Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Phil. 1:6).  Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.  (Phil. 2:12-13). Ask and it will be given to you seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.  Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?  If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to those who ask him, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him?  (Matt. 7:7-12).  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  (Matt. 7:19).  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has gone, the new has come.  (2 Cor. 5:17).

1. In Phillipians 1:6, who began the good work in us and who will carry it on?

2. What good work has God begun in your life?

3. In Phil. 2:12-13, what are we to do and what does God do?

4. That good work God has begun in you – are you working with Him in it – or, perhaps waiting for Him to do it all – or maybe trying to force the good fruit in your own strength?

5. Are you in a place where you can honestly ask God to make you a good tree that bears good fruit?  Why/why not?

Today, another lectio divino.

Let your imagination fill in the blanks as you would experience if you were physically there: imagine what the weather was like?  Imagine the smells – food,  wine.  Listen with your ears – was there a chatter of people talking around the table?  See with your eyes, was it dimly lit inside, growing dark outside with a fire burning in a hearth?

Keeping these things in mind, turn to Matthew 26:6-13 – read it, or even listen to it on a Bible app. 
What did God impress upon you?

Look again at verse 10 – “Why are you bothering this woman?”  Jesus asks in response to the disciples indignation.  “She has done a beautiful thing to me.”  “Beautiful” is what my version says.  But, according to Strong’s Concordance, that word is “agathos” or “good.”  Beauty = good.

What beauty have you experienced recently?

Today, another lectio divino.  Jesus is traveling through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem – a journey of about 15 miles.  He had just miraculously healed a blind man and the crowd grew in size and fervor. 

Now, open up your Bible to Luke 19:1-10 – imagining the sights, smells, sounds – put yourself in the scene.

What did the Spirit impress upon you?

Love does not illustrate, it simply is the goodness beyond the goodness of the scribes and Pharisees.  All the illustrations [Jesus] has given in the various situations discussed in 5:20-48 are illustrations of it.  In it we achieve living union with, have fully entered into, the kingdom of the heavens.  (Willard, The Divine Conspiracy p. 181).

The rest of this week is going to be a little different.  While I was praying about how to study goodness, I think God impressed upon me that doing a word-study on “goodness” was not what He had in mind for this week.  What I felt prompted to do was have us look more deeply at a few instances from Jesus’ life here on earth.

Jesus is goodness incarnate, what better way to study goodness than to become more familiar with Him?

Remember lectio divino?  While I’m not entirely sure of the “right” way to practice lecio divino, my “version” of it is to settle yourself in a comfortable position, take a few deep breaths and ask the Holy Spirit to come, awaken your soul to truth in the scripture.  Then, as you prepare to read the passage, use all your senses.  Let your imagination fill in the blanks as you would experience if you were physically there: imagine was the weather hot?  Imagine the smells – dusty perhaps on the road, mingled with animals?  Listen with your ears – was there a chatter of people talking as they traveled, the sound of wheels creaking on a donkey drawn cart?  See with your eyes, look at the scene and the people around.

We are going to look at a story from Luke 17:11-19.  Before we read it, though, let’s set the stage even more.

The Levitical law prohibited a person with an infectious skin disease – who had been declared “unclean” by the priest – to live within the general community.  That person had to wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of their face and cry out “unclean!  Unclean!”  As long as the infectious disease lasted, the person had to live alone,  outside the camp.  (Leviticus 13:9-1, 45).

If you don’t know much about leprosy, feel free to look it up on the internet.  My “internet research” shows that it is a skin condition that causes white sores on the body that can be quite painful – the pain can include nerve pain, a leper may be unable to feel their extremities, and have a  disfigured face (among other things).  It is contagious, although the incubation period can be a period of years.
Now, come to the scene from Jesus’ life.  In Luke 17:11-19.  He is traveling along the road when the lepers appear to Him.  Employing lectio divino, read through the scene.

What did the Spirit impress upon you?

But the fruit of the Spirit is … goodness.
 
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.  And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.  God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. – God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.  (Genesis 1:1-4, 31).  [L]ive a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.  Nor should there be foolish talk or coarse joking which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. – For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.  (Eph. 5:1-4, 8-10).  Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  (Phil. 1:6). 

1. What kinds of things does the world say are “good”? 

2. In Genesis, what did God call good (feel free to also look over the entirety of chapter 1)?

3. According to the Ephesians verses, what are we now in the Lord and how are we to live because of that?

4. According to Philippians, what has God begun in us?

When I began to turn “kindness” over in my head, it almost always turned into gentleness.  A kind word.  Opposite of a mean, sharp or rough one.  A soft word.
 
