Episode Overview

Title: Do You Have Love?
Podcast: Things Unseen with Sinclair B. Ferguson
Host: Ligonier Ministries
Date: February 17, 2026

This episode focuses on the first and foundational fruit of the Spirit: love. Dr. Sinclair B. Ferguson reflects on Paul’s teaching from Galatians 5, the nature and primacy of Christian love, and how love, while simple in its call, is often the most difficult to live out. Through theological insight and personal reflection, Ferguson challenges listeners to move beyond doing "complicated things" well and instead focus on the "simple" and essential command of loving others.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Fruit of the Spirit Divided in Threes

[00:08]

• Ferguson reads Galatians 5, listing the nine fruit of the Spirit: "The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control."
• He observes a pattern: these nine fruit group into three trios—with the first being love, joy, peace.

  "Fruit grows on trees. But we might say in this instance, fruit grows in threes, because these nine fruit of the Spirit seem to divide into three sections." (Sinclair B. Ferguson, 00:21)

Comparing the Lists in Galatians 5 and Romans 5

[01:06]

• Ferguson notes that Paul lists love, joy, and peace together in other writings (notably Romans 5:1-11), but the order changes.
• In Romans, the sequence is peace, joy, love—he suggests this order reflects how, through justification, Christians experience peace, which leads to joy, culminating in the outpouring of God's love.

  "In Romans 5, Paul is talking about the roots of our own Christian experience… But in Galatians, Paul is speaking about the fruit that flows from these roots." (Sinclair B. Ferguson, 01:49)

The Centrality of Love in the Christian Life

[02:18]

• Drawing from John 13:34 and 15:9, Ferguson emphasizes that Jesus commands his followers to love.

  "This is my commandment that you love one another… as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you." (Sinclair B. Ferguson quoting Jesus, John 13:34 & 15:9, 02:30)

• Paul devotes a whole chapter to the supremacy of love in 1 Corinthians 13.
• The Apostle John affirms, "love is from God, and whoever loves with that kind of love has been born of God and knows God."

What Is Christian Love?

[03:12]

• Ferguson contends that Christian love isn't mainly about emotion, but about self-forgetfulness and devotion to others—embodying the likeness of Christ.

  "At the end of the day, it's not emotion so much as forgetting about ourselves and living for others, being like Jesus in that way." (Sinclair B. Ferguson, 03:22)

• He cites the famous list from 1 Corinthians 13—love is patient, kind, not envious or boastful, not arrogant or rude.

The Simplicity and Difficulty of Love

[03:52]

• "None of these things is actually complicated, is it? But the problem is we are desperately complicated by our sin." (Sinclair B. Ferguson, 04:00)
• The Holy Spirit "uncomplicates us," working in us to cultivate true love—characterized by patience, kindness, and self-forgetfulness.

A Striking Historical Example

[04:18]

• Ferguson shares a convicting story about Peter the Venerable’s critique of Bernard of Clairvaux.

  "Bernard, you do all the difficult and complicated things well, but you're failing in the simple thing—you don't love." (Sinclair B. Ferguson, relaying Peter the Venerable, 04:30)

• This comment pierced Ferguson personally, leading to the episode's central question.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "Fruit grows on trees. But we might say in this instance, fruit grows in threes." (00:21)
• "When the Spirit begins to work in us, he uncomplicates us, begins to fill us with love for others and forgetfulness of self." (04:05)
• "Doing the difficult things, but not doing the simple thing well. I wonder if that's true of you." (04:48)

Important Timestamps

• 00:08 — Opening reflection; Galatians 5 and the ‘fruit grows in threes’ concept.
• 01:06 — Comparison of Galatians 5 and Romans 5 order of virtues.
• 02:18 — New Testament emphasis on love; commands from Jesus and teaching from Paul & John.
• 03:12 — Defining love: not emotion, but Christ-like devotion to others per 1 Corinthians 13.
• 03:52 — The problem: sin complicates love; the Spirit brings simplicity.
• 04:18 — Story: Peter the Venerable and Bernard of Clairvaux; personal conviction.
• 04:48 — “Do you have love?” The central challenge to listeners.

Concluding Challenge

Ferguson ends by inviting listeners to honestly assess themselves:

"Are you doing the simple thing? Do you have love?" (Sinclair B. Ferguson, 04:58)

He leaves Christians with the call to receive the Spirit’s work—letting Him “uncomplicate” their hearts so they grow not just in outward religiosity or spiritual achievement, but in the transforming, Christlike love that is the hallmark of a true Christian life.