“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;” (Colossians 3:12).
Kindness, which also means gentleness or goodness is simply about giving consideration to other people. It’s about favourably considering others in your actions. True love is gentle and kind.
Kindness is the nature of God (Galatians 5:22). The Bible’s description of God and His names are wrapped around His nature of goodness. The Bible says in Isaiah 54:10, “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed….” The Lord always shows His interest in every issue that concerns us and works ahead of us to bring His Word concerning us to pass.
The Lord is kind, affectionate and merciful towards us always. Jonah alludes to the greatness of God’s kindness in Jonah 4:2: “And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness…”
Now, God’s nature of kindness has been released upon us, thus we have the ability to demonstrate kindness to everyone around us. Jesus said, “Do to others as you would like them to do to you. If you love only those who love you, why should you get credit for that?” (Luke 6:31 NLT). Remember that true love isn’t dependent on reciprocity; it gives even when the other party isn’t giving back.
Show a kind gesture of love to someone today! Remember that kindness is not so much what you do for yourself but what you do for others. Set out today with a determination to show someone kindness that no one but God can repay.
Prayer
Dear Father, thank you for revealing your Word to me today on how to walk in love and express kindness towards others, not basing my love on reciprocity, but acting unconditionally, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Further Study
2 Peter 1:5-8
(Taken by permission from Christ Embassy Church , aka Believer’s LoveWorld Ministries , Lagos, Nigeria. www.ChristEmbassy.org )
