Top Twelve Scripture Texts: Number 12B
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Bob Rakestraw
Happy New Year! Wherever you are in the world, I truly wish each of you the best year of your life so far! Circumstances may or may not be your best ever, but the living God may be more real to you than ever before.
I often struggle, when I prepare these postings, whether to postpone writing them until I feel in a more positive frame of mind. Every one I write is hard work, not primarily because of the study involved, but because of the emotional toll the project exacts from me.
I want to be completely honest in my writing, but sometimes I hold back from saying all that I could because I don’t want to discourage you, the readers. No doubt there is also an element of human pride involved. If I admit how much I am struggling some readers might consider me to be not very spiritual, or—at the very least—to be psychologically unstable. You may not think of me as highly as I would like you to. You might think that the long battle with heart disease, which the doctors discovered 24 years ago, is finally throwing me off-kilter. You might also think of me as a complainer if I mention specific physical ailments.
It is a good thing for me to keep you—the readers—in mind concerning these matters as I write. I’m glad I never sent out some items I wrote, or considered writing. I want to be responsible, and not throw anything and everything out there for all the world to see. This blog should represent my best work—for this genre of writing—not my impulsive thoughts.
Most of all, I desire to write what God leads me to write. How do I know I am doing that? I pray according to the book of James, chapter 1, asking God for wisdom, and searching my heart for improper thoughts and attitudes, confess any sin to God, and then start writing. I can’t wait forever for some ideal frame of mind, because there is no such thing (at least not for me).
Lately my struggles have become more difficult, both physically and emotionally. Maybe this is just a phase. I hope it is. Whether it is or not, I want to write this posting because it accomplishes my goal for the year 2008—to present my top 12 favorite scripture texts of all time. I had serious doubts a year ago, when I started this project, that I would ever complete it. I had already lived longer than the six months the doctors gave me to live. Now, thanks to God, I am writing this piece.
Living with Sufferings
Last time I began the theme for the month: “When I am weak, then I am strong.” The famous scripture passage is 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. I considered some of the details in the last posting, so I’ll not repeat them here. But I do want to step back from looking at the trees to view the forest as a whole.
How should I live in view of this passage of scripture, and in view of my sufferings? I am reluctant to use the work “sufferings” for myself, because it is such a strong word, and I hesitate to think of my difficulties as severe in light of the sufferings of Jesus, the sufferings of the apostle Paul, the sufferings of persecuted Christians, and the sufferings of millions of hungry, diseased, abused, and hurting people around the world. But I believe it is an appropriate word, even though my troubles are small by comparison.
I am also reluctant to list my difficulties, but I think I should, since I mention them in general from time to time. My constant companions include nausea, dizziness, light-headedness, pain in my bones, abdominal pain, increasingly bad headaches, stress from conversation and noise (it is hard to speak for long, or listen for long), and a steady downward pull inside of me, hindering my standing, walking, sitting and even lying down. I also battle depression and anxiety, which are the worst of all. I rarely go to doctors, although I appreciate their kindness and knowledge. I’m glad that we stay in touch.
Where to Focus
I have been forced to look more closely at the scripture passage itself. I don’t think that God is pressing me to figure out what Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was. And I really don’t need to know what Paul’s spectacular visions and revelations were. And I don’t believe that I should pray much for God to heal me of my cardiac transplant vasculopathy. (I greatly desire total healing, however, and welcome the prayers of all who seek God to that end.) I do pray, however, about specific symptoms throughout the day (my most common prayers are simply, “I trust you Lord” and “Help me Lord.”).
Where I need to focus is on the response of the apostle Paul—godly boasting and contentment. I don’t like the word boasting, but Paul uses it throughout 2 Corinthians 10-13 (NRSV, NIV) to speak of his glorying in, rejoicing in, feeling triumph in, his weaknesses and sufferings. It is important to emphasize here that the sufferings in themselves are not something I seek, not something I desire, and not something I glory in for their own sake. Also, sufferings do not save anyone or sanctify anyone. They have no merit in themselves, and Christians should avoid all ascetic theologies that urge us to seek suffering and self-deprivation so that God will be pleased with us. No. God is pleased with us because we are in his Son, not because we punish ourselves. Paul states boldly: “Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong” (v. 10). Paul’s thorn “was given” him (v. 7); he did not seek it.
Why and How to be Glad
If I am to rejoice/boast/count it all joy when I suffer (1 Cor. 12:9; Rom. 5:3; Jas 1:2), then how do I do that, and why? Taking the second question first, I am to think and live with this attitude because it honors my Lord and Savior. It is “for the sake of Christ” (v.10). But, I must admit, this is not always enough of a motivating factor for me. It should be, but I look for more. The “more” comes to me in verse 9: “So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”
Here it is, then. In some supernatural way, if I respond well to my sufferings, the power of Christ—his glory, strength, wisdom and grace—lives in me and through me. This I take by faith, if not by sight and feel. I may not sense this divine flow in me and through me, but just as I rest on John 3:16 for my eternal salvation, so I rest on 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 for my deteriorating self (my “mortal body,” Rom. 8:11) to be demonstrating the strength and beauty of Christ in and through me. It’s not that I never feel the spiritual power operating in me and through me, for I do. But I need to admit that I experience times when I doubt that my life is making any impact for good. I know I need to concentrate on—and this is the “how,” the first question above—the glorying in my weaknesses, and being content with them. This response—especially the boasting and glorying—goes against everything in me, yet it is the one specific action I am persuaded to do in this mysterious but mighty text of scripture.
I find it very helpful to read, study, and pray over two other scripture passages whenever I come to the Corinthian text: Romans 5:3-5 and James 1:2-8. While each of us has to learn personally—through prayer and experience—the “how” of boasting in our sufferings, we will find much strength by meditating on these three scripture texts together. Many other Bible passages are life-giving as well. I am just beginning to learn these things, but I know it is the only route for me to take as I face each new day—and night. (Last night was a difficult one, and my help came from the remarkable words in Romans 8:18-39, especially the part that speaks of the Holy Spirit praying for us in our sufferings. I had no strength to boast in my weaknesses!)
