different fruit look like? Galatians 5:19–21 shows us a glimpse of our natural fruit (it’s not pretty). Unfortunately, what this passage describes is the natural growth from a life of sin. It is the result of an unchanged life.

The Fruit of the Spirit

We will not follow both our own desires and instincts if the Spirit’s leading. The two desire opposite things—they are in conflict with each other (Galatians 5:17). So when God sends His Spirit into your life, a change begins, which means different fruit. Instead of the fruit of our sinful nature, we now see new fruit in our lives:

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

Notice, these are all about character. They cannot be faked. In addition, they all have something in common: they are not conditional. Let me explain.

The first fruit mentioned is love. The love from the world says, I will love you if you love me back, or if you are lovable, or if you give me a reason to love you. But this is agape love—love without conditions. We don’t have to be loved back or have a reason. As the Spirit dwells in us we will love. Period.

Then there is joy. Joy is not happiness—happiness varies with the circumstances. Isaiah 58:14 says that we find our joy in the Lord. Therefore, this joy is not based on what is going on around us, it is based on the presence of the Spirit.

Peace. The Greek word defines this as “freedom from anxiety and inner turmoil.” We may find a type of peace by going to a special solitary place away from all the turmoil. But this peace is freedom from inner turmoil and anxiety—regardless of what is going on around you!

Patience. Sometimes we credit ourselves as patient because we refrain from jumping lines at the supermarket. While this is a good start, notice it’s definition: “emotional calm in the face of provocation or misfortune without complaint or irritation.” Once again, this is not simply being patient when the conditions are right.

These are just a few examples, I could continue with kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Like each of the others before, the idea behind them is that they are present in the person’s life regardless of the outside conditions.

These are the Fruit of the Spirit: character traits that do not depend on circumstances. These are the real proof of the Spirit in your life.

A Changed Life

The proof of God’s Spirit in your life has never been one of the gifts, or some extravagant show. The proof of God’s Spirit is a changed life. When the Spirit is at work in your life you will not remain who you used to be. You’ll find yourself more loving, more joyful, more patient, more kind. You’ll tend to be more generous and faithful. You’ll becoming more gentle and have more self control.

Frankly, if you are the same now as you were before you met Christ, then the Spirit hasn’t been allowed to work in your life. While it is true that God accepts us where we are and how we are, He will never leave us as He finds us! This is the work of sanctification—the process of being made back into His image.

We can be sure that if the Spirit of God is in us, we will be changed. We will be changed to be more like Jesus. Do you want to know if the Spirit is in your life? Look for His fruit. That is the proof. It can also be a picture of your future.