The fruit of the spirit is kindness. Today I'll be preaching on the subject of kindness and being guided especially by Ephesians chapter four. You're reading verses 25 through 32, but paying a special attention to verses 30 through 32. Bible's there in your seat. You can find that on page 1346. Listen to God's word. Therefore, putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Be angry and do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give to him who has need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. And be kind to one another. tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke what has come to be known as the golden rule. Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the law and the prophets. You may know the more pithy summary of that, do to others as you would have them do to you. While the Golden Rule doesn't contain the word kindness, it certainly summarizes or describes the actions of kindness. It's not a straight definition. And for that matter, you don't find a straight definition of kindness in the Bible either. Rather than saying what kindness is, the Bible relates what kindness does. You find it in a number of Paul's letters. Think of 1 Corinthians 13. Love is patient. Love is kind. Love does not envy, does not boast, and so on. Or think of Colossians 3. Therefore is the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, and other things that go on in that passage. So here you hear it in Ephesians 4, be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. This is part of that series of sermons that I've begun on the fruit of the spirit. And the fruit of the spirit today is kindness. You'll see from this passage that in Jesus, you are a new creation bearing the fruit of the spirit. Therefore, kindness replaces animosity. Kindness replaces animosity. And that, in fact, is the very first point that I want to make. It's the driving aspect of this message that kindness replaces, must replace animosity. And I want to start by giving you something of a working definition so that we can be on the same page. Author Christopher Wright puts it this way, that the essence of kindness is being thoughtful for others more than for yourself in any particular situation. being thoughtful for others more than for yourself in any particular situation. So let me show you that from the book of Ephesians. I'll focus on this verse in chapter four, but let me take you back to the entirety of the letter. Paul, who wrote this letter, has a certain progression in the way that he writes. If you read through the New Testament, you'll recognize it. He starts with, with the defense of doctrinal truths that shape the Christian faith. And then somewhere in the middle, he shifts to say how those foundational truths then are worked out in everyday life. That's what happens here in the book of Ephesians. He starts by laying out the glorious work of redemption that's accomplished by the triune God that we worship. You'll see in chapter one that the Father adopts us, that the Son redeems us, that the spirit of promise seals us until the day of Christ's second coming. And as he moves on into chapter two, he shows how we were once children of wrath, but now children of God, set free by God's grace, received by faith alone, and set free to do those works of God which he has prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Here's kind of the shift that's taking place, and he begins to apply that in the second half of the letter. And if you read, in fact, I'd encourage you to read the entire letter this afternoon. It's really short, and you could do that in one sitting. And you'll read about how we are new creations in Jesus Christ. And he phrases it in a way that he does in other letters as well, an idea of putting off things that we once were and putting on the deeds of righteousness, or what he calls in Galatians, the fruit of the spirit. So in chapter 4, we have some very practical searching applications that get very specific about what it looks like. And I read today, starting in verse 25 in chapter 4, some of the putting off and putting on. And it's not my purpose to delve into all of those. In a sense, you could take each of these couplets and have a sermon on each of them. But let me just show you what those couplets are. You'll hear the putting off and putting on. If you look at verse 25, you'll hear about putting off falsehood and practicing truth. Verse 26, wrathful, unrighteous anger doesn't have a place in the Christian life. There is a godly anger that must replace it. Verse 28 says to stop stealing. A Christian stops stealing and instead works with their own hands to provide for others, that putting off and putting on. In verse 29, there's speech that tears others down, is put off. And instead, we put on speech that edifies, that builds up. You'll find the last pair then in verses 31 and 32. And given this back and forth that Paul is doing, it leads us to put these two verses together as another couplet of things to put off and things to put on. And you'll find that there's an amazing contrast and a very searching, practical application that's being made. Listen to the verses again. