Thursday, April 12, 2007
Kindness and Goodness....
We live in a world where kindness and goodness are still appreciated...the days of random acts of kindness have been popular as well as charitable actions in the mainstream of society. Even Hollywood has shown kindness in their ability to give to others from their excess. American Idol has a new push for giving to the needs of African children--to help them with their education. It is all very kind and good. I appreciate their efforts and hope that many are helped by their actions. But have you ever thought about what distinguishes believers' acts of kindness and goodness from the world's? What makes what we do any different from anyone that does kind things for others? Hopefully our motivations are grounded in God's Word and in who He is...The word kindness is defined from Webster's 1828 dictionary as that temper or disposition which delights in contributing to the happiness of others, which is exercised cheerfully in gratifying their wishes, supplying their wants, or alleviating their distresses.
kindness -from the greek word "chrestotes" from Vine's dictionary is described as goodness of heart...kind disposition towards others.
Goodness is defined as the state of being good...the moral qualities which constitute Christian excellence; moral virtue; religion.
goodness from the greek word "agathosune" from Vine's says it is goodness in actions, beneficial.
So the difference in these 2 words are: Kindness is a disposition toward others and goodness is kind actions toward others.
After studying Jerry Bridges' book "The Practice of Godliness",there are very distinct differences from kindness and goodness from believers who exhibit the fruits of the Spirit and the kindness and goodness of the world in general.
Here are some of the major differences:
Worldy Kindness:
External change in manners only
Convenient
Out of excess
Impulsive
Deserving
Something in return
Praise of man
Self-will
Contrasted to Christian Kindness:
Internal change of heart/manner
Costly
Self sacrificing
Rational and considerate
Underserving--even towards enemies
Nothing in return
Praise of God
Holy Spirit produced fruit
Our model for kindness of course is God...the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
(Luke 6:35, Romans 2:4, Ephesians 2:1-7, Titus 3:3-5)
God's goodness is seen throughout scripture as well. (Psalm 119:68, 31:19, 86:5, 145:7-9, 23:6, John 10:11-14)
God is:
Originally good--good in and of Himself, in His essence
Infintely good--in amount and extent
Perfectly good--complete, lacking nothing
Immutably good--can not be bad, only and always good
Thankfully He communicates His goodness to us!
Thanks to Terry--our wise teacher who taught on this lesson last night in our ladies Bible study! I was reminded of a lot of reasons to praise God and to be kind and good because He is so kind and good to us! Let our reasons for kindness and goodness be self sacrificing, considerate, expecting nothing in return, for the praise of God, not man.
I am a stay at home mother to 4. I am very blessed to have a godly husband who loves the Lord and his family. I welcome the days of much needed grace,the times of sweet victories,and the tears of trials,knowing it is all for God's glory. I want my lifesong to sing to Him,the author and finisher of my faith. Soli Deo Gloria--To the Glory of God alone.
9 Comments:
Kim,
This was very convicting. Thank you for sharing this lesson.
Wonderful post. Giving with nothing in return? Even giving to my own family often results in my own self-righteous pity because I didn't "receive" the gratitude I so greatly deserved.
This is good....hard, but good.
I want to thank you for your blog. You have been a challenge to me in my faith journey. I've tagged you with the Thinking Blogger Award. Please visit my site to see what to do next. :)
Blessings.
I left this response on my post, but wanted to make sure you saw it. You are very welcome dear sister. I have been so blessed to get to know you through your blog. Thank you for sharing your life with me.
Also,I'm very excited about your adoption of Lydia. Our daughter's name is Lydia. Her name means worshipper of God. And she is living up to that destiny. She's an amazing young woman that touches God in her worship. Also, our hearts are huge for China and Southeast Asia. We have been to Hong Kong on mission trips and have many connections in China. I'm so glad your whole family is going to get Lydia. We have a family here that went all together to get their daughter a year ago. It was life-changing for all of them. They are bringing another daughter home as soon as they can. Praying for the completion of bringing Lydia to the home that God has chosen for her. I'm very excited for you! Blessings.
Great post!!
We also have four children and are planning to adopt another princess from China in about five years. Right now we're not old enough (DH is 30 and I'm 27). We also need a new home. I love hearing about other people's adoption stories. Praying that it all goes well for you.
Blessings on your day,
Rachelle
3knightsandaprincess.blogspot.com
Excellent post!
Then you through "niceness" in there and it really mumbles/jumbles up the message.
I love God's goodness!
Happy Weekend
Excellent post!! I am learning so much in this study, too.
What a great lesson for all of us!
Thank you for sharing this, Kim, what a powerful lesson!
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