The best gifts are not material but spiritual, not temporal, but eternal, and not earthly, and not earthly, but heavenly.

In the book of Ephesians, we discover a rich list of what God has given to his children.

Let's join Scott Pauley now as we open this portion of scripture

and take inventory of all spiritual blessings that are ours in Christ.

What would you say is the greatest of the spiritual blessings that God has given us?

Let me say the phrase again and emphasize a certain part of the word, see if this helps, all spiritual blessings. I believe the greatest spiritual blessing that God gives

to his children is the Holy Spirit. Literally, God doesn't just give us things. God gives us himself.

That's who the Holy Spirit is. The third part of the Trinity, God with us in this age of the spirit, in this church age.

And so we've come today in our walk through the book of Ephesians to the opening verses of

Ephesians chapter number five. In fact, the first 17 verses really all go together because

they describe for us life in the spirit, a life of holiness.

Let me begin with one verse.

It is actually the verse that is found in parentheses.

Aren't you glad that even God's parentheses are inspired?

It's Ephesians chapter 5 in verse number 9.

It says, for the fruit of the spirit is in all goodness and righteousness

and truth. What a verse. Let me read it again. For the fruit of the spirit is in all goodness

and righteousness and truth. He's talking about what the Holy Spirit produces in our life.

Now, you'll remember that in the previous book, in the book of Galatians chapter number

five, God actually defines what the fruit of the spirit is. Do you remember? Galatians 5

verse 22, but the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness,

temperance against such, there is no law. That's what the fruit of the spirit is. But when you come to

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