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Kindness replaces animosity. I'm gonna use that word to summarize verse 31. Kindness replaces animosity. And it is a vivid contrast, isn't it? Kindness over and against all of these attitudes and actions that just drip with hatred, dripping with animosity. And looking at verse 31, Paul starts with three different descriptions of an animosity that are descriptive of what's going on inside of the non-Christian heart. Or the temptations or the sins of the flesh that we once walked in. There are bitterness, wrath, anger, and they really do indicate a heart condition, don't they? Matthew Henry describes them this way, as violent, inward resentment and displeasure against others. See what Paul is doing here is he's doing exactly what Jesus does in his Sermon on the Mount. He talks about the law of God. as affecting not just our outward actions and the things we do, but penetrating to our very hearts. So Paul starts with the sins of the heart that are going to give rise then to clamor, evil speaking, and malice. You see, animosity really is a sin of the heart, but make no mistake, Those things that are in your heart are bound to come out. They're bound to influence how you act with other people around you. What's in your heart comes out. So if your heart is eaten up with violent resentment and displeasure against others, what comes out? These outward sins of clamor, evil speaking, and malice. I want to pause and just describe these three outward sins so that you can identify them, so you can also press them down into seeing them growing up out of a heart that is bound up in resentment or violence towards others. So what is clamor? Think about clamor as quarreling and not just a polite difference of opinion that leads to a disagreement. You know what that looks like. You might sit down over coffee with someone and be talking about a difference of opinion. And there are smiles, and the disagreement may be vigorous, but it is engaging, and you enjoy that other individual, and you walk away as friends. Clamour is not like that. I think you know what this looks like, too. The blood pressure starts to rise, and the face turns red. Maybe you've seen this in others, and maybe you can identify and see it in yourself. Glamour happens over a steaming cup of resentment. It's completed with that elevated voice and blood pressure. It has no interest in parting as friends. It has in mind winning the argument at whatever the cost. Glamour. What is evil speaking? Some translations use the word slander here to translate what is here as evil speaking. Slander and evil speaking stands for all of the ways in which you can speak, all of the ways in which you can communicate, both in spoken word and in written word, in ways that would damage another person's character, his reputation, It has in mind a whole host of sins of the tongue. Could include outbursts of anger that are akin to clamor. But it could range into abusive speech. Again, not just what is said, but it could be something that is written. It can take the form of gossip, telling lies. Revealing private matters, repeating things that don't need to be repeated, all for the purpose of tearing down that brother or sister. And you see the evil intent of the heart then pouring out of the mouth. Or as I more often see it these days, written behind the anonymity of a screen in the keyboard. Evil speaking and slander and gossip just ooze out of our social media, seeking to tear down with our words. And then malice. According to Henderson, malice is the evil inclination of the mind The perversity or baseness of disposition that takes delight in hurting and injuring a fellow person. It is perverse, isn't it? There's a perversity to enjoy hurting another person. It enjoys taking part in it. You know the word clickbait? It seems like there's a special form of that that they call rage bait that keys in on this perverse bent of our heart that does take delight in seeing somebody put in their place, we might say, or getting what's coming to them, we might say. But what that really is, is taking delight in that person's harm. Malice comes from bitterness, wrath, and anger. Really is quite a list. No wonder Paul says, let all of these things be put away from you. This is not befitting the new man, the new woman that you are in Christ. It's not befitting a child of God to act in these ways. But here is the million dollar question. So how am I supposed to put these things away? How am I to put them to death? How am I to deal with those sins of my heart and those sins that have become so much habitual to my life up till now? The plain truth is that you can't do it. In your own strength, you won't be interested in changing in the first place, even though you might think you're all full of altruism and the good of mankind around you, you really aren't. Be honest, and you won't change, and you can't change. But, but God, right? Theme of our church right now, but God. God does change us. By the working of the spirit, God puts to death what is old and passing away in us, and causes to grow in us the fruit of the spirit. And he leads us then by his spirit. He does that work of sanctification, which is the continued process of keeping your foot on the neck of the serpent and crushing its head. by the power of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The deeds of the flesh then are put to death by the power of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. So as a