FOS 9 Kindness (And the end of Patience)

Patience wrap up:

Ephesians 4:1-3 (ESV) 1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

In Ephesians 4 Paul is calling the Christians to act like Christians and to be unified with other Christians. In these verses we see several character qualities and once more the word love comes in. Christ like love is what brings forth the other fruit of the Spirit when we allow the Spirit to do it’s work in us.

2 Corinthians 6:3-10 ESV - 3 We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.

Paul wrote 2 Corinthians to the people of Corinth from himself and Timothy. Here we learn about the incredible things they patiently suffered through for the cause of Christ. It also names love and kindness, two more fruits. We can pray and meditate on God’s word and ask God to help us die more to self so that the Spirit can grow and produce fruit. This is our sanctification which I also discussed in part 2 of love. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 ESV - 23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Below are definitions for the words used for patience in the New Testament. Strong’s concordance is a book that cross references every word in the King James Version of the Bible. It is helpful to differentiate between words in the Bible based on their original Greek or Hebrew. 

patience/perseverance : 

Greek: hypomonē- Steadfastness, endurance-waiting or hopeful

Greek: makrothymia- Endurance, steadfast, constancy, patience, forebearance-long suffering

Colossians 1:9-12 ESV - 9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

In the homework, I asked what the tie between “strengthened in all power” and “patience” is. Remembering that we are dealing with the fruit of the Spirit, we can be strengthened by the power of God that is in us. It is God’s strength and power that will help us accomplish the seemingly impossible—patience. Can you imagine what a difficult task it was for the original hearers of this word when Christians all around were being tortured and killed.

Hebrews 6:11-12 ESV - 11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

If you read the preceding verses starting in Hebrews 5:11, you may more clearly understand that those who may fall away are those who never actually became Christians but enjoyed the blessings and fellowship within a group of Christians. What we are reminded of in the Hebrews 6 verses is we are in a marathon as we await our home in heaven. In the meantime we are to be actively working while here on earth. That includes actively battling the temptations of our flesh—one of which is impatience.

Impatience tells us we deserve what we want now—more satisfaction, more of our way, fewer restrictions, etc. When we are impatient, we are determining our timing and choices are better than God’s. Patience says, “I will trust God and wait on Him.”

2 Peter 1:3-7 ESV - 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

In these 2 Peter verses we see the transformation that should come from a faith that is nourished. We will learn the virtues that God upholds and through the power of the Holy Spirit we practice self control. That will provide us with patience/steadfastness that leads to godliness and love. See how it all builds? 

We must nourish our faith daily through time with God in His word and in prayer. I can’t emphasize that enough. The world will hold up “virtues” that are not virtues to God and we must recognize the difference through carefully studying God’s words. Understanding God will give us the knowledge and confidence we need to patiently wait for His timing and His promises to be fulfilled. 

Kindness

Kindness, like love, requires action. Once we have grown in our love of God and our understanding of the kindness He shows us and the world, we can begin to show kindness in a way that honors Him. God’s kindness is given without expectation of gain. His kindness is also given to those who are unworthy of it.

Romans 3:23 ESV - 23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Let’s study what the word says about kindness together.

For Study:

Hebrew: hesed- Goodness, kindness, faithfulness³

Greek: chrēstotēs- 1. Moral goodness, integrity 2. Kindness⁴

Romans 2:2-4 ESV - 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do you suppose, O man--you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself--that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

This comes in the middle of a section on judging others, but it reveals an important truth about God’s kindness. What do we learn about the purpose of God’s kindness?

Ephesians 2:4-7 ESV - 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

1. What are the coming ages during which God will show us kindness?
2. What might the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness be at that time? What does Jesus have to do with it?

Colossians 3:12-17 ESV - 12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

1. We have looked at these verses before. Read through the above verses and see how many fruits of the spirit you can find. 
2. List the character verses that are called for in these verses.
3. What is the most important quality?
4. What should dwell in us? How might that affect the other things in these verses?

Titus 3:4-6 ESV - 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.

3. H2617 - ḥeseḏ - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (esv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h2617/esv/wlc/0-1/
4. G5544 - chrēstotēs - Strong's Greek Lexicon (esv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5544/esv/mgnt/0-1/