Being a Benediction
I am very thankful for the opportunity to study the Corinthian passage for this blog, because in doing so I came to see something that had been right before my eyes all along, but that I had not “caught.” I have tried to do the boasting part—glorying in my sufferings—but only recently have I really got ahold of the reason just presented above: the power of Christ will live in me and through me. One of the biggest difficulties of living with my disease is the daily awareness of my inability to do little or nothing to spread the glory of the kingdom to others. With this new insight, as stated above, I have a new slant on this specific motivating factor in living daily.
By faith, not having received the promises of God in their fullness (Heb. 11:39), I look with hope for God to make me a benediction to others. Some days I feel that I am not radiating Christ’s glory very well (just a few days ago I had one of my worst episodes of anxiety for some time), and at those times I try simply to exist, focusing on the promises and exhortations of scripture. God has shown me that I honor him by just “being” when the battle is the hardest. However, last night, in the wee small hours, God showed me that I have been neglecting praise and thanksgiving, and since “being” involves thinking about something, I am finding comfort in following this divine reminder.
The Journey of Weakness
I know this is a longer than usual posting. I feel constrained especially to help those of you who are suffering—physically or otherwise—in some way. It is distasteful to me to speak so much of myself, but I find from my experience with people that such specifics are helpful in knowing how to pray, and as examples and encouragement to fellow sufferers. Even though I seldom pray for my overall healing (God has seemed to say to me, “three times is enough”), I do pray—and request prayer—for specific needs daily. Even as I write this my head is pounding, and my wife and granddaughter just came to me and prayed for relief. In the pagan culture of Paul’s day, “divine power was especially displayed in magical wonders; for Paul, it is God’s power enabling one weak in himself to endure” (Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament).
Over forty years ago, as a young man in my early twenties, I was just a few months from graduating from Bible College. The yearbook editors (all of whom, including Judy, were seniors) asked fellow graduates to submit a scripture text that either had been, or would be, a “life verse” for us. Not knowing what the years held, we handed in our Bible texts, which were then placed under our photos. I submitted 2 Corinthians 12:9, partly because of how this passage had given me strength during past experiences of weaknesses, and partly because I knew that whatever I did, I would need to know how to receive God’s power in my weakness. Little did I know then just how prophetic this Bible text would prove to be, and how many hundreds of times I would lean heavily on its truth.
As we close the old year and begin 2009, may we all draw our strength from the grace of Christ. The days ahead may be difficult, but the power of God is mightier than any and all thorns sent from the evil one. “He said to me,” wrote Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” May we all be “benediction projects” to the Lord himself, to all we know, and to some we do not yet know, for it is in so doing that we receive benediction beyond measure.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Strength Through Weakness: Boasting about Splinters from Satan?
Top Twelve Scripture Texts: Number 12A
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Bob Rakestraw
For many years I have been truly amazed—standing with my mouth wide open, as it were—at the ways God’s thinking and acting often are in direct contrast to the thoughts and ways of the world. In the first chapter of James, for example, God’s people are instructed to consider it “nothing but joy” when we “face trials of any kind” (v. 2). In the book of Romans, after saying that “we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God, “the apostle Paul writes that “we also boast in our sufferings” (5:2-3).
In the famous song of Mary, after learning that she would be the mother of the Lord, we read that God “has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts…. He has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty” (Luke 1:51-53). The very idea of the perfect, just and infinitely wealthy God coming as a baby into a miserable, unjust and desperately needy world, in order to be crucified for the eternal salvation of sinful humanity, is truly incredible and even foolish to the natural mind (1 Cor. 1:18-31; 2 Cor. 13:3-4).
When I am Weak
My theme for this month is another one of the great paradoxes in scripture: “when I am weak, then I am strong.” Here is the classic statement from the Bible:
“Therefore, to keep me from being too elated [by remarkable visions and revelations from God], a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for [my] power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,’ so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:7b-10, NRSV).
God Overrides the Plans of Satan
This is surely one of the most mysterious passages in all of the scriptures. And it must be one of the most talked about—and written about—or thought about—by those who know the Bible. Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” has left me wondering, irritated and grateful for decades. I wonder what in the world it could possibly be. I feel irritated at times because I can’t apply the Greek language and theological reasoning to arrive at a definite conclusion. And I am often—more and more as the years pass—thankful to God that the thorn is not clearly identified. This way, the principle of strength through weakness applies to numerous situations of life here on earth.
While I do not intend to identify this “messenger of Satan,” I do want to point out a number of details that have been helpful to me in thinking about the thorn.
1) Paul considers this affliction to be of God—probably not in the sense of being directly sent by God, but being permitted by him. He is in control of even the painful aspects of our existence.
2) The word “messenger” in the Greek language is angelos, translated “angel” almost all of the time in the New Testament. Is the thorn a fallen angelic spirit—a demonic influence or temptation (or even a person or persons) who lingers around us without dominating us (because of God’s protection)? Such a view is not inconceivable. In any case, the thorn is said to be “of Satan.”
The Thorn in the Flesh
3) The word for “thorn” may also be translated as “splinter”—a constant irritant as we move through the day. It may also be translated as “stake”—that is, a sharpened wooden shaft. New Testament scholar Philip E. Hughes notes that what Paul is saying, literally, is: “there was given to me a stake for the flesh,” rather than “in the flesh.” According to Hughes “it seems to us that Paul is thinking graphically of a body helplessly impaled. He sees himself as it were transfixed, painfully held down and humiliated…” (The Second Epistle to the Corinthians).
4) The word for “flesh” (sarx) is used numerous ways in the New Testament and other early Christian literature. While it sometimes means the human body, or the material that covers the bones of our body, at other times it refers to human nature, life here on earth, the external or outward side of life, or the sinful tendency of humanity apart from God There are other possible meanings as well. It may therefore refer to the earthly, but non-material, realm of life, or the physical side of existence’. These are closely intertwined, so it is not wise to view the thorn in an either/or manner.
