Kindness

Tender regard the Spirit grows for the person in front of you - not polite distance or performance niceness.

Key Concept

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 NASB1995

• Fruits of the Spirit names kindness beside goodness - soft strength toward actual people, not a generic nice-guy pose.
• Level 1: Kindness is gentle care for the real person in front of you - not acting polite just to look good.
• Level 2: Fruits of the Spirit names kindness beside goodness - soft strength toward actual people, like a hand on a shoulder, not a generic nice-guy pose.
• Level 3: Generic niceness performs for observers; kindness meets the person in front of you with soft strength - audience applause is not the aim.
• Level 4: Show gentle strength to the actual person in the room - not a polite pose for bystanders.
• Level 5: Goodness pairs with kindness in Fruits of the Spirit - both aim outward, not at a nice-guy brand.
• Mercy is the garden echo: compassion on the guilty, act for the hurt person, release the debt you are counting because the King cleared yours.
• Love Your Neighbor and The Golden Rule turn kindness outward - tender regard for the person in front, not performance niceness for an audience.
• Kindness at home counts - not only polite distance at the office.

Examples

• The parent I would rather avoid sits on my side every game - kindness fruit was moving my chair over and asking how his kid's ankle was healing.
• I was polite in the office and sharp with my family at dinner - Galatians kindness is tender regard at home too, not performance for an audience.

Note Relationships