Be Kind To One Another

Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:12   DEFINING KINDNESS . . . Kindness is a display of the character and heart of God that speaks to every human soul.   EXPRESSING KINDNESSS . . .   True kindness is an overflow of the kindness of God shown to us in Jesus Christ. " . . . so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."  Ephesians 2:7 It is loving others with kindness the way Jesus has shown His loving-kindness towards us.   True kindness is produced by the Spirit of God in the life of a Christ-follower. "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   True kindness has the power to soften hard hearts and open closed doors. "In this batch of mail, I also received a letter from Pastor Ken Smith, then—pastor of the Syracuse Reformed Presbyterian Church.  It was a kind and inquiring letter.  It encouraged me to explore the kind of questions I admire:  How did you arrive at your interpretations/. How do you know you are right? Do you believe in God?  He didn't argue with my article; he asked me to explore and defend the presuppositions that undergirded it.  I didn't really know how to respond to Ken's letter, but I found myself reading and re-reading it.  I didn't know which box to file this letter in, and so it sat on my desk and haunted me . . . I threw it away a few times but always found myself digging through the department's recycling bin to reclaim it at the day's end . . . It was the kindest letter of opposition that I had ever received.  After a week, I called (him)."  Rosaria Butterfield, The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert    Kindness stirs curiosity in the minds of the unsuspecting.   Kindness is like a non-threatening knock on the closed door of suspicion.   Kindness is a gentle touch to a wounded   True kindness pursues in love the one who is wandering and presses in to the one who is unaware. To not pursue the one who is wandering and press in to the one who is unaware is "misdirected kindness." "misdirected kindness"–the tendency of people to be "kind" to others when the proper, loving, and kind response is something we tend to think of as unpleasant.   Kindness, not rooted in love, easily becomes more concerned about a person's happiness rather than their holiness. " . . . God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance."  Romans 2:4   "Better is open rebuke than hidden love.  Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy."  Proverbs 27:5-6