By: Dr. Steven K. Parker
· What is kindness?
· List some examples of kindness you’ve experienced. Why do these examples stick out in your mind?
Hear:
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (Galatians 5:16-26)
Pause:
· If the fruit of the Spirit that Paul lists are a normal part of life when we live in God’s kingdom, what does that say about kindness?
· If we grow in the Spirit, we will grow in kindness, but how do we grow in God’s Spirit in a way that produces kindness?
Reflection:
This week’s living into a kingdom normal, fruit of the Spirit devotional is about a virtue that can be harder to display than it is to understand. Kindness refers to a gentle, gracious type of thoughtfulness that is profitable or practical. It is love displayed in some kind of tangible, helpful way. We experience the kindness of God in so many ways. Every good gift we receive in this life and the next comes from the hand of God. God offers us the gift of salvation and the blessing of His many promises, not because we’re such amazing people, but because He is an amazing God, full of grace, love, and mercy. Because of the kindness we’ve experienced in Christ, God requires us to show kindness to all people. It’s not hard to be kind to people who are kind, pleasant, and easy to be around. It can be quite difficult to show kindness to people who are unkind, rude, and difficult. Yet, that’s the brand of kindness God shows sinful people like us and expects for followers of Jesus to display as a normal part of life in His kingdom. When we experience this brand of kindness and share it, we often find that it softens some of the rough edges of our character.
Throughout this season of pandemic, political fallout, economic uncertainty, racial hatred and animosity, and the many other problems we face, people have been asking, how can I make a difference? That’s probably the number one question I’ve fielded the last few months. When we’re on lockdown and unable to meet face-to-face in the manner in which we’re accustomed, we can begin to feel disconnected and that lack of connection can make us feel like helpless pawns in a chess match that’s in a stalemate. The problems of our world are complex and we can become so mired in the complexity of things that are beyond are control that we can lose sight of the simple ways that we can influence the outcome of our days. In everything we face we can show kindness. We can’t overstate the significance of that virtue in response to the struggles of our world. When we disagree about how to respond to the pandemic and whether or not to wear a facemask, we can show kindness. We can make the decision to engage people who come from different races and backgrounds and get to know them and seek to understand how they look at the world and we can show kindness. We can be more careful about what we post on social media and how we respond to what other people post. What kind of a difference would it make in our home, church, community, country, and world if we made the simple decision to grow in the Spirit of God so that Jesus’ brand of kindness might become the defining part of our story?
As we grow in the Spirit, we will find ourselves living a life that looks more and more like Jesus who shows kindness without concern for whether or not the other person is deserving. When we begin to live with that kind of Spirit-directed kindness we will find it to be more contagious than the Coronavirus, because when we experience kindness, we want to share it. Let’s pray that God might infect the whole world with the kindness of Jesus through us!
If you’d like to hear more about kindness, you can access a recent sermon in our Living Into A Kingdom Normal series by clicking here.
Wonder:
· Why do you think the simple virtue of kindness is so significant?
· What are some practical kindnesses we can show through this pandemic?
Bless:
· Affirm what everyone has shared.
· Pray that God might help us to grow in His Spirit that our lives might more and more be characterized by kindness.
Pray together:
“Lord, we are grateful for the many kindnesses you have shown us. You never stop to ask if we are worthy of your grace, but lavish it upon the just and unjust alike. Help us to grow in that brand of kindness that you have shown us time and again through Jesus. In the midst of the frustrating uncertainty of this pandemic, help us to express kindness toward everyone you put in our path. Remind us of the meaningful acts of kindness we’ve experienced from different people over the years and help us to make similar investments of kindness in the lives of others. In the face of all the hate, frustration, and anger that we experience on a daily basis, help us to sow kindness the Jesus way. In the kind Spirit of Jesus we pray, Amen.”
We hope that you will join us online Sunday at 9:30 AM in Spanish and at 11:00 AM in English. We also have various Zoom Bible Studies and Sunday School classes that you can plug into; call the church office at 956-968-9585 or message us on Facebook for more information about those. May God produce His kindness in us!