I remembered reading a blog post on kindness a while back.  In it the author (Emily P. Freeman) posited that kind is not nice.  Nice is an ooey, gooey term that – so she and the author a book she was reading and promoting – denotes a soft exterior and soft interior.   That is, “nice” has no conviction or character.  “Kind” on the other hand is soft on the exterior and with a firm center.  Aggression of course, is a hard exterior and firm center.   

“If you have hard edges and firm center, that’s called aggression.  If you have soft edges and spongey center, that’s called niceness.”  She writes.  The way of kindness, she says, is this:  “Rather than the harshness of firm centers and hard edges, and rather than the weakness of spongy centers and soft edges, why don’t we start with kindness? Kindness is the way of firm centers and soft edges . . . It’s time for followers of Jesus to rediscover the power of kindness.” (Barry H. Corey, Love Kindness).

I like this idea.  I generally like what Emily has to say and think she’s right on.  I mean, if God is kind, kind cannot be the opposite of truth or character.  Kindness is not passivity.  But, being the egg-head I am, since her post didn’t contain any Bible references, I don’t know if it’s right.  It’s also certainly not something I’m comfortable completely adhering to in a Bible study that I’m writing. 
I looked up the guy with the book (the book itself probably is loaded with Bible references and support for it’s thesis) – it looks totally interesting and worth a read, but I didn’t have time to do that right now.

So, once again I turned to my old King James Strong’s Concordance.  When I looked up “kindness,” (the word that appears in my NIV) our verses did not make an appearance.  Pull up blueletterbible.org yourself and looked up Galations 5:22-23 in the King James.  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”  Which KJV word is translated “kindness” in the NIV?  “Gentleness.”  In the Greek it’s chrestotes – usefulness, excellence in character or demeanor:  –gentleness, good (-ness), kindness.” 

Meanwhile, I have recently been reminded of that slogan from a few decades back, “practice random acts of kindness and senseless  acts of beauty.”  While the idea of practicing kindness is wonderful – the slogan itself is actually silly: as Dallas Willard asked, how can one practice something random?  (Although off-topic, he also points out that no act of beauty is senseless because the beautiful is never absurd.).  Don’t get me wrong: I absolutely agree that we need more kindness in our world.  Kindness is beautiful.  But, we need to cultivate kindness — not randomly act kind.  We need to purposefully understand the kindness of the Lord to encourage kindness to grow and spread in our lives.
This, though, strays from a Bible study about kindness and why it is also translated as gentleness, usefulness and excellence in character or demeanor.  To that, I have no answer and I’m still synthesizing, praying and turning it over in my mind.

So, I’m a bit embarrassed to admit how I’ve struggled with kindness.  I don’t have anything wrapped up for you to summarize it.  My pastor gave a sermon many years ago about the fruit of the Spirit.  He preached that all the virtues are contained in the single virtue: love.  The virtues, he said, all build upon one another and they all are a part of what makes up love.  At the time, I thought this was a bit of a cop-out.  Felt cheated in the sermon, maybe “c’mon!  We could hear a few practical points about all of the fruit of the Spirit…”  Now, I’m beginning to see that he’s right.  Love is kind.  God’s loving kindness has been lavished on us.  Kindness is a component of love.

So, there are my bits and pieces of thought about kindness.  I would have included more Biblical references to kindness – likely from the Old Testament – but when I strayed into the “word” study, it didn’t feel quite right to throw up various verses that aren’t either the same vein or that haven’t been impressed upon me by the Spirit.

But, perhaps the Lord has impressed upon you something about His kindness recently.  I would truly enjoy hearing about it, if so, please share!

Forget not all His benefits. Psalm 103:2

It is a delightful and profitable occupation to mark the hand of God in the lives of ancient saints, and to observe His goodness in delivering them, His mercy in pardoning them, and His faithfulness in keeping His covenant with them. But would it not be even more interesting and profitable for us to remark the hand of God in our own lives? Ought we not to look upon our own history as being at least as full of God, as full of His goodness and of His truth, as much a proof of His faithfulness and veracity, as the lives of any of the saints who have gone before? We do our Lord an injustice when we suppose that He wrought all His mighty acts, and showed Himself strong for those in the early time, but doth not perform wonders or lay bare His arm for the saints who are now upon the earth. Let us review our own lives. Surely in these we may discover some happy incidents, refreshing to ourselves and glorifying to our God. Have you had no deliverances? Have you passed through no rivers, supported by the divine presence? Have you walked through no fires unharmed? Have you had no manifestations? Have you had no choice favours? The God who gave Solomon the desire of his heart, hath He never listened to you and answered your requests? That God of lavish bounty of whom David sang, “Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things,” hath He never satiated you with fatness? Have you never been made to lie down in green pastures? Have you never been led by the still waters? Surely the goodness of God has been the same to us as to the saints of old. Let us, then, weave His mercies into a song. Let us take the pure gold of thankfulness, and the jewels of praise and make them into another crown for the head of Jesus. Let our souls give forth music as sweet and as exhilarating as came from David’s harp, while we praise the Lord whose mercy endureth for ever. (CH Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, Morning July 8).

