Kindness and Goodness (Part 2 of 2)

Simple acts of kindness can be a powerful way to point others to Jesus, but anyone can act nice. So what distinguishes Christian kindness from ordinary politeness?

Today on Truth for Life, we'll learn how to discern whether our goodness is natural or supernatural. Alistair Begg is teaching from Galatians chapter 5. It is vitally important that we realize that this kindness and goodness is grounded in the character of God. In fact, when you read in the New Testament, we jump forward to the New Testament, and Jesus is speaking, encouraging his followers to declare themselves to be truly his followers by the way in which they deal with individuals who are not like them at all. And he says in Luke chapter 6 and verse 35 that God is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. What is God like? He's kind to the ungrateful and the evil. In fact, in our studies in Ephesians, we saw—and I hope some of us even remember in Ephesians chapter 2—that God in his grace has not only raised us up with him—that is, Jesus—and seated us with him in the heavenly places, but he has done so—verse 7—so that in the coming ages he might do what? He might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. So in other words, in the age to come, in the new heaven and in the new earth, the Father will still be magnifying the wonder of his loving kindness towards us, expressed to us in Jesus, so that we will find ourselves actually saying to one another in whatever context, Isn't it amazing that God was so kind to us? Isn't it amazing that God was so good to us? What an amazing thing that God would love those who didn't love him, that God would seek those who were running from him, that God would show his kindness in order to soften our hearts and open our eyes and make us realize that if we got what we deserved, it would be dreadful, and he gives to us something that we're entirely undeserving of.

It's amazing. Now, all of that, then, has to form, if you like, the soil in which we think about the growth of both kindness and goodness. If you think about it, it is clear that the entire Godhead is involved in this—kindness and goodness defined in the character of the Father, displayed in the person and work of the Son, and produced in the life of the believer by the work of the Holy Spirit. Now, I have purposely taken time on that. Let's see if the balance of the time will allow us to say something concerning, first of all, kindness in terms of disposition.

In terms of disposition. Apart from the grace of God, each of us is preoccupied with our problems, our problems, our plans, our pleasures. People would say that's absolutely natural. And it is actually natural.

And the reason it's so natural is because it's an evidence of our predicament in terms of turning our back on God. Psychology Today, the magazine which you may see every so often in a bookstore, I pay attention to it fleetingly, but I have occasion to be amazed by it, and I love the honesty of it. It's described as a magazine providing insight about everybody's favorite subject—ourselves.

Right? That's honest. It's a magazine that provides insight about everybody's favorite subject—me. I am my favorite subject.

And so are you, by nature. If there are twelve of us waiting for a bus, and we are number seven in line, and the fellow conductor says there is room for seven, how much do you think we care about eight, nine, ten, eleven, and twelve? We're only concerned about seven. I'm number seven.

I need to get on this bus. Now, when grace begins to refine a heart, when this fruit is produced in the life of the child of God, then we begin to take more than a passing interest in the well-being of others. We're not talking here about sort of instantaneous notions of kindness.

Oh, I think I'll do something! But rather, we're talking about inner disposition, the disposition of heart. God knows what the disposition of my heart is. I know it to a certain degree. You don't really know it. The only way you're gonna know it is when we get to the expression of it.

But when we think in these terms, we say, Wow. I had a wonderful illustration of it this week. I was watching NASA TV live, as I'm sure you all do, but I did it purposely, because I knew that there was a spacewalk and that Jeff Williams, our friend, was making another walk in space with one of his colleagues. The spacewalk lasted about five hours.

I had it on my computer. I didn't watch every piece of it, but it was always on for the whole time in the background. And I was just amazed by it.

I know that you would be too. But what struck me was this. He was about four hours-plus into the walk. He is hanging, floating, clipped to the side of the space station. And every so often, from his camera on his helmet, you can see two hundred and fifty miles down to the earth. And as he is doing what Mission Control is telling him to do, in a pause in the communication, he says, just out of the blue from where I was, quotes, "'This is probably a good time for me to wish Charlie Bolden a happy birthday.'"

I said, what? You should be hanging on to the space station, not wishing people birthday. But then I said to myself, this is him. This is the guy we've come to know.

This is the fellow whose disposition is such that he will take time to send a greeting to the pastors' conference, that he's got time suspended in space to wish his friend of thirty years a happy birthday. It reminded me of what was said about another person. It was her thinking about others that always made us think about her.

It was her thinking about others that always made us think of her. Now you say, well, this is fairly routine. This is just about being nice, isn't it? No, it's not about being nice. This is not natural virtue. This is not about being nice to nice people that we've decided are the nice people. Jesus said, no, you can't get away with that. Remember, he says, if you simply are kind and good and loving to those who love you, there's no reward in that, he said. You can find that at the local sports bar.

