Patience & Kindness
Welcome to day 3 of our week of “O Give Thanks”. Today our focus is on Patience & Kindness according to the Fruit of the Spirit found in the book of Galatians 5: 22-23
Boy, what a challenging area for us. What I realize is that it’s important and vital to all of us. I realize these qualities are aspects (expressions) of God’s character that we all need to have & use. They are produced by the action of the Holy Spirit within us.
Patience : (longsuffering) an even temper, forbearance; bearing with others who are working out their salvation. Being slow to anger (Rom. 15:1, Luke 21:19)
Long temper: in the sense of the ability to hold one’s temper for a long time. (KJV) translates it to “longsuffering”. A patient person is able to endure much pain and suffering without complaining. A patient person is slow to anger as they wait for God to provide comfort and punish wrongdoing. Being one of the “fruits of the spirit” we can only possess it through the power and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Patience comes from a position of power. A person may have the ability to take revenge or cause trouble, but patience brings self-restraint and careful thinking. Losing patience is a sign of weakness. We are patient through trying situation out of hope for a coming deliverance; we are patient with a trying person out of compassion. We choose to love that person and want what’s best for them.
As the Spirit produces patience in us, He is making us more Christlike (2Thes. 3:5) speaks of the patience of Christ.
God is patient with sinners (Rom. 2:4) says that God’s patience leads to our repentance
The opposite of patience is agitation, discouragement, and a desire for revenge. God does not want his children to live in agitation but in peace (John 14:27). He wants to dispel discouragement and replace it with hope and praise (Psalm 42:5). We are not to avenge ourselves; rather, we are to love others (Rom. 12:19, Lev. 19:18).
God is patient, and His Spirit produces the fruit of patience in us. When we are patient, we leave room for God to work in our hearts and in our relationships.
Kindness (gentleness) – tender concern, uprightness. It is kindness of heart & kindness of act.
behaving toward others kindly, as God has behaved toward us ( Eph. 4:31-32)
Kindness is the characteristic that led God to provide salvation for us (Titus 3:4-5, Romans 2:4, 11:22).
Kindness that leads God to give us green pastures, quiet waters, and the restoration of our souls when we weary (Psalm 23: 2-3)
It is God’s tender care that makes Him want to gather us under His wings, to protect us and keep us close to Him (Psalm 17:8, 36:7).
Throughout the word of God he expressed kindness. On multiple occasions, kindness induced Jesus to stop what he was doing and help others in need (Mark 6:34, 7:29)
And kindness leads the Good Shepherd to rescue us when we stray (Luke 15: 3-7)
*When we exhibit the kindness of God, we are tender, benevolent, and useful to others. Every action, every word will have the flavor of grace in it. To maintain this attitude toward those we love is hard enough. To express kindness toward those who are against us requires the work of God (2Cor. 6: 4-6). That is why kindness is a fruit of the spirit.
As we go into this 3rd day of OGT, let’s be focused on both Patience & Kindness to see what God reveals to us about us.
May God Bless You.
Minister Johnny Simon
We are all a work in process!
