The fruit of the Spirit is…kindness

“The fruit of the Spirit is…kindness…” (Galatians 5:22 NASB) The King James Version has the word “gentleness” here but almost all modern versions read “kindness.” “The fruit of the Spirit is…kindness.” Kindness describes the gentle, gracious, generous disposition that results in the doing of favors, the showing of mercies, and the bestowing of benefits on others. The kind person is gracious, not harsh; sympathetic, not indifferent; and helpful, not uninvolved. He is considerate, compassionate and charitable. There is a natural kindness which even the people of the world show to one another. But the kindness which is produced by the Spirit is supernatural. It goes above and beyond anything that man is capable of doing by himself. It enables a believer to lend, hoping for nothing in return. It enables him to show hospitality to those who cannot repay him. It enables him to reward every insult with a courtesy. A Christian university student displayed this supernatural kindness toward another student who was an alcoholic. The latter had become so disgusting that he had been rejected by his classmates and finally was evicted from his quarters. The Christian had an extra bed in his room and so invited the drunk to live with him. Many nights the believer had to clean up his roommate’s vomit, take his clothes off, bathe him and put him to bed. It was a magnificent display of Christian kindness. And—to complete the story—it paid off. Once, during a sober period, the dissolute fellow asked with irritation, “Say, look here, why are you doing all this for me? What are you after?” The Christian replied, “I’m after your soul”—and he got it. When Dr. Ironside was cleaning out the cellar one day, he called a Jewish junk dealer to cart away the papers, magazines, rags and scrap metal. Dr. Ironside pretended to bargain seriously for a good price for the junk, but the junk man won, of course. When he was taking the last load out to his truck, kindly H. A. I. called him back, saying, “Oh, I forgot something. I want to give you this in the Name of the Lord Jesus.” And he handed him fifty cents. The junk dealer went away, saying, “No one ever gave me anything in the Name of Jesus before.” “The fruit of the Spirit is…kindness.”