Every Day Light

[Judy Harder]

     Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Every Day Light

No reason to smile
Proverbs 17:17-28
"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." (v.22)

A surprising thing takes place in those whose temper is tempered by the Holy Spirit -- bad temper is replaced by a growing sense of humor. God has given us the power of humor, not only to laugh at things, but to laugh off things. I am not suggesting that we ought to use laughter to deny realities, but humor often reduces things to their proper size.
I once heard a preacher say: "There is no good in a movement or a person where there is no good humor, for goodness has laughter as a corollary." There is something basically wrong with a person who, at appropriate times, cannot break out into hearty laughter. I heard recently of a member of the Irish Republican Army who was wonderfully converted. He spent the first month after his conversion in the home of a minister who said of him: "It was two weeks before I saw him smile, and when I spoke to him about this, he said: 'I have been in a grim business, plotting against people -- and the way I was living, there was just no reason to smile.' " How tragic -- "just no reason to smile." Depend on it, where you cannot smile, you cannot live -- you just exist.

Over the years, I have watched many groups come to the CWR Institutes in Christian Counselling. Many are tied up with fears, guilts and apprehension. We invite them to share their fears and get them up and out. They do. Then the laughter begins. They grow progressively happier as the week goes on. By the end of the week, they are ready to laugh at anything -- themselves included.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, it is said of You that You were anointed "with the oil of gladness more than your companions." Let that same anointing rest and remain upon me today -- and every day. For Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.
For Further Study
Prov. 15:1-15; James 5:13; Psa. 126:2
1. What does a happy heart enjoy?
2. How is this expressed? 

[Judy Harder]

October 29

Warm goodwill to others
Colossians 3:1-15
"... clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." (v.12)

The fifth virtue listed in the fruit of the Spirit is kindness. The King James Version uses the word "gentleness" but there is little doubt that "kindness" is a more faithful translation of the original Greek word -- chrestotes. "Kindness" is a very beautiful word; it means "a kindly disposition, or warm goodwill toward others."One commentator says that if you wanted to express Christianity in one English word, you would use the word "kindness." To speak, for example, of an "unkind Christian" is almost a contradiction in terms. There is some evidence that in the early centuries of the Church, non-Christians used the words "kindly" and "Christian" as synonyms. Tertullian, one of the Church Fathers, said, "The words were so allied in meaning that no harm was done by the confusion."I once asked a church youth group, if I had the power to give them just eight of the fruit instead of nine, which one would they be willing to do without. Almost everyone in the group said "kindness." When I asked why, they explained that for them, the word conjured up a picture of weakness and sentimentality. I told the group that they were obviously unaware of the true meaning of the word "kindness," and that a kindly disposition does not necessarily mean maudlin sentimentality. So let's be quite clear what we are talking about when we use this word: kindness is a supernatural virtue endowed upon us by the Holy Spirit, engendering within us a warm goodwill to others. How much of it, I wonder, will flow out to others today from you and me?
Prayer:

Gracious Father, help me today to be clothed with kindness. Make me a person who can show warmth and goodwill to others. I ask this for Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.
For Further Study
Rom. 12:1-10; 1 Cor. 13:4; Eph. 4:32
1. What was Paul's exhortation to the Romans?
2. What does "compassionate" mean?

[Judy Harder]

October 30

What kindness is not

Ephesians 4:17-32
"Be kind and compassionate to one another ..." (v.32)

We saw yesterday how a group of young people had a wrong concept of kindness, viewing it as just maudlin sentimentality. It is surprising how debased the word "kindness" has become, in both Christian and non-Christian thought.
Some Christians accept the word because it is used in Scripture, but have no real desire to acquire the virtue because, to them, it smacks of sentimentality and weakness. The world uses the word but, separated as it is from any thought of God, "kindness" comes out as a mild compensation for a lack of firmness and clear thinking. People say, rather patronizingly in some cases: "Oh, he's a kind fellow" -- and they leave it there. The word has come to wear thin in the currency of the world (and in some parts of the Church), so there is a great need to see it minted afresh and gleaming bright in the commerce of modern-day Christian life.

