Galatians 5:22-23 Meaning

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23 (ASV)

Paul lists nine qualities and calls them fruit, and the word he chose carries the whole point. Fruit is what grows on a healthy tree, drawn up out of the life already in it. These qualities ripen in you because the Spirit is at work, the way fruit comes from the tree rather than from the branch straining for it.

Right before this, Paul holds the fruit up against the works of the flesh. What he is getting at is that a changed life comes from what the Spirit grows in a person over time, and a tighter grip on the rules was never going to produce it.

So if you are after more love or patience or self-control, the verse tells you where it grows from. The Spirit does the growing, and your part is to stay close to God while He brings the fruit up in its own time.