Galatians 5:22 & 23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Gentleness, when I hear this word, thoughts of a grandmother taking care of her grandchildren come to mind. One of my grandmothers was a very strong Christian woman, yet her gentleness showed in all her actions. This is the same word that is translated as “kindness” in II Corinthians 6:6. This kindness is invoked by the Spirit to show gentleness in the way we act and the kindness we show to others. It is a disposition that has a mild temper and a calmness of spirit, and it is determined to treat others politely. This word is the opposite of being harsh or irritable. Gentleness will make the heart kind. Gentleness will exhibit itself in compassion to others.
Gentleness will be kind to all it encounters. It does not pick and choose according to race, education, financial status, or intellect. It is a novelty in our society. We live in a society where most are out for themselves and themselves only. Kindness, or gentleness is something that is not a calculated opportunity to do a good deed. Kindness is a reaction from the heart. We live in a world where genuine kindness is hard to find. It is such a phenomenon that when you see someone who shows gentleness to all, you get suspicious. We think there must be an ulterior motive.
A Christian has the capacity, through the Spirit, to be genuine, real, and authentic! It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can have this aspect of the fruit of the Spirit. It is a way of treating people that pleases God. In Colossians 3:12 and Ephesians 4:32, we are told to show this to one another in the church. This kindness will be demonstrated by being forgiving and not holding a grudge. It will exhibit itself by forgetting about ourselves. Those who have been saved, are all the same church. We have been redeemed by the same blood and chosen by the same grace. We are all brethren, and this should lead us to manifest this same spirit of gentleness to one another.
When this is the case in the church, it will influence those outside the church. If gentleness is manifested in your life, it will flow wherever you go and to all around you.
Colossians 3:12 “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;”
Ephesians 4:32 “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”
The gentleness that seeks only to show itself simply by actions of good deeds, and only then when it fits the schedule, is only keeping the rules. This is not true gentleness.
Let’s make this applicable. When you commit an act of kindness, such as working at a homeless shelter, do you put your time in and feel like you can’t wait to get out of there? Are you serving someone with a standoffish attitude? A “don’t touch me, you’re dirty” kind of feeling? Are you anxious for it to be over? True gentleness has none of those feelings but wishes it could do more. More time, more effort, and more love. Gentleness takes the attitude “I need to help” because “but for the grace of God, there go I.”