Think with me still further about what kindness, the fruit of the Spirit, is not. Kindness is not being a "do-gooder." In fact, the word in the original Greek does not imply active goodness but a disposition of goodwill, although active goodness may be one expression of it. Many think of kindness as giving money to people who have a financial need, but just giving money to people who appear to need it, without being guided by the Spirit, can result in great harm. Giving to people at the wrong time can take away from them something more precious than is being given. There are few things in which we have more need of the direction and guidance of the Holy Spirit than in our giving.

Prayer:

O Father, help me to discern between what is true and what is counterfeit. I want my kindness to be genuine kindness -- the sort of kindness that helps people, not hurts them. Amen.
For Further Study
2 Pet. 1:1-7; 1 Thess. 3:12; 1 Pet. 1:22
1. What are we to add to godliness?
2. In what ways are you currently showing kindness to others?

[Judy Harder]

October 31

A debased word
Romans 2:1-11
"... not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?" (v.4)

We continue looking at counterfeit forms of kindness. Kindness is not indulgence. Supernatural kindness can be severe -- severe because it loves so deeply that it can come up with a hard refusal. It is based on God's kindness, which can cut when, just like a surgeon, He insists on cutting out of us moral tumors that threaten our spiritual health. But always God's severity is our security. It is redemptive; He loves us too much to let us go. Kindness, which is the fruit of the Spirit, is like that.
Again, kindness is not a substitute for clear thinking. In being "kind" to one person, people can often be unkind to another. The wrong kindness -- that is, kindness which does not operate on clear guidelines and right thinking -- can deride justice. For example, a businessman remarked to his wife that he was dismissing the chauffeur on the grounds that he was an unsafe driver. "He nearly killed me today," he said. "That is the third time." His "kind" wife answered: "Oh, don't dismiss him, dear -- give him one more chance."Another example of misguided kindness comes out of the law courts. A woman on trial for murdering her husband was acquitted chiefly because of the efforts of one "kind" lady on the jury. Explaining her attitude to someone after the trial, she said: "I felt so sorry for her. After all, she had become a widow." By such examples as these, "kindness" has become a debased word -- a fact that can hardly be denied. People have found it easier to be "kind" than truthful. Howdesperately the word cries out to be redeemed.

Prayer:

O God, take my hand and lead me through the fog and confusion that surrounds this word. Help me understand that true kindness can be a cutting kindness -- kindness that gives life and not lenience. Amen.
For Further Study
Isa. 63:1-9; Psa. 17:7; 26:3; 63:3
1. What was the psalmist's testimony?
2. Out of what does God's loving kindness flow?

[Judy Harder]

November 1

The kindly rain
Matthew 5:38-48
"... your Father in heaven ... sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (v.45)

The word "kindness" in Scripture is used more of God than of anyone else. William Barclay says: "It is something of a joyous revelation to discover that when the King James Version calls God good, again and again the meaning is not just moral goodness but kindness." The goodness of God is not something we need shrink away from in fear, but something that draws us to Him with cords of love. This does not mean, of course, that God is indifferent concerning our sins and moral violations; it means that He is so warmly disposed toward us that He has provided through the Cross a way whereby our sin can be forgiven and forgotten. In the Old Testament, especially the Psalms, the expression "loving kindness" is often used. A little boy explained the difference between kindness and loving kindness like this: "Kindness is when your mother gives you a piece of bread and butter; loving kindness is when she puts jam on it as well."In the New Testament, however, a content has gone into kindness which has made the adding of the word "loving" unnecessary. The Moffatt translation brings out this thought most beautifully when it says: "Treat one another with the same spirit as you experience in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 2:5). Not merely the same actions, but the same spirit in the actions as was in Jesus. This shows kindness to be more than just actions -- but attitudes. I can think of no better definition for kindness than this -- kindness is treating others the way God has treated us.
Prayer:

Father, just as you let Your kindly rain fall on the evil and the good, help me to rain kindliness on everyone I meet today -- regardless of who or what they are. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
For Further Study
Rom. 2:1-4; Psa. 25:6; 33:5
1. What are we not to despise?
2. What leads us to repentance?

