Dave continued his series on the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) today, looking at the subject of kindness. Kindness is ‘the quality of being warm-hearted, sympathetic, humane’ and although it can be quite difficult to define the word, acts of kindness are always remembered and are a powerful tool in convincing others of the truth of God’s love.
Many acts of kindness are found in the Bible. In the Old Testament, David’s kindness to the crippled Mephibosheth (2 Sam 9:1-13) was in stark contrast to the usual practice of kings who would eliminate all possible rival claims to the throne on their ascension. David wanted to show kindness to Jonathan’s family because of his great love for Jonathan and so he treated Mephibosheth as a son. Jesus showed many acts of kindness: turning water into wine at a wedding, welcoming tax collectors and showing mercy to the woman taken in adultery. When he began writing in the dust, it may have been to take the attention off this woman and give her time to collect herself; His mercy to her is an example of how He did not crush bruised reeds (see John 8:1-11, Matt 12:20). Kindness touches people’s hearts and there are so many creative and powerful ways in which we can be kind. Dorcas, for example, demonstrated kindness in helping the poor (Acts 9:36); as the 2007 film Evan Almighty points out, we can change the world by doing one act of random kindness at a time.
God’s kindness to us means we are brought into a relationship with God Himself through the sacrifice of Jesus (Eph 2:7) and we are urged to get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander and malice and to be kind and compassionate and forgiving (Eph 4:31-32, see also Col 3:12). Kindness is important because it draws people to God’s heart; it reflects what God is like. (William Faber said, ‘Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence, or learning.’)
Kindness reminds us of the grace and mercy shown to us by God. Our willingness to be kind has to be cultivated (it’s not an instinctive trait!), but as we determine to let go of grudges and seek to bless others, we will find that kindness is contagious and God is able to grow this fruit in our lives.