What is the reason behind your deeds or works? do you do it out of righteousness, obligation, or personal code ? This week we are talking about goodness, faithfulness and kindness to end our fruit of the Spirit series. Let’s dig in.
Goodness
Whenever I think of the word goodness, I think of psalm 23, “surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”. I used to think goodness was all about feeling good, you know the warm feeling you have inside when you think about God, but as I reflect on this week fruit, I realize how wrong I was. Goodness is not a feeling but instead it is when your deeds or works is motivated by righteousness. You can summarize it with this phrase ” holiness in action”, or in plain language you become a blessing to someone. Knowing the true meaning of this fruit put the right perspective when reading the psalms or any verses in the Bible because I know the intention of God’s heart and it is never to harm me but to bless me. Example of goodness is giving to the poor, feeding the homeless, confronting someone about sin, praying for the enemy and visiting the sick.
Faithfulness
If you can’t be faithful to God, then you most likely can’t be faithful with others on earth. Faithfulness has to do with having faith in God, consistency, following through with what you believe and not giving up in the hard time. We can’t be faithful to God with our own strength or will, but if we trust in him, the Holy Spirit will help us to be faithful. Once you understand the importance of faithfulness to God then the Holy Spirit can help you to be faithful to others. 1Thessalonians 5:24 says, “He who calls you is faithful, who will also do it” . So we never have to worry about if God can do it, because He will.
Kindness
Are you a kind person? well, I just realize I am not as kind as I claim to be when studying for this week fruit. God has revealed to me that kindness doesn’t mean having a nice attitude or to be pleasant. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s important to be nice and pleasant but these things don’t always mean that you are useful. Smiling when the person is struggling to open the door does not reflect your kindness. Driving by when you see your friends standing in the rain waiting for the bus will not reflect “your kind heart”. Kindness is the compassion we have for others that lead us to be useful, to do something to help them with no expectation. God showed his kindness when he provided salvation to us because it was free. God’s kindness protects us when we are afraid, as he wraps us up under his wing, and he helps us breathe when we’re being kicked by life’s trouble. God’s kindness lead us to repentance. Because of the Kindness God has towards us, we can learn how to be kind to others.
Living Freely in Christ 