[Judy Harder]

November 2

What this sad world needs

Proverbs 19:20-29
"What is desired in a man is kindness ..." (v.22, NKJV)

Now that we have put into the word "kindness" the content of Jesus -- "treat one another with the same spirit as you experience in Christ Jesus" -- we must now consider how to develop and grow in kindness. Ella Wheeler Wilcox has said: So many gods, so many creeds So many paths that wind and wind When all that this sad world needs Is just the art of being kind.

Human kindness may be important, but supernatural kindness is even more important. It is what "this sad world needs." The importance of kindness is seen by the fact that an act of kindness lingers on in the memory. Once, when about to step on to the platform of the Colston Hall, Bristol, to speak to a large audience and feeling a little weighed down by personal circumstances at the time, a few ladies who represented an organization called "Women Aglow" handed me a little box in which was a beautiful flower. Along with it was a message: "We love you and are praying for you." That kindness and the spirit that prompted it stood out like a star on a dark night. I have never forgotten it and will never forget it. It will live on within me until the day I die. If kindness can minister such comfort and encouragement, then how imperative it is that we ask God to ripen this fruit within us. Of the many things surrounding Paul's shipwreck on Malta, Luke recalls in particular that the "islanders showed us unusual kindness" (Acts 28:2).

Prayer:

O Father, help me to demonstrate the fruit of kindness this day so that somebody, somewhere, may use it as a light to lighten their darkness. In Christ's Name I ask. Amen.

For Further Study
Luke 10:30-37; Matt. 23:37; Mark 1:41
1. List at least five kindnesses in this parable.
2. What moved the Samaritan to act in this way?

[Judy Harder]

November 3

The great peril of the saints
Matthew 25:31-46
"... whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." (v.40)

How does kindness grow in us? It depends on how deeply we live in God. Some Christians set out to be kind but kindness which is the fruit of the Spirit is not the result of self-effort but comes from abiding in Christ. The Christian abides in Christ and the fruit grows and ripens of its own accord.
The kindest Christians are those who have no ambition to be kind and hold no such thought. This is not to say that they do not desire to be kind, but they do not try to manufacture their kindness. Consumed with a longing to be more like Jesus every day, their thought is not on their personal sanctity but on how they can reflect their Lord. They come across as people who were so self-forgetful that it could be said of them what was said of Samuel Barnett of Toynbee Hall: "He forgot himself even to the extent of forgetting that he had forgotten."The great peril of the Christian life is that we may become selfish in our consuming longing to be unselfish. Only as our roots go down daily into God through prayer and meditation in His Word can we be kept secure from the temptation to focus on growth for its own sake -- rather than for His sake. The person whose kindness is an appetite for praise gives up when the praise does not come. And they give up more quickly still if people say: "What are you getting out of this yourself?" The Christian whose kindness flows out of his relationship with God never gives up. He just can't help being kind.

Prayer:

O Father, help me to spend time with You so that in the legislature of my heart, You may write the law of kindness. Help me to come under its sway forever. Amen.
For Further Study
2 Cor. 9:1-6; Deut. 15:7-8; Psa. 41:1; Acts 20:35
1. How are we to sow?
2. Of what did Paul remind the Ephesian elders?

[Judy Harder]

November 4

The essential flavoring
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
"In purity, understanding, patience and kindness ..." (v.6)

Nothing else we do can atone for a lack of kindness. Many people excuse themselves for a lack of kindness by pointing to the things they do for someone -- "I am working my fingers to the bone for him." Yes, but the fleshless fingers will not atone for unkind words and attitudes.
Even ministers who work hard but lack this essential kindness are no exception. Paul lists well over twenty-five things in the passage before us that are marks of a true servant of God, and notice how he puts "kindness" right in the middle of them. At the center of all his "proofs" is kindness. I do not think it is by chance that this virtue of kindness is also the middle virtue of the nine fruits of the Spirit. Without kindness, there is no virtue in the other virtues. This one puts flavor in all the rest -- without it, they are insipid and tasteless. So to grow in kindness is to grow in virtues that are flavored with a certain spirit -- the spirit of Jesus.

