For God Alone: Kindness Matters
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
(Galatians 5:22-23)
Recently, our son and I were driving and saw a sticker attached to the gas cover of the car next to us at a stop light. The sticker read: KINDNESS MATTERS.
Years ago, we sang a song based on Proverbs 17:17 to children in Sunday School and Vacation Bible School, A Friend Loveth at All Times.
A friend loveth at all times, when things are good or bad;
A friend loveth at all times, rejoiceth when we’re glad.
A friend helpeth in trouble, a friend is always true;
A friend loveth at all times, a friend I’ll be to you!
Margaret Hammon
Songs for Children, Broadman Press, 1950
The Scriptures are chock full of verses regarding kindness:
Love is patient and kind … (1 Corinthians 13:4a)
A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.
(Proverbs 11:17)
Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. (Romans 11:22)
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)
As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. (2 Thessalonians 3:13)
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)
So whatever you wish that others would do to you,
do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:12)
The Golden Rule from the Sermon on the Mount
Like most loving parents, Mary and I used every opportunity of time and resource to creatively teach our two children the values we espouse. On most days, breakfast and dinner, and occasionally lunch as well, offered a particularly poignant opportunity to instructively share those values, laying a foundation that Stephen and Anna might love God, and love others as themselves. (Matthew 22:37-40). We prayed before every meal, and read the Bible together at least once each day. We ended most days reading scriptures, chapters of books (C. S. Lewis, and Tolkien, among others), told stories, and, of course, prayed. Mary and I are blessed with a deep and abiding joy seeing our children, now three with the addition of our daughter-in-law, walk their respective pathways as maturing followers of Jesus. To God alone be all the glory!
We also taught our son and daughter to memorize the Scriptures, including the Fruit of the Spirit as listed in Galatians 5:22-23. From time to time, unannounced, I would begin with: But the fruit of the Spirit is love … then, the person sitting to my left would say - joy, and around the table the four of us would continue reciting each one of all nine Fruit of the Spirit. The last person would say: Against such things there is no law. Thus we taught our son and daughter to know, understand, and embrace these nine virtues from the pen of the Apostle Paul, and the heart of God.
Kindness is the fifth fruit in Paul’s list (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness …). Being kind to others is not difficult, is it? Well… I suppose most people - quite likely, every human being has suffered from an unkind word or deed from another person. Some of the deepest hurts come from persons we were taught to respect, even supposedly well-discipled Christians. One such person hurt me so deeply that it was years before I could say: I forgive you.
One day, a kind friend, old enough to be my father, said that forgiving this person was not for that person's good, but for mine. My wise friend said that to refrain from forgiving this individual was damaging me and those I love most. My friend prayed with me, and assured me of his continued prayers.
During that same season, God’s Spirit reminded me of the words of Jesus who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (For thine win the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.)*
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Matthew 6:9-15)
Each time our church met for corporate worship, we observed the Lord’s Table. Additionally, as part of our liturgy, we recited the Lord’s Prayer following our time of confession, both general and private. Every time those words of Jesus came over my lips - every single time - “and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” - God’s Spirit reminded me that I was required to forgive this person. Yes, you read correctly: required. According to Jesus, not to forgive this person's wrongdoing would result in my Father withholding His gracious forgiveness from me.
In time, I was able to forgive that person. I confess that the hurt still surfaces from time to time. Thankfully, God’s Spirit has not failed to remind me of His unfailing love and gracious forgiveness extended to all people, even to those who hurt us deeply.
O soul are you weary and troubled, no light in the darkness you see;
There’s light for a look at the Savior, and life more abundant and free.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strongly dim, in the light of His glory and grace.
Helen Howarth Lemmel, 1863-1961
Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, Sovereign Grace
And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:28-31)
Extending kindness to another soul costs nothing, but produces lasting dividends of freedom, grace, and joy. So, since kindness really does matter, let’s all strive to show kindness to one another.
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 15:5-6)
*The Lord’s Prayer, Alfred Malotte
© Paul R. Magyar, DMA, 2020
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