Fruit of the Spirit series: Kindness

We are looking at the Fruit of the Spirit in this series, and recently we looked at the fruit of peace, and now we are going to learn about the fruit of Kindness. The Holy Spirit is the One who develops the fruits of the Spirit in us, and we cannot produce this on our own. We rely fully on Him for this to grow, but we can add this through obedience to Christ (not a working for our salvation but from our salvation). The full list of the fruit of the Spirit is found in Scripture:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” 

GALATIANS 5:22-23 (NASB)

Gospel Kindness

This time, we will look at how the Holy Spirit develops kindness in us and in our lives. We must believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ to have kindness begin growing in our lives. 

God so loved the world in this one particular way – He sent His Son Jesus to live a sinless life on earth, to die on the cross taking the punishment for sin (also called substitutionary atonement) and paying the debt we incurred when we sinned. By believing in Christ for salvation and repenting of our sins (agreeing with God that sin is sin), we are then able to have the hope of eternal life with God through Christ Jesus. This is the ONLY way; there is no other.

John 3:16-17; Romans 3:23-25; Romans 5:8; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Timothy 1:15; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 1 Peter 2:24-25; 1 Peter 3:18

Then, when we believe in Christ for salvation, we are granted the Holy Spirit and are sealed with Him. This is when the transformation (or sanctification) begins, where the Holy Spirit begins to make us more and more like Christ everyday. Through that process, He produces His fruit in our lives (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control). The process involves: reading the Bible, prayer, being active in a local church that preaches sound doctrine, living in such a way that glorifies Christ, repenting each day as we sin yet again and fighting against that sin, and doing the good deeds that God has prepared for us (see Romans 8).

Kindness

What is kindness, and how do we have more of it in our lives? The world has a counterfeit kindness of being “nice.” It is the kind of “nice” that has no boundaries, no courage to stand up for what is right, and is all about “loving” your neighbor with no truth. The world’s counterfeit kindness has its focus on being accepting of everyone no matter what, rather than understanding that the Gospel is exclusive. God makes it very clear in His word that there are some things He does not tolerate:

And just as they did not see fit ^[u]to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, ²⁹ being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, ³⁰ slanderers, ^[v]haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, ³¹ without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; ³² and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

Romans 1:28-32

By choosing only to accept everyone and not tell them the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we are not being kind. Biblical kindness, the fruit of the Spirit, is an active love for God and neighbor that is both loving and truthful. Kindness seeks out ways that you can help others, and not only serve yourself. Kindness chooses to put others before yourself. Kindness defers to the other person. This kindness is something that you can do even in the most difficult of circumstances. True kindness is showing Christ’s love for the people around you.

Biblical Example of Kindness

A Biblical example of kindness can be found in Boaz when he continued giving to Ruth, the Moabitess. Ruth had followed her mother-in-law Naomi back to Bethlehem after her husband, brother-in-law, and father-in-law died in Moab. Ruth went to harvest in the fields and happened across Boaz’s field. Boaz protected Ruth, gave her extra food, and then redeemed her for his wife (See the book of Ruth). Boaz was a foreshadowing of Jesus, who lavishes His grace and mercy on believers. And while God may not be calling you to marry whomever you are called to show kindness to, there are plenty of opportunities to bring aid and kindness to the vulnerable around you.

As we go through these next few weeks of delving into what the Fruit of the Spirit is in our lives as believers, reflect on how you can grow more in the Fruit of the Spirit. Yes, the Holy Spirit is ultimately the one who grows the fruit in you and me, but you and I have a responsibility to meditate (fill our minds with, not empty our minds) on God’s Word on what kindness and each fruit of the Spirit is. What is one way that you and I can show the kindness of Christ this week?

Join in on the conversation!

I always love hearing from my readers, so feel free to comment on this post.

• What fruit of the Spirit do you hope to grow more in?
• What fruit of the Spirit do you want to learn more about?
• What fruit of the Spirit do you struggle most with?
• How may I pray for you? (If you would like to private message me a prayer request, please feel free to message me via Instagram, Facebook, or X.com. I will gladly pray for you.)
• What are your favorite examples of kindness in the Bible?
• Who is someone in your life that shows the kindness of Christ to those around them?