¹⁶ So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. ¹⁷ The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. ¹⁸ But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

¹⁹ When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, ²¹ envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

²² But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. ²⁵ Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.

Galatians 5:16-26

Dear God, as much as I love Galatians 5:22-23 about the “Fruits of the Spirit” I cannot believe I haven’t seen this image in Bustard’s book yet. But I have to tell you, before even reading anything about the image or studying the image too closely, the title that the artist, Kreg Yingst, gave it has my mind spinning: “Still Life with Fruit.”

Normally, a painting or photograph of a bowl of fruit is called a “still life.” So it would be called a “still life of fruit.” But Yingst subtly changed the of to with and it makes a big difference for me. Instead of the word “fruit” relating to the apple on the table or the painting on the wall behind the man in the picture, the fruit are the nine items Paul lists in Galtians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self control. The “still life” portrayed in the image is the man. Him being an example of a “still life” is due to the Holy Spirit, as referenced by the dove outside the window descending, him studying your Word (presumably a Bible) laid out before him, and the “fruits” of the Spirit exuding from his hands. The man is making himself still and at the same time the Spirit is meeting him and making him even more still.

So that’s my take on the image. Let’s see what Bustard has to say. Bustard’s words:

Followers of God do not pick one fruit over another to exhibit in their lives. For example, a person may want to say they have faithfulness and joy but simply can’t muster forbearance and self-control. For the Christian, such selectiveness is unacceptable. The fruit of the Spirit is a unified process. Over time, a life truly lived in the Spirit will produce the fruit. Speaking of fruit, a title such as the one for this print generally refers to a picture like the one hanging over the man’s left shoulder. But this still life incorporates a man, a Bible, an apple, a cup of coffee, and a descending dove. These symbols (along wit the words protruding from the man’s fingers) suggest that a life of prayer, study, and waiting on the Spirit–that is, a still life–leads to a person becoming transformed into the Fruit that God desires.

So I think I got that one pretty close to the way Bustard saw it. That’s kind of affirming and refreshing. But the truth of the concept is the important thing.

Psalm 46:10 has this important pull quote from you:

“Be still, and know that I am God!
    I will be honored by every nation.
    I will be honored throughout the world.”

In the rest of the psalm, the psalmist(s) point out everything you are, but then he/they give us these words from you and they start with “be still.”

Father, it is hard sometimes for me to simply be still. And when I am still, I’m not really still. It’s a lazy still that uses distraction to check out the way some people use alcohol or drugs. So as I go into this day, give me the vision for the right kind of stillness, and the strength and self-discipline to embrace it. Let my life be a portrait of a “Still Life with Fruit.”

I pray all of this in Jesus and with the Holy Spirit,

Amen