Kindness

Last time I wrote, I focused on the first commandment that Jesus highlighted – love the Lord your God with all your heart. I intended to write about the fruit of Kindness today, but as I pondered the matter, I realised that it was also the second commandment in practice – love your neighbour as you love yourself.

The most basic definition of kindness is simply being good to others who are in need of goodness. In scripture, we see it at play in the parable of the Good Samaritan, but we also see it in God’s relationship and actions with the people of God, as He of his own accord saves and restores the nation of Israel repeatedly during the Old Testament. In every example, there is no action out of obligation, but in each case, one party intervenes in the pain and despair of another.

When things get hard, kindness may not be our first response to a situation. In some seasons, I have grown tired of my fellow human and found it harder to find the necessity to aid and assist despite help being needed. I forget at times that kindness (love) is not a suggestion, but the commandment from Jesus himself as He summarizes the law. 

We are now on the other side of the cross, and while the law has been fulfilled in him, as we are infilled with the Holy Spirit, our lifestyle changes to reflect His character, and we become the righteous standard of the law – it becomes written on our hearts. We are no longer compelled to follow the law by legal obligation, but by the Spirit inside of us that changes our nature. Through the compulsion of love, God’s love in us, the action of loving our neighbour remains, although it is no longer a target but a fruit.

Fruit is normal on a fruit tree – but any orchard worker will tell you that pruning and nurturing are a normal part of a healthy fruit tree’s life. Jesus himself highlighted the importance of  a lifestyle of kindness when he taught on the parable of the Sheep and the Goats.

“for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ (Matthew 25, 35-36)

Every action that he judged the people on was an act or failure of kindness. Strikingly, to the ones who failed to act on such kindness, Jesus rejected them and cast them away. As Keith Green noted in his song the Sheep and Goats:

“And my friends, the only difference between the sheep and the goats, according to this scripture, is what they did, and didn’t do”

In this parable, Jesus was not testing whether they had followed the law, but whether their love had fruit. Every time they practiced kindness on their fellow man, they loved Jesus too. At this point, I should note that our motive for kindness is not to secure our salvation, as we are not saved by works (Eph 2:9). It is by faith that we are saved, but faith without works is dead (James 2:14-26). These verses were written by Paul and James, and they are not contradictory. 

Works is not our motive – it is what we were created to do (Eph 2:10) – or recreated to do as a new creation. Likewise, protecting our salvation is not our motive either; fear and striving are not our motive. If we live our lives in love and service to God, as we live and grow, the fruit of kindness grows in us.

As I wrote before, God will burn in us, inasmuch as we give Him to burn. It may take some humility to be willing to be more kind – to give a homeless person a moment to hear their story or their needs. To part with an extra coat or blanket that sits in your wardrobe when its cold. Perhaps it is buying some extra groceries for the struggling family, of offering your skills for free to someone who could not afford it otherwise. If we are willing to give of ourselves, God will honour our decision and show us to whom we can direct our generosity. If you are willing to become more generous and kind, give God that part of your life in prayer for God to use and grow kindness in us. He will make it happen.

Of course, be responsible and act with wisdom for your safety. Make sure your motive is not to find merit with God, but just to love the fellow person. Find people who can track with you – or better still are willing to join you in being willing to partner together in kindness. Start a prayerful kindness co-op, or find people who are already doing something great and see how you can partner with them. You will do great things and look out for each other in the process! Otherwise, just do it with God. Either way, He can do great things through a small yes.