You can find that in lots of places. No, he says, but what I want to say to you is I want you to learn to do what God does. I want you, as a result of the Spirit's work within your life, to display the character of God, that God's kindness reaches to the wicked, to the ungrateful, to the rebel, and to the lost.

Ah, well, think that out, huh? Well, we don't want to deal too much with wicked or ungrateful. You know, I did it once, but she never wrote me a thank-you note, therefore she's out. She's ungrateful. I'm not gonna be kind to ungrateful people.

I mean, if you get a feedback, but if that's the kind of deal, forget that. What if God did that? God doesn't do that.

He comes again and again. You see, kindness and compassion and a forgiving spirit are woven together in the fabric of grace. I'm not a kind person if I hold onto grudges. I can't, for a moment, consider myself of a kindly disposition if I refuse to forgive. And the kindness that is produced in our lives, akin to the kindness of God, is then to be uninfluenced by the gratitude or ingratitude of those to whom we show kindness. And this kindness also is displayed to those who are incapable of returning the favor. You know, when you think in terms of hospitality—you know, some have entertained angels unaware because they gave hospitality to strangers, not because they gave hospitality to the pastor. There are no angels there.

No. When you think about it in terms of the wonderful story in Ruth, you've got a classic illustration, don't you, in Boaz? Lovely Boaz. A lot of the girls in the church are looking for a Boaz, I know, because I talk with them. They say, Where is Boaz when you need him?

Yeah, I understand that. Wow. Well, she—dear Ruth, wow, she was just overwhelmed, wasn't she? And Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they said, The LORD bless you. And then he said, Who is this?

And they told him. And then Boaz said to Ruth, What I want you to do is let your eyes be on the field that they're reaping and go after them, and when you're thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn. And at mealtime Boaz said to her, Come here and eat some bread, and dip your morsel in the wine. So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain.

And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, May he be blessed by the LORD, whose kindness is not forsaken, the living or the dead. Whose kindness was it? Was it God's kindness, or was it Boaz's kindness? It was both, wasn't it?

Because the kindness of God was revealed through the kindness of Boaz. What was it like? Why don't you sit here? Would you like a drink of water? Don't go down there.

That's dangerous. You know, some of the most simple expressions of kindness mean a huge amount. Just the openness to say, Well, tell me. Just the willingness to smile. Just the expression of an inner disposition.

Here's the thought that's been rattling around in my head, or one of them. Can you imagine what it might have been like, the history of the last thirty years, if the evangelical church, those who profess to know Jesus and love the Bible, and they're into the whole deal, we include ourselves in the group, instead of continually championing political agendas and taking on all kinds of causes? If evangelicalism as a group had said, You know, why don't we just take seriously what God says we're supposed to do? What he said to his servant Micah, He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? You see, because the people were asking, When we come to God, does he want us to have these elaborate services? Does he want us to do burnt offerings? What is it that will please God? Micah says, This is what God says.

He's actually shown you what to do. Here's what you're to do. Number one, you're to do justice.

So you pay your workers fair wages. You return your telephone calls. You tell the truth.

You don't steal pencils. You do justice. You love kindness. And you walk humbly with your God.

Just imagine unleashing a force on the United States of America that is committed to loving kindness, that is able to go out into a community that is increasingly fractured, more and more self-centered, to discover the evangelistic impact of loving kindness. We need to say a word about goodness, because our time is gone. But if goodness, then, is the expression of it, when you get to the word good, there is agathos and kalos, which are the two main words for good.

Agathos is that which is intrinsically good, and kalos is that which is not only intrinsically good but which is, by the way in which it is conveyed, an expression of a goodness beyond the intrinsic goodness. The only way I can come to it—and I use the illustration all the time—is when you go to have surgery, and the anesthetist comes, anesthesiologist, and comes… Sorry, sorry. That wasn't kind, I admit. I admit. It wasn't good either. But anyway, when they come, what they put in is good.

It's good. It's agathos. But it might not be kalos, right?

In fact, it might be kalos, as in c-a-l-l-o-u-s, right? So in other words, what is being provided for us is intrinsically good, but the way in which it is done. And so, when you think in terms of the expression of kindness, when you think about the disposition being worked out, you realize that God, from all of eternity, has chosen a people that are his very own, and as it says in Ephesians 2 10, we are created for good works. Paul says to the Thessalonians, Seek to do good to one another and to everyone. John Wesley, fastening on this road in his journal, Do all the good you can, by all the means that you can, to all the people that you can, for as long as you can. That pretty well summarizes it, doesn't it? And the wonder of it is that God has ordered our steps and apportioned our lives so that the expression of kindness and goodness takes place in the routine affairs of life, in the menial tasks of life.

