The Fruit of the Spirit Is Faithfulness: The One Quality All Pastors Need

Continuing his list of the fruit of the Spirit, Paul writes, “The fruit of the Spirit is … faithfulness” (Gal. 5:22). What is faithfulness? Faithfulness means constancy, loyalty, keeping one’s word. It means being someone you can depend on. Think of a faithful friend. A faithful messenger. A faithful husband. How can pastors exemplify faithfulness in ministry? And how can we do so not in our own strength but by the supernatural enablement of the Holy Spirit?

Our Faithful God

Just like we are to set the example for the people in our church as Christian leaders, so God is exhibiting the characteristic of faithfulness toward us. The most poignant example of God’s faithfulness is his continual, unwavering commitment to his covenants. God’s covenant faithfulness finds its ultimate expression in Christ: “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him” (2 Cor. 1:20).

Amid all his grief and lament, the prophet Jeremiah celebrated the faithfulness of God: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22–23). It is so comforting to know that even “if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself” (2 Tim. 2:13). Faithfulness is who God is; it is an integral part of his character: “God is faithful” (1 Cor. 1:9; 10:13).

Faithful Men

As Paul was nearing the end of his life, he urged Timothy, his beloved son in the faith, “You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2). As a matter of stewardship, God wants us to invest strategically in those who are dependable and can be counted on to continue God’s mission. Who are you mentoring? Where are your faithful men?

Before God can do a work through us, he first must do a work in us. Like Peter, we must learn the painful but valuable lesson that we cannot serve God in our own strength. Peter told Jesus he was ready to lay down his life for him but then denied him three times. Later, he tried to help Jesus resist arrest by drawing his sword and cutting off the ear of the high priest’s servant. Raw courage, spiritual zeal, noble intentions—none of these attributes suffices. Faithful men are men who are desperate and broken, knowing that without Christ, they can do nothing (John 15:5).

Faithfulness and Faith

The Greek word for “faithfulness” is actually the same as the one for “faith,” pistis. This suggests that true faithfulness is fueled by faith in our all-sufficient, all-knowing, all-powerful God who enables us to be faithful. As we trust in him—not ourselves!—we will increasingly become faithful. Thus growth in faithfulness is a process.

As Jesus taught in his stewardship parables, the way to get started is by being honest and responsible in whatever it is God has already entrusted to us, no matter how small or insignificant it may seem: “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much” (Luke 16:10). This tests our integrity. We need to be scrupulous in pursuing faithfulness in our personal lives, our relationships, and our ministry, even in “very little” things.

When Paul told Timothy to invest strategically in others who could be counted on to continue his legacy, he didn’t tell him to look for good preachers, charismatic leaders, or men with a large social media following. He told him to look for men he could trust. In every generation, such men are not easy to find.

Faithfulness a Fruit of the Spirit

The fact that faithfulness occurs in a list of the fruit of the Spirit is highly significant. We tend to think of faithfulness as a human attribute. Yet, ultimately, Paul tells us, faithfulness is Spirit-wrought. None of us is naturally always faithful. Our confidence cannot be in ourselves. Despairing of ourselves, we need to look to the Spirit, humbly and longingly, to produce in us what we cannot produce ourselves: the kind of faithfulness that God displayed when he kept his covenants. God, and he alone, is always faithful. As we look at the cross, we find redemption and forgiveness, and then, as those whom the Spirit has regenerated, we can embark on our lifelong quest toward humble, godly faithfulness.

Pastoral Implications

Pastors, like the apostles, you are “servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” As Paul writes, “Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful” (1 Cor. 4:1–2). God has entrusted you with the gospel (1 Thess. 2:4). The one quintessential quality he desires in you is faithfulness, in both your character and your ministry.

In addition, mentor faithful men who can carry on your ministry when you have run your course. May you and I strongly desire to hear God say to us on the day when he will evaluate the quality of our work, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master” (Matt. 25:21, 23).

Note: This post originally appeared on the Focused Pastor website.