Kindness as a fruit of the Spirit is not good deeds. Rooted in understanding God’s kindness, it’s intentionally acting to benefit others.
Key Points
- Kindness is an active choice to bring good to others despite their faults or actions towards us.
- Biblical kindness is grounded in understanding God’s kindness toward us.
- God’s kindness is both a present reality and a future hope.
- Kindness can be costly.
- Kindness as a fruit of the Spirit is willing to pay the price for being kind.
- Kindness may make others uncomfortable because it’s based on truth.
- Passages: Titus 3:1-7; Ephesians 2:4-10; Romans 11:17-22; Luke 6:35; Luke 7:39-47; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; Ephesians 4:31-32.
- Greek word: chréstotés, G5544
Summary
Kindness as a fruit of the Spirit is working to accomplish a good result for someone else despite their flaws and regardless of whether they deserve it or appreciate it because we understand the kindness of God.
- Kindness is not a feeling but an active choice to bring good to others despite their faults or actions towards us.
- Titus 3:1–7 illustrates God’s kindness and mercy towards us despite our sinfulness.
- God shows us kindness when we don’t deserve it, We are called to do likewise with others.
- God’s kindness is both a present reality and a future hope (Ephesians 2:4–10).
- Kindness can be costly, inconvenient, or go unnoticed.
- Understanding God’s kindness towards us is the basis for us showing genuine kindness to others.
- Kindness is proactive. It actively works for someone else’s benefit rather than simply refraining from negative responses.
- True moral transformation comes through learning truth via the Holy Spirit which changes our worldview fundamentally affecting our behavior towards others.
Please listen to the podcast for more detail and explanation.
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Previous: Fruit of the Spirit: Patience
Podcast Series Page: Fruit of the Spirit
Photo by Bill Williams on Unsplash
Season 24, episode 07