You see, it's very easy. I remember you could get a real buzz when you were a boy, going down the road and helping old Mrs. Jenkins, you know, with her yard work. And then you felt really good, you know, the expression of altruism, and you knew that she was smiling as you walked away. And then you got home, and you wouldn't do a thing for your mother. You got in your own house. She said, Could you take that down?

I don't have to take that down! See, you weren't good. You weren't good. You weren't kind.

I wasn't. How many men are saying, Oh, I'll be over and help you. When's the last time you'd unloaded the dishwasher? Yeah, I'll take care of that. You see, it is in the realm of every day of life that kindness and goodness is really tested. It's in the framework of our vocation that it is tested. Because nobody else sits at the desk you sit at, except the person who sits beside you. But I don't.

I can't. Therefore, it is in that realm that the kindness and goodness that is the fruit of the Spirit then is able to spill over into your particular community. So that vocation, which provides resources—namely, financial resources, Timothy says—those financial resources are given to you in order that they may be an occasion of generosity. So that the reason that you have that stuff is in order that kindness and goodness may be an expression of your lives. I think it's Bridges who says, you know, few of us will do anything that is dramatic, like pull somebody from a burning car.

And so we're tempted to say, well, what am I going to do? Well, read 1 Timothy 5, if you're a lady, and read there about the kindness and goodness that's involved in raising children, in showing hospitality, in helping those in trouble, in being ready for any good work. Essentially, in being like Boaz, or—and I conclude with this—like Barnabas. So we have Boaz as our Old Testament and Barnabas as our new. He has not stopped showing me kindness.

What a guy! Barnabas, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. That would be enough, wouldn't it, for an epitaph, a good man? Because, you see, on the day of judgment, inquiry is going to be made—remember 2 Corinthians 5—for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that we might have an appraisal of everything that was done in the body, whether good or bad. Remember, Jesus says, you know, I was hungry. I was in prison. They said, No you weren't.

We never saw you there. He said, Inasmuch as you've done it unto the least of these my brethren, you've done it unto me. Some people read that, and they say, Well, you see, what Jesus is saying there is that good deeds err in your admittance into heaven.

No, he's not. What he's saying is that that expression of kindness and goodness provides a vital evidence that we are bound for heaven. That we're bound for heaven. People will, after our sermons are long forgotten, after our mental cleverness, whatever it might be, has evaporated, people will remember kindness. They will always remember kindness. I guarantee you, you can remember schoolteachers on account of their kindness, a work colleague on account of kindness. Fascinatingly, and with this I stop, when Peter preaches in the context of the house of Cornelius, and he has the opportunity to lay out the whole scope of salvation, and he talks about Jesus, you know one of the phrases that he uses right in the heart of it all that he says of Jesus?

That's what it says. He went about doing good. He went about doing good.

Well I think we have the point. You're listening to Truth for Life with Alistair Begg. Alistair returns in just a minute to close today's program. Well we are celebrating this month 30 years of teaching the Bible at Truth for Life, and we are grateful for God's grace and for your sustaining partnership. Ever since the very first broadcast, this ministry has been funded by our listeners. Our prayer is that you've grown in your faith and in your understanding of the scriptures by learning from Truth for Life over the years. And if you're new to this program, we pray you'll continue to listen and continue to benefit from Alistair's teaching.

If you'd like to honor this 30-year milestone by making a one-time 30th anniversary donation to Truth for Life, you can do that at truthforlife.org slash 30 years, or call us at 888-588-7884. When you get in touch with us, we'll say thank you by offering you a copy of the book, The Character of Christ, The Fruit of the Spirit in the Life of Our Savior. This is a book that's a supplement to our current series. It's a great choice for a Bible study. Each chapter examines how Jesus personified every aspect of the fruit of the Spirit, how he demonstrated love or patience or faithfulness.

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Go to truthforlife.org slash 30 years, or you can arrange to set up an automatic monthly donation when you visit truthforlife.org slash truthpartner. Now here is Alistair with prayer. Father, thank you that you so work in the lives of your children by the power of the Holy Spirit to produce that fruit which bears testimony to the loveliness and grace of Jesus. We pray as a congregation that you will fill us with all of your fullness. We do long for the gifts that we need in order to do the tasks that are at hand. But we do long to see increasing evidence of the fruit of the Spirit in us and among us and through us. Lord, help us to this end, we pray, to ask ourselves of all of our affairs and our activities, well, what would be the kind thing to do?

Is it kind for me to stay home and care for my elderly mom? Whatever it might mean. Thank you for the immensity of your compassion towards us. We pray in your Son's name. Amen. I'm Bob Lapine, hoping you'll join us again tomorrow when we'll take a look at faithfulness and find out why it's impossible for God to be unfaithful. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life, where the Learning is for Living.