Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32
Our world seems to moving in the most destructive of directions. Civility, politeness, and kindness are altogether too rare these days. People have exchanged common courtesy for rudeness, hatred, and accusatory tones. Even in the arena of theological discussion, one can find close-minded, harsh, and hateful rhetoric. Everyone seems to be polarizing on just about any issue. These extreme attitudes do nothing but demonstrate a void when in it comes to the presence of the Spirit.
Contrary to all of this, scripture continues the same, consistent drumbeat for followers of Jesus to be kind. Kindness can be defined as “mild, pleasant, manageable, and fit for good use.” It is the antithesis of someone who is harsh, hard, and bitter. As anger demonstrates the absence of patience, so harshness reveals a lack of kindness.
Today’s passage gives us three characteristics surrounding the idea of kindness. All of these attributes should flow out of a heart that is yielded to the Person of Jesus Christ. Also, these spiritual realities should come as a result of our experiencing them in our own lives.
- Being Kind
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.
Luke 6:35
Being kind means that we love others, even those we would consider as enemies. Being kind means that we are willing to lend to others and that we expect nothing in return. Notice that Jesus makes reference to the fact that when we are living like this, we are accurately reflecting the very nature of God. In other words, we are kind because God is kind.
- Being Tender-Hearted
To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing.
1 Peter 3:8-9
Kindness involves being tender-hearted. To be tender-hearted means that we have compassion for others. Compassion is to express concern, sympathy, and sensitivity to another. It the opposite of indifference and heartlessness. To have compassion for others, we must be prepared to live harmoniously. We do not pay insult for insult rather we are ready to bless, even those who would curse us. This civility seems to be diminishing from our culture but is essential if we are proclaiming to have life in the Spirit of God. Notice again the connection between our giving a blessing to that of being a people who are inheriting a blessing. In other words, we bless because we are blessed.
- Being Forgiving
For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.
Matthew 6:14-15
Finally, kindness demands that we forgive. Jesus makes the most direct of statements when He equates our willingness to forgive others with God’s willingness to forgive us. This direct connection between receiving and transferring forgiveness should be taken seriously. The same measure in which we are distributing kindness and forgiveness into the lives of others will be what we should expect from God in His distribution of the same to us (Luke 6:38). In other words, we forgive because we have been forgiven.
As kindness and civility seem to be diminishing from the culture, may we, as believers in Jesus, be all the more ready to demonstrate what it means to be kind, compassionate, and always ready to forgive. Then we will lend credibility to our claims of living by the power of the Spirit of God!
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