I hesitated to include another devotional from Spurgeon today.  But, as I pondered kindness, this devotional was impressed upon my heart.  And, as I worked through another Bible study the next morning, it made the same plea – remember the kindnesses of the Lord in your life, specific instances of it. 

There are many people throughout Biblical history who prayed in such a way.  First, they reminded themselves about God’s mighty and kind acts toward them before they turned their prayers and petitions to their current circumstances. Should we not do the same?

If you have time and the Spirit prompts you – dive into Isaiah 63:11-14, Exodus 33:1-15 or Numbers 14:13-19, 2 Chronicles 20:6-12; Daniel 9:15-19; Ezra 9:6-15 or Nehemiah 1:5-11.  Experience the way the saints prayed to God, clinging to His mighty acts and kindness to them. 

Now, turn to your own life: where have you experienced His kindnesses?  Let your mind go far and wide.  Remembering these tender kindnesses, remember that God’s character does not change.  He is loving and kind.  And, He desires to bring Himself glory through your circumstances.  Will you bring your current challenges before Him?

But the fruit of the Spirit is … kindness. (Gal. 5:25).  Love is … kind.  (1 Cor. 13:4).

The kindness and love of God our Saviour. Titus 3:4

How sweet it is to behold the Saviour communing with His own beloved people! There can be nothing more delightful than, by the Divine Spirit, to be led into this fertile field of delight. Let the mind for an instant consider the history of the Redeemer’s love, and a thousand enchanting acts of affection will suggest themselves, all of which have had for their design the weaving of the heart into Christ, and the intertwisting of the thoughts and emotions of the renewed soul with the mind of Jesus. When we meditate upon this amazing love, and behold the all-glorious Kinsman of the Church endowing her with all His ancient wealth, our souls may well faint for joy. Who is he that can endure such a weight of love? That partial sense of it which the Holy Spirit is sometimes pleased to afford, is more than the soul can contain; how transporting must be a complete view of it! When the soul shall have understanding to discern all the Saviour’s gifts, wisdom wherewith to estimate them, and time in which to meditate upon them, such as the world to come will afford us, we shall then commune with Jesus in a nearer manner than at present. But who can imagine the sweetness of such fellowship? It must be one of the things which have not entered into the heart of man, but which God hath prepared for them that love Him. Oh, to burst open the door of our Joseph’s granaries, and see the plenty which He hath stored up for us! This will overwhelm us with love. By faith we see, as in a glass darkly, the reflected image of His unbounded treasures, but when we shall actually see the heavenly things themselves, with our own eyes, how deep will be the stream of fellowship in which our soul shall bathe itself! Till then our loudest sonnets shall be reserved for our loving benefactor, Jesus Christ our Lord, whose love to us is wonderful, passing the love of women.  (CH Spurgeon, Morning and Evening, Morning June 4, 2017).

Praise the LORD, O my soul.  O LORD my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.  He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.  He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. – He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work. – How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.  (Psalm 104:1-3, 13, 24).

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.  Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.  Because of these things the wrath of God is coming.  You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.  But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these:  anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.  Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and is in all.  Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  (Col. 3:1-12).

1. Where are we to set our hearts and minds?

2. Where is a believers life now hidden?  Who is a believer’s life?

3. Which of the items listed that belong to a believer’s old life and earthly nature do you tend to struggle with?  What is our new self being renewed by?

4. After putting off the old man, how is a believer to clothe themselves? 

5. Meditate upon the Psalm above – or another Psalm that points your heart toward God’s greatness – and ask the Lord to help you clothe yourself in the richness of his kindness for your day.

But the fruit of the Spirit is … kindness. (Gal. 5:25).  [W]hen the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.   He save us by the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3 – 7).  You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.  When you, a mere man, pass judgment on [others] and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?  Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?  (Romans 2:1,3-4).   As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.  All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts.   Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.  But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. (Eph 2:1-7). 

1. What kindness has God shown you recently?

2. What virtues do you see occurring together in these verses? 

3.  According to these verses, what is God rich in?  How does His richness express itself?