Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the fig tree that the owner cursed because it bore no fruit. On a deeper level, we may understand it to mean that the Lord expects us to bear spiritual fruit.

The fruit of the Spirit is the universal, all-embracing consequence of the Spirit’s presence in us. All people who live in the Spirit should manifest these qualities. The word “fruit” is especially good in this context. 

In Psalm 1 we find this comparison: “They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither.” The Spirit is this stream; when we are planted near it, we blossom.

Well, what are these fruits of the Holy Spirit? In the fifth chapter of Galatians, Paul enumerates them: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” When discerning whether the Spirit is living in you, in determining whether you are walking the right path, these are wonderful criteria.