5) The thorn “tormented” Paul as an ongoing aspect of his life. One commentator, writing of the word “torment,” or “buffet,” notes that “the present tense of the verb to buffet me seems to imply that the trouble was permanent. And the word itself, kolaphizo, means literally ‘to strike a blow with the fist,’ and so ‘to maltreat,’ especially in such a manner that shame and indignation are felt by the sufferer” (R.V.G. Tasker, The Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians).
The Purpose and Power of God
6) The splinter accomplished God’s good purpose in Paul’s life—it kept him from being overly elated (conceited, boastful) from the remarkable visions and revelations he had received from God. The NASB—“to keep me from exalting myself”—gets the idea right. This is stated twice in verse 7 (in the Greek; see NRSV) as the reason God allowed the thorn.
7) God did not answer Paul’s thrice-repeated prayer in the way that he wanted—to have the thorn removed from is life, but God did answer it by giving Paul his remarkable grace. God said that was enough!
8) God’s supernatural power is, according to the divine economy, “made perfect in weakness.” The translation by Kenneth S. Wuest is very encouraging: “power is moment by moment coming to its full energy and complete operation in the sphere of weakness.”
9) Paul’s boasting “all the more gladly” of his weaknesses was a God-pleasing response to the denial of his prayer request. Elsewhere, as I mentioned earlier, he records a similar theme: “we also boast in our sufferings” (Rom. 5:3, NRSV). I admit to being greatly perplexed, and sometimes much distressed over these teachings, but I also admit to having daily peace and even joy in my sufferings.
10) Paul says that his boasting is “so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” The expanded translation by Wuest is quite revealing: “…in order that the power of the Christ [like the Shekinah Glory in the Holy of Holies of the Tent of Meeting] may take up its residence in me [working within me and giving me help].”
I am Content
11) Paul’s remarkable conclusion, “Therefore I am content,” silences all who may take offense at the sufferings of God’s people. Because Paul had learned the secret of contentment (see Phil. 4:11-13; 1 Tim. 6:6,8; Heb. 13:5), he could boast gladly of his weaknesses, since he knew when he was weak (and only then, in Spurgeon’s view), he was truly strong.
12) The threefold theme of God’s strength, human weakness, and godly boasting, interspersed throughout 2 Corinthians 10-13, lies at the very core of the apostle Paul’s successful life and ministry. He learned—through long and severe difficulties and hardships—that he was incredibly strong as a Christian and as a Christian leader, but only when he was weak in himself. He did not buy into the world’s mantra, “Believe in yourself.” He saw the example of Christ (“he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God,” 2 Cor. 13:4), and chose to make this same pattern his very own. “If I must boast,” he said, “I will boast of the things that show my weakness” (2 Cor. 11:30).
I will end this study for now, and will leave with you these twelve pieces of spiritual truth to chew on and, I trust, swallow (according to the insights God gives you). As I wrote a few days ago, I am physically very weak these days. My desire is to follow Jesus, Paul, Amy Carmichael (her excellent but profound book is Rose from Briar), and numerous others (see Hebrews 11) who have learned that godly boasting in one’s weakness leads to great peace, joy, hope, and inner strength.
By God’s grace I hope to continue on these deep things of God in my next posting. May the Jesus of Bethlehem and the Christ of Calvary be for you and yours the one who satisfies. May he be enough, and may you be satisfied in him and through him.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Bob Rakestraw
For many years I have been truly amazed—standing with my mouth wide open, as it were—at the ways God’s thinking and acting often are in direct contrast to the thoughts and ways of the world. In the first chapter of James, for example, God’s people are instructed to consider it “nothing but joy” when we “face trials of any kind” (v. 2). In the book of Romans, after saying that “we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God, “the apostle Paul writes that “we also boast in our sufferings” (5:2-3).
In the famous song of Mary, after learning that she would be the mother of the Lord, we read that God “has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts…. He has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty” (Luke 1:51-53). The very idea of the perfect, just and infinitely wealthy God coming as a baby into a miserable, unjust and desperately needy world, in order to be crucified for the eternal salvation of sinful humanity, is truly incredible and even foolish to the natural mind (1 Cor. 1:18-31; 2 Cor. 13:3-4).
When I am Weak
My theme for this month is another one of the great paradoxes in scripture: “when I am weak, then I am strong.” Here is the classic statement from the Bible:
“Therefore, to keep me from being too elated [by remarkable visions and revelations from God], a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for [my] power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,’ so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:7b-10, NRSV).
God Overrides the Plans of Satan
This is surely one of the most mysterious passages in all of the scriptures. And it must be one of the most talked about—and written about—or thought about—by those who know the Bible. Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” has left me wondering, irritated and grateful for decades. I wonder what in the world it could possibly be. I feel irritated at times because I can’t apply the Greek language and theological reasoning to arrive at a definite conclusion. And I am often—more and more as the years pass—thankful to God that the thorn is not clearly identified. This way, the principle of strength through weakness applies to numerous situations of life here on earth.
While I do not intend to identify this “messenger of Satan,” I do want to point out a number of details that have been helpful to me in thinking about the thorn.
1) Paul considers this affliction to be of God—probably not in the sense of being directly sent by God, but being permitted by him. He is in control of even the painful aspects of our existence.
2) The word “messenger” in the Greek language is angelos, translated “angel” almost all of the time in the New Testament. Is the thorn a fallen angelic spirit—a demonic influence or temptation (or even a person or persons) who lingers around us without dominating us (because of God’s protection)? Such a view is not inconceivable. In any case, the thorn is said to be “of Satan.”
The Thorn in the Flesh
3) The word for “thorn” may also be translated as “splinter”—a constant irritant as we move through the day. It may also be translated as “stake”—that is, a sharpened wooden shaft. New Testament scholar Philip E. Hughes notes that what Paul is saying, literally, is: “there was given to me a stake for the flesh,” rather than “in the flesh.” According to Hughes “it seems to us that Paul is thinking graphically of a body helplessly impaled. He sees himself as it were transfixed, painfully held down and humiliated…” (The Second Epistle to the Corinthians).