It remains a fact, however, that multitudes of Christian people are not kind. Some eminent Christian leaders have not been as eminent in this fruit of the Spirit as in others, and have worn their halo a little askew. Many are stern and unfeeling. They grow hard with sinners. Disciplined as they are in virtue, they become censorious and critical and their passion for righteousness makes it hard for them to show tenderness to violators of God's law. Jesus upheld God's laws more than anyone -- yet He was called "the Friend of sinners."

Prayer:

My Father and my God, although I never want to lessen the gravity of sin, I do want to be a person who shows tenderness to those who are enmeshed in it. Help me become that kind of person. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
For Further Study
Luke 6:27-38; Prov. 11:25, 22:9
1. With what attitude are we to bestow kindness?
2. How does God respond to the unthankful and evil?

[Judy Harder]

November 5

Deep down goodness
Acts 10:34-48
"... God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and ... he went around doing good ..." (v.38)

We come now to the sixth fruit of the Spirit -- goodness.
Most commentators agree that it is the hardest fruit to define as the word "good" is used so widely that it can mean nearly everything and nearly nothing. In some circles, for example, a man is regarded as "good" if he simply keeps out of the hands of the police, while in other circles "goodness" consists of being "highly respectable."The New Testament use of this word (Greek: agathosune) is meager -- apart from its use in Galatians 5:22, it appears on only three other occasions (2 Thess. 2:17, Eph. 5:9 and Rom. 15:14). So it is not easy to pinpoint the real meaning of the word. It is the view of most writers and Bible commentators that supernatural goodness is not just doing good things (though it includes that) but it is essential goodness -- goodness in the inner parts.

This deep down goodness, like kindness, is first an attitude before it becomes an action. In fact, some commentators are of the view that it is more non-verbal than verbal -- it is evidenced not so much in words as in one's whole demeanor. And it is a goodness which unconsciously proclaims itself. One feels it as an aura around its possessor. Its radiations are so powerful that it is doubtful whether anyone could be near to it and yet be unaware of it. Many, especiallynon-Christians, might not be able to describe what they feel in the presence of this "goodness," but they would feel something. And that something is the character of Christ flowing in and through one of His followers.

Prayer:

O Father, how I long to be the channel and not the stopping place of all Your blessings to me. Let this grace, as well as the others, be seen in me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.
For Further Study
Eph. 5:1-10; Nah. 1:7; Psa. 119:68; 145:9
1. What was the psalmist's testimony?
2. What is the result of walking as children of the light?

[Judy Harder]

November 6

"Secret death"
Romans 6:1-14
"Because anyone who has died has been freed from sin." (v.7)

We are seeing that "goodness" is essential goodness -- goodness in the inner parts. William Sangster, in my view, comes closest to grasping the content of this sixth fruit of the Spirit when he says: "Goodness is the impression a Christian makes as he moves on his way, blissfully unaware that he is reminding people of Jesus Christ." Perhaps we can get no nearer to a definition of supernatural goodness than that -- reminding people of Jesus Christ. But note the words -- "blissfully unaware ..." A Christian is largely unconscious of this fruit at work within him, for it is not something he tries to manufacture but something that flows out of his deep relationship with Jesus Christ.
George Muller of Bristol, the man who cared for so many stranded orphans, was said to demonstrate the fruit of "goodness" to a remarkable degree. Dr. A.

T. Pierson says in his biography of the great man that one day, Muller was pressed to share what he considered to be the power behind his ministry, and he surprised his questioner by talking about his secret death. "There was a day," he said, "when I died; utterly died" -- and as he spoke, he bent lower until he almost touched the floor. He continued: "I died to George Muller, his opinions, preferences, tastes and will; died to the world, its approval or censure; died to the approval or blame even of my brethren and friends; and since then I have studied only to show myself approved of God." In those who manifest the fruit of goodness, one thing is always clear -- they have "died" to their own interests and have returned to "live" for Christ's.

Prayer:

Gracious and loving Father, help me also to "die" to my own interests so that I might return and live for Your interests. Whatever I need to bring me to this place, lead me toward it -- today. In Christ's Name I ask it. Amen.

For Further Study
Gal. 2:1-20; 2 Tim. 2:11; Col. 2:20, 3:3
1. What was Paul's testimony?
2. Why did he have to admonish the Colossians?