child of God, you begin to grow the fruit of the Spirit. And as that process comes about in your life, there is a important spiritual work of putting off and putting on. And the pattern that runs throughout all of Paul's letter, really all of scripture, is that you can't just put off sin. It's an incomplete work of sanctification to stop one thing. There is a practical living out of righteousness that is part of the work of God. So as a new creation, he calls you to put on righteousness. And so kindness must replace animosity. Here is the putting off and now the putting on. So what is this kindness like? It helps to think of the contrast again. Put these two verses together in your mind again. Remember, Paul is speaking in these couplets, the putting off and the putting on. And so think again of verse 31, of the bitterness, the wrath, the anger of our heart that gets worked out in clamor, slander, and malice. As you see on the outline, I'm just gonna work with those three again, thinking of the outward manifestations of them. But remember, they have to be pressed into the heart as well to address the heart sins. So let's work through the contrast. Without the spirit, Your heart is eaten up with animosity and it expresses itself in clamor. How does kindness contrast with clamor? I'll give some specific applications, but I'm gonna urge you to fill it out. These are just some beginning applications. The sins of our heart and the sins of our mouth are ones that have many different applications. So if clamor is this violent confrontation that seeks to win the argument, then kindness is to approach disagreements full of grace. And to approach disagreements having in mind the good of that other individual that you are engaged with. Rather than trying to grind him underneath your heel and getting the last word, winning the argument at all cost, you can approach that situation not being provoked. by the other individual, who may indeed be sinning against you in that confrontation. He's likely sinning against you in that confrontation. But kindness doesn't rise to that. It's able to approach that individual as a brother or sister in Christ. On the walls of the church, kindness would go a long way in addressing confrontations that fly off the handle. You can do the same with those who are not in the church. You can recognize that they are also made in the image of God and deserving of respect. And you can listen to their concern and in kindness engage with them. Trying to see if there's truth in what's being said and rather than becoming filled with anger and wrath, clamor then and respond in a way that is kindness, looking for their good, not yours. So what about slander? Slander is one of those sins that has a perversity to it, doesn't it? It looks out for your own interests. And in looking out for your own interests, it seeks to crush others to make yourself look better. And so kindness, the kindness of God enters, And it teaches you over and over again to not look out for your own interests, but look out for the interests of others. See, envy doesn't rule and hold the reins of your heart anymore. Jesus holds the reins of your heart. He directs you to lay down your life for others. So instead of using your words to tear down others, the spirit directs you and enlivens your heart to see how can I speak in a way that builds them up. And it tunes you to recognize the ways in which slander work its way into our normal everyday interactions. Whether that be in person, or where it be behind that screen and keyboard. So think of gossip especially. Think of the spreading of rumors, the spreading of lies, the spreading of maybe truths, but truths that are either private or unhelpful. They don't need to be shared. That's gossip. It tears down. So what do you do when you receive that juicy piece of gossip? that as the old self you would have rushed to share. Did you hear what so and so did? Did you see what happened? And it spreads like wildfire through the church or spreads over the internet. But when you receive gossip, kindness teaches you that gossip stops with me. It doesn't go any further. It's a kindness to your fellow believers to not even give it the time of day, let alone pass it to somebody else. Starts with you because you care that your words can do damage to your brother or sister. So what about malice? Spirit prompts you to not rejoice in iniquity. but to rejoice in the truth. Instead of taking advantage of others, instead of trying to tear them down, instead of taking pleasure in their downfall, taking pleasure in participating in it by hurting them, kindness causes you to pray for them. Kindness is a heart that is genuinely interested in your brother or sister's well-being. And it can lift them up in your heart and in your words and your interactions. It can congratulate them when you see them being rewarded and being promoted or doing something well rather than grinding them down. It contributes. to your brother's or sister's growth in grace. And it contributes to your growth in grace as well. As I said, Paul makes some very searching applications here at a vivid contrast between animosity and kindness. He does one more thing. Because Paul connects kindness with forgiveness. This is really profound. He connects kindness with forgiveness. Be kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Tempted to say, let's just drop the mic and leave it there. I'm not gonna do that. I have some other things to say, but really, isn't it? You've been forgiven by God in Christ. Live like it. Live as one who has been forgiven. Once more, Paul is just right in step with Jesus' teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. Think of the Lord's Prayer. Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And then Jesus, after the prayer, puts this tag on it. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. This helps you to understand what Paul says in verse 30 of Ephesians 4. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God. If Jesus' words in the Sermon on the Mount didn't cut you to the quick, this should as well. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit. Why would he say this? Well, it comes from the fact that When you do not forgive others, you disregard the forgiveness that God has given you. You show disdain for the kindness of God that has been showered on you. For God has been kind to you, exceptionally kind. We sang just a couple of Psalms this morning in our service that spoke of the loving kindness of God. Here's another chapter for you to read this afternoon. Psalm 136, 26 verses that have the same refrain. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, and here's the refrain. For his loving kindness is everlasting. In every single verse, 26 times, it repeats for his Loving-kindness is everlasting. And then the preeminent act of loving-kindness is the incarnation of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As you think in this season, this Christmas season, as you think of the birth of Jesus Christ, Listen again to our call to worship that identifies the coming of Jesus Christ as the appearance, kindness of God. Starting in verse three, it says that what we once were, but when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward men appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, our Savior. You have been exceptionally blessed by the kindness of God. You have been blessed by the fact that The Son of God became man to suffer and to die on the cross for you, so that your sins would be forgiven. And having been forgiven, that you may be forgiving towards others. Now, we still live in the already and not yet of this world. We still face temptations and desires of the flesh that are the fruit of the flesh, not the fruit of the spirit. And we wrestle with the temptation to disregard or to show disdain for the kindness of God we have in our forgiveness. And in that light, I'll close this service, this sermon, by warning you and by calling you to understand that contempt for God, when instead of replacing animosity with kindness, you let animosity rule. Listen to Romans 2, 4, and 5. Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, forbearance, and long-suffering, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath, the revelation of the righteous judgment of God. There's a warning there, isn't it? The world is all about being kind. Altruism drives a lot of charity, and I've had a number of friends throughout my life who are, in general, kind people. But they are not forgiven. And their kindness has an edge to it. It is not Christian. And if you think of yourself as being a nice person, being a kind person, but do not know Jesus, then you're fooling yourself. You are not kind. You are selfish. You will turn on others that are not kind to you. And at the end of the day, it will be a day of wrath, the revelation of Jesus Christ. So I am speaking to you who are not Christians that kindness must come from a heart that is remade through confession, repentance, and faith in Jesus Christ. I'm speaking to you who are Christians as well. It is not fitting for you to harbor in your heart bitterness, wrath, and anger. You think you may have it all closed up, but it will work its way out. The way you speak and the way you react Clamor, slander, malice. Do not despise the kindness of God. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God. You are indeed sealed for the day of redemption. You are saved by grace, not of works. But that doesn't mean your actions don't matter. Sin does indeed grieve the Spirit because God has saved you for a purpose. Therefore, put off animosity, put on kindness, fruit of the Spirit. Let's pray. Lord God, this is a passage which prompts us to confess our sins to you. Lord, who can bridle their tongues? Who can control and direct their hearts as we ought? Our tongues so often set raging fires around us. Lord, we recognize that those sins are sins of the heart that are manifesting themselves, and the way in which we speak and the way in which we interact. God, we pray that you would forgive us. You have promised that. We ask, oh God, that you would forgive our debts, even as we forgive our debtors. So Lord, we pray that that fruit of the Spirit would be growing in each of us. Spirit of forgiveness towards others that manifests itself. Today manifests itself in kindness. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Let's thank God once more for his kindness in Psalm 89a. And we remind ourselves of the kindness we've received, and may that then clothe us and impel us to go out into the world with the fruit of the Spirit, which is kindness. Stand and sing Psalm 89a.