4) The word for “flesh” (sarx) is used numerous ways in the New Testament and other early Christian literature. While it sometimes means the human body, or the material that covers the bones of our body, at other times it refers to human nature, life here on earth, the external or outward side of life, or the sinful tendency of humanity apart from God There are other possible meanings as well. It may therefore refer to the earthly, but non-material, realm of life, or the physical side of existence’. These are closely intertwined, so it is not wise to view the thorn in an either/or manner.
5) The thorn “tormented” Paul as an ongoing aspect of his life. One commentator, writing of the word “torment,” or “buffet,” notes that “the present tense of the verb to buffet me seems to imply that the trouble was permanent. And the word itself, kolaphizo, means literally ‘to strike a blow with the fist,’ and so ‘to maltreat,’ especially in such a manner that shame and indignation are felt by the sufferer” (R.V.G. Tasker, The Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians).
The Purpose and Power of God
6) The splinter accomplished God’s good purpose in Paul’s life—it kept him from being overly elated (conceited, boastful) from the remarkable visions and revelations he had received from God. The NASB—“to keep me from exalting myself”—gets the idea right. This is stated twice in verse 7 (in the Greek; see NRSV) as the reason God allowed the thorn.
7) God did not answer Paul’s thrice-repeated prayer in the way that he wanted—to have the thorn removed from is life, but God did answer it by giving Paul his remarkable grace. God said that was enough!
8) God’s supernatural power is, according to the divine economy, “made perfect in weakness.” The translation by Kenneth S. Wuest is very encouraging: “power is moment by moment coming to its full energy and complete operation in the sphere of weakness.”
9) Paul’s boasting “all the more gladly” of his weaknesses was a God-pleasing response to the denial of his prayer request. Elsewhere, as I mentioned earlier, he records a similar theme: “we also boast in our sufferings” (Rom. 5:3, NRSV). I admit to being greatly perplexed, and sometimes much distressed over these teachings, but I also admit to having daily peace and even joy in my sufferings.
10) Paul says that his boasting is “so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” The expanded translation by Wuest is quite revealing: “…in order that the power of the Christ [like the Shekinah Glory in the Holy of Holies of the Tent of Meeting] may take up its residence in me [working within me and giving me help].”
I am Content
11) Paul’s remarkable conclusion, “Therefore I am content,” silences all who may take offense at the sufferings of God’s people. Because Paul had learned the secret of contentment (see Phil. 4:11-13; 1 Tim. 6:6,8; Heb. 13:5), he could boast gladly of his weaknesses, since he knew when he was weak (and only then, in Spurgeon’s view), he was truly strong.
12) The threefold theme of God’s strength, human weakness, and godly boasting, interspersed throughout 2 Corinthians 10-13, lies at the very core of the apostle Paul’s successful life and ministry. He learned—through long and severe difficulties and hardships—that he was incredibly strong as a Christian and as a Christian leader, but only when he was weak in himself. He did not buy into the world’s mantra, “Believe in yourself.” He saw the example of Christ (“he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God,” 2 Cor. 13:4), and chose to make this same pattern his very own. “If I must boast,” he said, “I will boast of the things that show my weakness” (2 Cor. 11:30).
I will end this study for now, and will leave with you these twelve pieces of spiritual truth to chew on and, I trust, swallow (according to the insights God gives you). As I wrote a few days ago, I am physically very weak these days. My desire is to follow Jesus, Paul, Amy Carmichael (her excellent but profound book is Rose from Briar), and numerous others (see Hebrews 11) who have learned that godly boasting in one’s weakness leads to great peace, joy, hope, and inner strength.
By God’s grace I hope to continue on these deep things of God in my next posting. May the Jesus of Bethlehem and the Christ of Calvary be for you and yours the one who satisfies. May he be enough, and may you be satisfied in him and through him.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
’Tis the Season…
Christmas blessings to each of you. Thank you for checking in regularly on “The Benediction Project,” and for posting your thoughts from time to time. I feel very fortunate to have been given this ministry from the Lord, and I desire to bring some spiritual benefit to you when I write. I also appreciate when you contribute to the other readers.
Recently, because of increasing physical difficulties, I have had a hard time preparing my “Top Twelve Scripture Texts” material for December. I am working on one of the most important Bible passages to me, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. I want to leave these verses with you, as a benediction or blessing. I have found Paul’s testimony to be my own, and I wish these truths to be yours as well.
“But [the Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for [my] power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10, NRSV).
May our gracious God richly bless you and keep you in the coming days and years, as you live moment by moment in his presence and peace. Love to you through Christ!
Recently, because of increasing physical difficulties, I have had a hard time preparing my “Top Twelve Scripture Texts” material for December. I am working on one of the most important Bible passages to me, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. I want to leave these verses with you, as a benediction or blessing. I have found Paul’s testimony to be my own, and I wish these truths to be yours as well.
“But [the Lord] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for [my] power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10, NRSV).
May our gracious God richly bless you and keep you in the coming days and years, as you live moment by moment in his presence and peace. Love to you through Christ!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
A Bit of Help
Some readers of this blog have said they do not know how to get into the part where they may participate. If you wish to post a reply (and I hope you do!) or read what others have posted, and what I’ve replied, just scroll down to the end of the article you are interested in, and double click on the word “Comments.” This should open up the interactive part where you can get involved. I greatly appreciate you who contribute. All of us need to hear your questions and insights.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
The Flow of the Spirit is Kindness: Becoming Kinder Persons
Top 12 Scripture Texts: Number 11C
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
November 30, 2008
How to Become Kind
I’ve had a huge privilege throughout my adult life—I’ve lived with a remarkably kind person for over 41 years. My wife, Judy, is also the most unselfish person I’ve ever known. One of the two most important ways to learn to be kind is to be around kind people. Observe how they speak and act in specific situations, and then attempt this way of life yourself. The second most important way to learn kindness—it actually precedes imitation—is to turn your life over to God in every respect.
According to the apostle Paul, “When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23 New Living Translation). It is putting the cart before the horse if we try to be kind without first yielding our whole selves—body, heart, spirit, mind—to God. But when we commit ourselves to be radical disciples of Jesus, desiring to live all of our days according to his example and will, we will become more patient, more joyful, more self-controlled…and more kind. It’s the supernatural flow of the Spirit. And its also the in-the-moment direction of the Spirit: “If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives” (Gal. 5:25, NLT).
