"Be kind and compassionate to one another..."
Ephesians 4:32
Our world suffers from a kindness deficiency.
Turn on the evening news, and you'll hear far more stories involving cruelty than kindness. Scroll through comments on social media, and you'll read some of the most vicious and vile words known to man.
Sadly, in our world today, kindness is the exception, not the norm.
I wish I could say things were different in the Church, but kindness isn't necessarily thriving among the people of God, either. Our behavior often resembles that of the secular world. Don't get me wrong. We believe in the right things about kindness.
We champion such verses as:
• "Love is patient. Love is kind" (1 Corinthians 13:4).
• "His kindness leads us to repentance" (Romans 2:4).
• "The Lord is kind to the wicked and ungrateful" (Luke 6:35).
Nevertheless, there is a breakdown between what we believe and how we behave, a disconnect between our doctrine and our disposition. It is an unfortunate reality, but our theology of kindness frequently fails to impact our interactions with those around us.
My friends, this should not be the case.
Jesus commands us to "love our neighbor as ourselves," and it is impossible to demonstrate love without kindness (Matthew 22:39).
Furthermore, we are "ambassadors of Christ," called to represent a heavenly kingdom (2 Corinthians 5:20). The last time I checked, unkind people don't make good ambassadors.
Take a moment to reflect on the past few days.
Have you been unkind to anyone? A stranger? A co-worker? A loved one?
Why? What was the situation?
Whatever the case...whatever the reason(s)...if we're honest, we fall short of displaying kindness on a regular basis.
We must let Paul's clear, practical command penetrate our hearts: "Be kind and compassionate to one another."
On the surface, this sounds like something we learned in kindergarten Vacation Bible School.
But though it's simple to understand, it isn't easy to live.
The natural bent of our hearts is towards "bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice" (Ephesians 4:31).
We have to make an intentional effort to "get rid of" these base behaviors and replace them with kindness.
Yet, this doesn't happen merely by our own determination.
Genuine, heartfelt kindness is wrought by the Holy Spirit. It is a "fruit of His Spirit" working within us, an outward sign that we are under His control (Galatians 5:22). To remain under the Spirit's influence, we must be ever-mindful of the kindness we've received from God.
Elsewhere, Paul puts it like this-
"For we ourselves were... passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others, and hating one another, but when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy." Titus 3:3,4
Notice that we did nothing to merit God's kindness. Neither should we wait until others are "worthy" of kindness before we show it. (Imagine if the Lord treated us that way.)
As a reflection of God's incredible kindness to us, Christ-followers must seek to exude kindness everywhere we go and to everyone we encounter, especially when we feel they don't deserve it.
So, to help combat the kindness deficiency in our world, I'm giving us a homework assignment.
Before the week is over, because of God's extravagant kindness to you...and for the glory of His name...perform an act of kindness for someone else.
You never know how God might use it in their lives.
And in yours.
