The Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness

“Be kind and compassionate to one another” (Eph. 4:32, MEV)

 

The kindness that comes as a fruit of the Spirit is revealed in the life of Jesus in His darkest hour of trial. When Judas and the soldiers came to the garden to take Jesus, Peter used his sword to wound the ear of the servant of the High Priest. This man was an enemy of Jesus. But Jesus touched his ear and healed him. Most of us find it easy to be kind to our friends and loved ones, but Jesus was kind to His enemies. Think of Jesus at the table with Judas, knowing that Judas had betrayed Him for 30 pieces of silver. What might some of us have said to him? Something along the lines of “after all I’ve done for you …” But Jesus never uttered one word of reproach.

Natural man sees kindness as protecting a weaker person from pain, pressure, and penalty. It often means overlooking the open sin or lawlessness of a fellow human being because it might be unkind to make an issue over something embarrassing. But this human tendency is not true kindness in the spiritual sense—it is simply human compassion.

God is kind, yet God allows man—Christian and non-Christian alike—to experience pain, penalty, and even death. But He shows His kindness during these sufferings even if He does not remove them. His greatest act of kindness was sending His Son so that we did not need to die as a consequence of our own sins. God shows “the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:7, MEV).

God’s kindness, then, is a concern for our spiritual welfare as well as a concern for our physical well-being. The greatest kindness we can show our fellowmen is to bring them an opportunity to meet with their Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Paul uses the word chrestotes 10 times in his epistles, but only in Galatians 5:22—regarding the fruit of the Spirit—is it translated gentleness. All other nine times it is translated kindness (2 Cor. 6:6, Eph. 2:7, Col. 3:12, Titus 3:4) or goodness (Rom. 2:4 and 3 times in Rom. 11:22), or good (Rom. 3:12). Yet Paul clearly intended something other than goodness in in Gal. 5:22, for the very next word listed as a fruit is agathosune which in each of its four New Testament appearances is translated goodness. The most common occurrence of the translation of Paul’s use of chrestotes is kindness.

Of all the fruit of the Spirit, kindness is perhaps the most familiar. This virtue is healing, compassionate, and merciful to others. Kindness is usually associated with mercy. It is not possible to be kind without being merciful. And to be merciful is to be kind. It implies a deep concern for others. Paul admonishes us to kindness in Eph. 4:32: “Be kind and compassionate to one another.”

Spirit-prompted kindness is the disposition to overlook and forgive personal injuries. Instead of vindicating ourselves or sticking up for our own rights, we are told “So embrace, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, a spirit of mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, and longsuffering” (Col. 3:12, MEV). In doing so, we are following Jesus, who asked us to “learn from Me” (Matt. 11:29, MEV).

Kindness may cost a great deal. It is more than pretending concern for others; it is in fact getting involved with the personal sorrows and pains of other lives to the point where it may cost us serious inconvenience. The truly kind people forget their own personal preferences in order to offer help to another person. The truly kind person tries to make the world a better and brighter place for those with pain. Our Father shows us this same kindness—His utterly merciful, compassionate, self-giving life is our example.

The command to be kind is not merely a general encouragement to treat our fellowman better. The world is in need of kindness, of course, but the fruit of the Spirit refers to a kindness beyond man’s greatest capacity on his own. Only with the work of the Holy Spirit can we produce this fruit. It is a kindness both unconscious and spontaneous. We won’t even have to think about it. When the Spirit dwells within us in His fullness, the children of God are moved by an impulsive kindness. As compassion is the opposite of self-pity, so true kindness is the opposite of self-love and pride.

PR