In addition, I find it extremely motivating to call to mind why I need to be kind to others, even to those who are not kind: they are created in the image of God, and in some way represent God on earth. To be kind to “the least of these” is to be kind to God!
How to Show Kindness
There are a lot of ways you can show kindness. Hold the door open for the next person coming through. Say “Thank you” often. Say “You too” to the cashier after he or she gives the obligatory “Have a nice day.” Smile at people—looking into their eyes. Tell someone abut a flaw in his or her life. That’s right! This is a really tough one, and you should do this only after much thought and prayer, and after you have come to know the person well. After agonizing for many months, I finally mentioned to a student his consistently bad breath. He received it well, but I hated to do it. I know I would want someone to tell me. “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses” (Proverbs 27:6).
Introduce yourself to your neighbors, and make attempts to know them. Most likely, they will not do it first. Pray about this, and pray for them, before you knock on their apartment or house door. Bring them a tin of cookies or a calendar. Invite them into your home. Yes, these things take time and boldness, but you will be amazed at how God gives you the courage and the words when you take the first step. As a chronically ill person, I have had to ask God to help me be kind to the doctors who come into my hospital room. Their often-repeated, seemingly endless rounds of questions surely do not prompt me to be kind. I have sometimes become irritated at them, because talking is so exhausting for me, and I have regretted this afterward. I have often had to repent of unkindness throughout my life—especially in words and thoughts—and God always forgives me through his kindness.
My Greatest Struggle
As a college and graduate school professor I have had the most difficulty grading papers and assigning grades for the course. I will never know how some students were accepted into one of the schools where I taught—they were so unprepared intellectually. I tried always to be kind to them and help them, but I could not in good conscience give them good grades, or even passing grades, at times. They simply did not know the material, nor did they know how to learn. They were greatly distressed over their poor grades, and I felt distress as well. Some students are not equipped to be in college or graduate school, and it is actually unkind (and dishonest) to push them through the courses. They should not be led to believe they are something they are not. God will still use them to serve him according to the way he has gifted them.
Over the length of your lifetime you will make many thousands of decisions. Often these decisions are made on-the-spot. Ask God to control your whole life—yield yourself to him totally—and you will be led at the time with what to say or do, or not say or do. Once you’ve made the big decision to follow Christ all of your days, you will experience more and more wisdom, insight, patience,…and kindness in your everyday decisions. You will be increasingly joyful and peaceful in yourself, and increasingly kind to others. Many will be richly blessed through you—more than you will ever know!
John Wesley offers us some valuable words:
“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.”
A Personal Note
I offer thanks to God today for directing one-and-a-half years of “The Benediction Project” blog. There have been times when, due to my poor health, I have thought of suspending or even ending the project, but I am grateful that God has enabled me to continue. Thank you for walking with me during this journey. I value your participation greatly.
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
November 30, 2008
How to Become Kind
I’ve had a huge privilege throughout my adult life—I’ve lived with a remarkably kind person for over 41 years. My wife, Judy, is also the most unselfish person I’ve ever known. One of the two most important ways to learn to be kind is to be around kind people. Observe how they speak and act in specific situations, and then attempt this way of life yourself. The second most important way to learn kindness—it actually precedes imitation—is to turn your life over to God in every respect.
According to the apostle Paul, “When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23 New Living Translation). It is putting the cart before the horse if we try to be kind without first yielding our whole selves—body, heart, spirit, mind—to God. But when we commit ourselves to be radical disciples of Jesus, desiring to live all of our days according to his example and will, we will become more patient, more joyful, more self-controlled…and more kind. It’s the supernatural flow of the Spirit. And its also the in-the-moment direction of the Spirit: “If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives” (Gal. 5:25, NLT).
In addition, I find it extremely motivating to call to mind why I need to be kind to others, even to those who are not kind: they are created in the image of God, and in some way represent God on earth. To be kind to “the least of these” is to be kind to God!
How to Show Kindness
There are a lot of ways you can show kindness. Hold the door open for the next person coming through. Say “Thank you” often. Say “You too” to the cashier after he or she gives the obligatory “Have a nice day.” Smile at people—looking into their eyes. Tell someone abut a flaw in his or her life. That’s right! This is a really tough one, and you should do this only after much thought and prayer, and after you have come to know the person well. After agonizing for many months, I finally mentioned to a student his consistently bad breath. He received it well, but I hated to do it. I know I would want someone to tell me. “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses” (Proverbs 27:6).
Introduce yourself to your neighbors, and make attempts to know them. Most likely, they will not do it first. Pray about this, and pray for them, before you knock on their apartment or house door. Bring them a tin of cookies or a calendar. Invite them into your home. Yes, these things take time and boldness, but you will be amazed at how God gives you the courage and the words when you take the first step. As a chronically ill person, I have had to ask God to help me be kind to the doctors who come into my hospital room. Their often-repeated, seemingly endless rounds of questions surely do not prompt me to be kind. I have sometimes become irritated at them, because talking is so exhausting for me, and I have regretted this afterward. I have often had to repent of unkindness throughout my life—especially in words and thoughts—and God always forgives me through his kindness.
My Greatest Struggle
As a college and graduate school professor I have had the most difficulty grading papers and assigning grades for the course. I will never know how some students were accepted into one of the schools where I taught—they were so unprepared intellectually. I tried always to be kind to them and help them, but I could not in good conscience give them good grades, or even passing grades, at times. They simply did not know the material, nor did they know how to learn. They were greatly distressed over their poor grades, and I felt distress as well. Some students are not equipped to be in college or graduate school, and it is actually unkind (and dishonest) to push them through the courses. They should not be led to believe they are something they are not. God will still use them to serve him according to the way he has gifted them.
