Once I was overwhelmed with ministry responsibilities while my wife was in hospital and our youngest was very sick. I didn’t have time to eat and was beginning to feel ‘h-angry’ as my sugar levels dropped. It was then a church member dropped by and said, ‘I heard things were going a bit tough for you. I didn’t know how to support you, so here, I bought you this hamburger.’ You can imagine how touched I was by that act of unexpected kindness. I remember calling him ‘angel from heaven!’

It’s been said, ‘Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see’. ‘Kindness makes a person attractive. If you would win the world, melt it, do not hammer it.’ Being kind shines with a light that attracts us. The Hebrew word for kindness, ‘hesed’, means literally ‘to bow the head, treat courteously and appropriately’. Kindness should be our default mode of living. It is how we should treat each other to show respect to a person made in God’s image, to show reverence for God. Mother Teresa was asked why she was so kind to the dying in Calcutta. She said she saw Christ in each of them.

We also act with kindness to reveal the character of God in us. Remember the fruit of the Spirit is God’s character. The concept of the kindness of God plays a very central role in the Bible. The Greek word for kindness is ‘chrestos’. This word is similar in meaning to ‘hesed’ It means ‘useful, suitable, worthy, pleasant, gracious, generous, doing what is right’. In Romans 2:4 Paul writes, “…do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realising that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?” God wants to win people over through kindness, not beat them into submission. And not just kindness to get a result. God genuinely cares and is kind. That is his nature.

God’s kindness towards us is seen in Jesus. Paul writes, “And God raised us up with Christ …in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” How kind God is to us through Jesus we cannot fully grasp. We still sit in a broken world. God’s kindness is not always fully felt. But in time God will make everything new. And then the experience of his kindness to us will be so wonderful we won’t be able to compare it with anything here. We will be overawed by the grace of God.

God’s kindness is an example for our own behaviour as we live the fruit of the Spirit. Paul says: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.” Developing kindness starts by developing empathy. It’s about putting ourselves in the shoes of the other. As Jesus said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Kindness begins with our minds. It begins with an attitude that remembers how kind God is to us every day. It’s an attitude that says I want to show God today in what I do. Then kindness acts. Think of practical things that can bring a sense of joy into another’s life. This behaviour is how we reveal and worship God. Micah 6:8 “With what shall I come before the Lord… He has shown you what is good, …to act justly, to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God.” Kindness is developed by an attitude of generosity. If we have any heart for the lost, any compassion for evangelism we will be very kind people. For nothing so speaks to people as the kindness of God. It is not for nothing that the Salvation Army has such a high standing in our communities.

In the early days of Christianity there was some confusion among the pagans as to who the Christians were. As we said the Greek word for kindness is ‘chrestos’. The Greek word for Christ is ‘christos’. Pagans were not sure if God’s people were followers of Christ or a religion of kindness. I think it was a good confusion. It would be wonderful if people saw us as the gentlest and kindest people there are. ‘Chrestos’ which literally means ‘worthy, good, what is right’, was often used to describe things that were excellent. E.g., ‘precious’ stones, and ‘pure’ gold. There is something classy about kindness. So, if you want to do things the best way, and show the heart of God, be kind.

Leo Douma