Over the length of your lifetime you will make many thousands of decisions. Often these decisions are made on-the-spot. Ask God to control your whole life—yield yourself to him totally—and you will be led at the time with what to say or do, or not say or do. Once you’ve made the big decision to follow Christ all of your days, you will experience more and more wisdom, insight, patience,…and kindness in your everyday decisions. You will be increasingly joyful and peaceful in yourself, and increasingly kind to others. Many will be richly blessed through you—more than you will ever know!
John Wesley offers us some valuable words:
“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.”
A Personal Note
I offer thanks to God today for directing one-and-a-half years of “The Benediction Project” blog. There have been times when, due to my poor health, I have thought of suspending or even ending the project, but I am grateful that God has enabled me to continue. Thank you for walking with me during this journey. I value your participation greatly.
Friday, November 28, 2008
The Flow of the Spirit is Kindness: What if It's Not my Personality
Top 12 Scripture Texts: Number 11B
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
The fruit (flow, outcome, result) of the Holy Spirit in a person is a lot of things: love, joy, peace…and kindness (Galatians 5:22-23). If anyone calls himself or herself a follower of Jesus, we should see these qualities in that person’s life.
In the last posting I wrote about the meaning of kindness throughout the New Testament, and this time I will focus on the power behind kindness. Why are some people kind and others are not? What is it that produces kindness?
Personal Difficulties
I struggle at times to be kind, but I am very grateful for three things: I usually am aware (after a while, at least) that I need to be kind in a given situation; I usually gain some recognition of what kindness calls for in that situation; I can usually stop unkindness at the thought level, before it comes out in words or actions. But, above all, I am grateful for the power of God’s Holy Spirit within me to produce the flow—the fruit—of divine life through me. I also insist that it is God who works in me to generate the three aspects of kindness mentioned above, as well as any kind thoughts, words or actions toward others.
I cannot claim any inherent goodness that somehow produces kindness. I really have a nasty, selfish streak in me that tends to jump on people (in my mind) that I don’t like—sometimes even with those I do like—and I consider myself superior to them. My biggest concern in this blog posting is to show that one’s ability to be kind does not come from a natural disposition or personality, but from the life of the Spirit in those who have been born of the Spirit and are seeking to be conformed to God’s image.
Where to Turn for Help
Over the years of my Christian life I have found that the book of Galatians contains some valuable teachings about the third person of the Trinity—the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is presented as the spiritual power within us who, after giving us a new birth (Gal. 4:6-7; John 3:1-8), produces the good things of God within us and through us (Gal.3:1-14; 5:1-26).
I often quote Galatians 5:22-23 to myself simply as “The fruit of the Spirit is….” But I also need to keep in mind the whole context of Galatians 5, and the whole book of Galatians. I recommend that you read the book, since I am able to give only a few of its thoughts in what follows.
There is something in human nature that resists the free grace of God. The message of God’s great favor to us in Christ, giving us eternal life beginning now, seems to be too easy. We are, instead, drawn to a religion of law. We need to feel that we are not so bad—that we have the goodness in us to keep a set of laws in order to live as decent persons and earn whatever salvation there may be after this life. Religions around the world teach their followers to say endless rounds of prayer beads, practice self-denial in extreme measures, repeat one’s mantra, and practice impossibly high standards of righteousness from within our own selves.
The New Testament, however, taken as a whole, teaches that people in themselves are sinful…and lost. We need to be “born-again” according to Jesus (John 3). We are then dead to the law. Paul said: “I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me. I refuse to reject the grace of God. But if a person is put right with God through the Law, it means that Christ died for nothing” (Gal. 2:19-21, Today’s English Version).
The Spirit’s Action First
It is impossible to follow a system of law perfectly. And, while some non-Christians are very kind people, they must continue to try and find resources within themselves to live this way consistently. I am very thankful for the Spirit of Christ within, developing a life of kindness in and through me. Yes, I must respond to the Spirit’s leading in specific situations, but I am aware of God’s prior work in me. Two passages in Galatians 5 show this balance. In verse 16 we read: “What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the human nature.” Then, according to verses 25-26, “The Spirit has given us life; he must also control our lives. We must not be proud or irritate one another or be jealous of one another” (Today’s English Version). God’s Spirit within us produces the motivation and the strength, and then we are to do—or not do—those things that correspond to kind living.
It is not a matter of one’s personality, but of one’s relationship with a Person. The Spirit changes even the nastiest, crudest and most self-centered people into truly kind men and women, boys and girls. Never excuse your harsh, abrasive manner by saying that it is just your personality, or that your family line are all that way, or that “no one is perfect.” Yes, God’s standards are high, because he is a holy God, but he never asks us to do what he does not give us the power to do (Philippians 4:13).
Next time I intend to be more personal and more specific on how to become kind and how to show kindness.
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
The fruit (flow, outcome, result) of the Holy Spirit in a person is a lot of things: love, joy, peace…and kindness (Galatians 5:22-23). If anyone calls himself or herself a follower of Jesus, we should see these qualities in that person’s life.
In the last posting I wrote about the meaning of kindness throughout the New Testament, and this time I will focus on the power behind kindness. Why are some people kind and others are not? What is it that produces kindness?
Personal Difficulties
I struggle at times to be kind, but I am very grateful for three things: I usually am aware (after a while, at least) that I need to be kind in a given situation; I usually gain some recognition of what kindness calls for in that situation; I can usually stop unkindness at the thought level, before it comes out in words or actions. But, above all, I am grateful for the power of God’s Holy Spirit within me to produce the flow—the fruit—of divine life through me. I also insist that it is God who works in me to generate the three aspects of kindness mentioned above, as well as any kind thoughts, words or actions toward others.
I cannot claim any inherent goodness that somehow produces kindness. I really have a nasty, selfish streak in me that tends to jump on people (in my mind) that I don’t like—sometimes even with those I do like—and I consider myself superior to them. My biggest concern in this blog posting is to show that one’s ability to be kind does not come from a natural disposition or personality, but from the life of the Spirit in those who have been born of the Spirit and are seeking to be conformed to God’s image.
Where to Turn for Help
Over the years of my Christian life I have found that the book of Galatians contains some valuable teachings about the third person of the Trinity—the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is presented as the spiritual power within us who, after giving us a new birth (Gal. 4:6-7; John 3:1-8), produces the good things of God within us and through us (Gal.3:1-14; 5:1-26).
I often quote Galatians 5:22-23 to myself simply as “The fruit of the Spirit is….” But I also need to keep in mind the whole context of Galatians 5, and the whole book of Galatians. I recommend that you read the book, since I am able to give only a few of its thoughts in what follows.
There is something in human nature that resists the free grace of God. The message of God’s great favor to us in Christ, giving us eternal life beginning now, seems to be too easy. We are, instead, drawn to a religion of law. We need to feel that we are not so bad—that we have the goodness in us to keep a set of laws in order to live as decent persons and earn whatever salvation there may be after this life. Religions around the world teach their followers to say endless rounds of prayer beads, practice self-denial in extreme measures, repeat one’s mantra, and practice impossibly high standards of righteousness from within our own selves.
The New Testament, however, taken as a whole, teaches that people in themselves are sinful…and lost. We need to be “born-again” according to Jesus (John 3). We are then dead to the law. Paul said: “I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me. I refuse to reject the grace of God. But if a person is put right with God through the Law, it means that Christ died for nothing” (Gal. 2:19-21, Today’s English Version).
The Spirit’s Action First
It is impossible to follow a system of law perfectly. And, while some non-Christians are very kind people, they must continue to try and find resources within themselves to live this way consistently. I am very thankful for the Spirit of Christ within, developing a life of kindness in and through me. Yes, I must respond to the Spirit’s leading in specific situations, but I am aware of God’s prior work in me. Two passages in Galatians 5 show this balance. In verse 16 we read: “What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the human nature.” Then, according to verses 25-26, “The Spirit has given us life; he must also control our lives. We must not be proud or irritate one another or be jealous of one another” (Today’s English Version). God’s Spirit within us produces the motivation and the strength, and then we are to do—or not do—those things that correspond to kind living.
It is not a matter of one’s personality, but of one’s relationship with a Person. The Spirit changes even the nastiest, crudest and most self-centered people into truly kind men and women, boys and girls. Never excuse your harsh, abrasive manner by saying that it is just your personality, or that your family line are all that way, or that “no one is perfect.” Yes, God’s standards are high, because he is a holy God, but he never asks us to do what he does not give us the power to do (Philippians 4:13).
Next time I intend to be more personal and more specific on how to become kind and how to show kindness.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
The Flow of the Spirit is Kindness: Like Christ, our Kind Savior
Top 12 Scripture Texts: Number 11A
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
I have focused a lot over the years on Galatians 5. It has become one of the most important chapters in the Bible for me, and I am very grateful that the Spirit of God led the apostle Paul to write this section of scripture. For this month’s postings I want to dwell on verses 22 and 23, and one word in particular—kindness. The passage always grips me forcefully: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23, New International Version.
In Galatians 5:22-23, the apostle Paul lists nine dimensions of the fruit, or flow, of the Spirit. Note that “fruit” is in the singular, because the well-rounded servant of God is developing and demonstrating all of these spiritual qualities together. You and I cannot be truly joyful persons and not be faithful person. You and I cannot be truly peaceful persons if we are not self-controlled persons. If we speak of “fruits” of the Spirit, we may tend to think of these virtues in isolation from one another. The fruit of the Spirit, however, grows like a sweet melon on the vine, with all parts and systems of the fruit developing simultaneously.
The Meaning of Kindness
The Greek word (the noun) for “kindness,” as sounded out in English, is krestotes, or chrestotes, with the accent on the second syllable. The word is used ten times in the New Testament, all in the epistles of Paul: Romans 2:4a; 3:12; 11:22 (three times); 2 Corinthians 6:6; Galatians 5:22, Ephesians 2:7; Colossians 3:12; and Titus 3:4.
Another form of the word (the adjective) is krestos, or chrestos, and in Greek as well as in English there is only one letter difference between krestos and the word for Christ, Kristos, or Christos. Because of this, and because both words have the accent on the second syllable, the words sound almost the same in Greek as they do in English. How frequently the early Greek-speaking Christians joined the words together to declare that their Kristos—their anointed one, their Messiah—is a krestos Savior, we’ll never know, but I suspect that it was often. Krestos is used seven times in the New Testament: Matthew 11:30; Luke 5:39; 6:35; Romans 2:4b; 1 Corinthians 15:33; Ephesians 4:32; and 1 Peter 2:3.
The words krestotes and krestos have the sense of being useful, suitable, worthy, pleasant, morally upright, reputable, kind, loving and generous. These words obviously cover a wide range of meaning, so the context is key to understanding the sense in a given passage.
The Life Changing Word of God
A careful reading of the seventeen scriptures listed above may significantly change your life. If you read them in their biblical context, with your mind and heart open fully to God, and meditate in them—listening to God about living a kind and Christlike life—you may never be the same. Even though I have been studying the subject of kindness for many years, and have been trying intentionally to live kindly, I was amazed when I reviewed these powerful texts for this brief study. They speak of both the kindness of God and the kindness that we are to show (and think, and even feel, I believe) because the Spirit of our kind Savior is living in us and desiring to flow through us.
I chose to list all of the Bible verses using these words for “kind” and “kindness” with the hope that some of you—if only one or two—will look them up. I know that the tendency (I do it myself) is to hurry past Bible references, and so, to encourage you to go farther, I just want to write out a few of these verses and very briefly comment on them.
I have discussed earlier this year how Christ’s “yoke” is kind: “My yoke is easy (kind, gentle, not abrasive) and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). I continue to be lifted up and soothed by this teaching as I struggle with significant heart-transplant issues every day. Christ’s words strike me again in the famous text exhorting us to love our enemies. The reason Jesus says to love them and “do good to them” is because “the Most High…is kind to the ungrateful and wicked” (Luke 6:35). In my natural self I do not want God to be kind to these ones, but then I stand with mouth wide open when I realize that I myself have often been “ungrateful and wicked”!
One of the most important Bible texts used by God in my coming to him as Savior and Lord at the age of 19 is Ephesians 2:7-10. I saw clearly—enlightened by the Spirit of God—that it is “by grace…through faith,” not human effort or good deeds, that I could be saved. And now, these many years later, I am more aware then ever that this gift of eternal salvation is God’s “kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (verse 7). I have never been the same since that Thanksgiving Day in 1962! It was then that I “tasted that the Lord is kind” (I Peter 2:3). It is a remarkable testimony to God’s kindness when I reflect on my three birthdays during this calendar week: my physical birthday, my heart-transplant birthday (five years) and my spiritual birthday.
Finally, I close with one of the most powerful texts anywhere in the Bible: “Do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?” (Romans 2:4). I tend to think that God’s anger leads people to repentance, and it sometimes does—God’s intolerance of sin was a factor in my own conversion. But there is a remarkable kindness—a gentleness and generosity—that pulls us to him. Some of you know this personally, and I pray that if you do not, that you will come to him soon. In Jesus there is forgiveness, friendship, and daily, living hope for this life and for the next.
For you who know Christ, you have a powerful Agent of change within you—the Holy Spirit of God. Ask him today and in the days to come to make you a kind person. Practice often and intentionally to speak, act and think kindly toward everyone in your life. I assure you from personal experience you will enter a new dimension of life. You may even become a new person!
Galatians 5:22, 23
Bob Rakestraw
I have focused a lot over the years on Galatians 5. It has become one of the most important chapters in the Bible for me, and I am very grateful that the Spirit of God led the apostle Paul to write this section of scripture. For this month’s postings I want to dwell on verses 22 and 23, and one word in particular—kindness. The passage always grips me forcefully: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23, New International Version.
In Galatians 5:22-23, the apostle Paul lists nine dimensions of the fruit, or flow, of the Spirit. Note that “fruit” is in the singular, because the well-rounded servant of God is developing and demonstrating all of these spiritual qualities together. You and I cannot be truly joyful persons and not be faithful person. You and I cannot be truly peaceful persons if we are not self-controlled persons. If we speak of “fruits” of the Spirit, we may tend to think of these virtues in isolation from one another. The fruit of the Spirit, however, grows like a sweet melon on the vine, with all parts and systems of the fruit developing simultaneously.
The Meaning of Kindness
The Greek word (the noun) for “kindness,” as sounded out in English, is krestotes, or chrestotes, with the accent on the second syllable. The word is used ten times in the New Testament, all in the epistles of Paul: Romans 2:4a; 3:12; 11:22 (three times); 2 Corinthians 6:6; Galatians 5:22, Ephesians 2:7; Colossians 3:12; and Titus 3:4.
Another form of the word (the adjective) is krestos, or chrestos, and in Greek as well as in English there is only one letter difference between krestos and the word for Christ, Kristos, or Christos. Because of this, and because both words have the accent on the second syllable, the words sound almost the same in Greek as they do in English. How frequently the early Greek-speaking Christians joined the words together to declare that their Kristos—their anointed one, their Messiah—is a krestos Savior, we’ll never know, but I suspect that it was often. Krestos is used seven times in the New Testament: Matthew 11:30; Luke 5:39; 6:35; Romans 2:4b; 1 Corinthians 15:33; Ephesians 4:32; and 1 Peter 2:3.
The words krestotes and krestos have the sense of being useful, suitable, worthy, pleasant, morally upright, reputable, kind, loving and generous. These words obviously cover a wide range of meaning, so the context is key to understanding the sense in a given passage.
The Life Changing Word of God
A careful reading of the seventeen scriptures listed above may significantly change your life. If you read them in their biblical context, with your mind and heart open fully to God, and meditate in them—listening to God about living a kind and Christlike life—you may never be the same. Even though I have been studying the subject of kindness for many years, and have been trying intentionally to live kindly, I was amazed when I reviewed these powerful texts for this brief study. They speak of both the kindness of God and the kindness that we are to show (and think, and even feel, I believe) because the Spirit of our kind Savior is living in us and desiring to flow through us.
I chose to list all of the Bible verses using these words for “kind” and “kindness” with the hope that some of you—if only one or two—will look them up. I know that the tendency (I do it myself) is to hurry past Bible references, and so, to encourage you to go farther, I just want to write out a few of these verses and very briefly comment on them.
I have discussed earlier this year how Christ’s “yoke” is kind: “My yoke is easy (kind, gentle, not abrasive) and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). I continue to be lifted up and soothed by this teaching as I struggle with significant heart-transplant issues every day. Christ’s words strike me again in the famous text exhorting us to love our enemies. The reason Jesus says to love them and “do good to them” is because “the Most High…is kind to the ungrateful and wicked” (Luke 6:35). In my natural self I do not want God to be kind to these ones, but then I stand with mouth wide open when I realize that I myself have often been “ungrateful and wicked”!
One of the most important Bible texts used by God in my coming to him as Savior and Lord at the age of 19 is Ephesians 2:7-10. I saw clearly—enlightened by the Spirit of God—that it is “by grace…through faith,” not human effort or good deeds, that I could be saved. And now, these many years later, I am more aware then ever that this gift of eternal salvation is God’s “kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (verse 7). I have never been the same since that Thanksgiving Day in 1962! It was then that I “tasted that the Lord is kind” (I Peter 2:3). It is a remarkable testimony to God’s kindness when I reflect on my three birthdays during this calendar week: my physical birthday, my heart-transplant birthday (five years) and my spiritual birthday.
Finally, I close with one of the most powerful texts anywhere in the Bible: “Do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?” (Romans 2:4). I tend to think that God’s anger leads people to repentance, and it sometimes does—God’s intolerance of sin was a factor in my own conversion. But there is a remarkable kindness—a gentleness and generosity—that pulls us to him. Some of you know this personally, and I pray that if you do not, that you will come to him soon. In Jesus there is forgiveness, friendship, and daily, living hope for this life and for the next.
For you who know Christ, you have a powerful Agent of change within you—the Holy Spirit of God. Ask him today and in the days to come to make you a kind person. Practice often and intentionally to speak, act and think kindly toward everyone in your life. I assure you from personal experience you will enter a new dimension of life. You may even become a new person!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
