Struck by Kindness

Surprised by Kindness

In his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey tells of spending an evening with his two sons. They did a variety of things, ending with a movie. 4-Year-old Sean fell asleep during the movie, and when it was over Covey picked him up in his arms, carried him to the car, and lard him in the back seat. I was very cold that evening, so he took off his coat and gently arranged it around the boy.

Later that evening it came time to “tuck in” 6-year-old Stephen. Covey tried to talk to him about the evening, to find out what he had liked the most, but there was little response. Suddenly Stephen turned over on his side, facing the wall, and started to cry.

“What’s wrong, honey? What is it? Asked Covey.

The boy turned back, chin quivering, eyes wet. “Daddy,” he asked, “if I were cold, would you put your coat around me, too?”

Covey wrote, “Of all the events of that special night out together, the most important was a little act of kindness – a momentary, unconscious showing of love to his little brother.”[1]

I suspect that we all would agree with little Stephen Covey – kindness is a really valuable commodity.

Kindness of the Best Kind

We have been looking at some powerful tools that the Apostle Paul encouraged Titus to use in a very difficult community. We’ve seen the power of goodness and the power of imitating Christ, or ‘reflecting Jesus’. Paul adds another, kindness.

Titus 3:4–7 NIV

But when 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 saved us through 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.

I’ve really come to love this passage this week because of the powerful kindnesses that are packed into just ONE long sentence. Paul points out the kindness and love of the Father, just like Stephen Covey, Sr, displayed to his son through action and imitation. Kindness is God's beneficial provision that meets the need of sinful man. Kindness reflects the tender concern of God, providing for helpless, hapless man what he never could have provided for himself. This is the "starting point" for our salvation.

Paul was deeply concerned that God’s people devote themselves to doing what is good because these things are excellent and profitable for everyone. Titus was to promote good works, for they go hand in hand with sound doctrine.[2]

The Kindnesses of God

Let’s back up a few verses before we get into the gifts of God’s kindness. Take a look at verse 3:

Titus 3:3 NIV

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.

Maybe you, like me, were never in the Hell’s Angels motorcycle gang or spent time in prison, but we know that our flesh stinks! Somehow, we know that without the enabling of the Spirit of God in us, we would be pretty messed up. Others of us lived the lifestyle that Paul describes. The good thing is, that is in the rearview mirror now. We are moving forward, having been changed and continue to be changed every day.

The Snare of This World

It is interesting to notice that Paul begins his “big ask” by reminding Titus and those in Crete to realize that the community that is so discomforting is the place that they came from. I love his statement in chapter 2

Titus 1:12–13 NIV

One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith

Paul is saying, “Hey, no excuses here. But be careful when you point because 3 fingers are pointing back at you.” This world is a hard place, no doubt about it. Families are hard, coworkers are hard, our government is hard, but God is good. And, you can be a light shining in the middle of it.

The Kindness of Jesus

In verse 4 we see this long flowing sentence that seems almost like a song.

Titus 3:4–7 NIV

But when 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 saved us through 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.

It won’t be too long before Christmas and then we will be reminded of Mary’s songs when she said, “My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Can you appreciate what Paul is reminding Titus and the church, “…when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared,”?

Salvation

He begins with salvation. J. R. Stott points out,

Sadly, “whenever the phraseology of salvation is dropped into a conversation today, people’s reactions are predictable. They will either blush, frown, snicker, or even laugh, as if it were a huge joke. Thus the devil, whose ambition is to destroy, not to save, succeeds in trivializing the most serious question we could ever ask ourselves or put to anybody else. For Christianity is essentially a religion of salvation. To prove this, it is enough to quote two biblical assertions: ‘the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world’ and ‘the Son of man came to seek and to save what was lost’.[3]

If we were truly deceived and enslaved, one thing is obvious: we could not save ourselves. Yet the possibility of self-salvation is one of the major delusions of New Age philosophy. It teaches that salvation comes not from without (someone else coming to our rescue) but from within (as we discover ourselves and our own resources). So ‘look into yourself’, Shirley MacLaine urges us, ‘explore yourself’, for ‘all the answers are within yourself’. And in her subsequent book, which is revealingly entitled Going Within, she writes that ‘the New Age is all about self-responsibility’, i.e. taking responsibility for everything that happens, since ‘the only source is ourselves’.[4]

I was browsing through the internet at some “Christian” quotes and came across one that I liked. It was from C. S. Lewis, so I went to the host site. There I found an Eastern religion and New Age philosophy. Our salvation is found in Christ ALONE. By faith ALONE. Not by good works that we have done – but by His work on the Cross.

To quote Stott again, “Thus salvation originated in the heart of God. It is because of his kindness, love, mercy and grace that he intervened on our behalf, he took the initiative, he came after us, and he rescued us from our hopeless predicament.[5]

Mercy

We just passed the day in October that we celebrate Columbus Day although many Google calendars have ‘Indigenous People Day”. Anyway, here is an encouraging quote from Christopher Columbus, “I am a most noteworthy sinner, but I have cried out to the Lord for grace and mercy, and they have covered me completely. I have found the sweetest consolation since I made it my whole purpose to enjoy His marvelous Presence.” That quote is probably not in the public school textbooks, but how many of us have realized the kindness of God through His mercy toward us!

Psalm 116:5 NIV

The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.

I read about an instant cake mix that was a big flop. The instructions said all you had to do was add water and bake. The company couldn’t understand why it didn’t sell—until their research discovered that the buying public felt uneasy about a mix that required only water. Apparently, people thought it was too easy. So, the company altered the formula and changed the directions to call for adding an egg to the mix in addition to the water. The idea worked and sales jumped dramatically.

That story reminds me of how some people react to the plan of salvation. To them it sounds too easy and simple to be true, even though the Bible says, “By grace you have been saved through faith...; it is the gift of God, not of works”. They feel that there is something more they must do, something they must add to God’s “recipe” for salvation. They think they must perform good works to gain God’s favor and earn eternal life. But the Bible is clear—we are saved, “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy”. Unlike the cake-mix manufacturer, God has not changed His “formula” to make salvation more marketable. The gospel we proclaim must be free of works, even though it may sound too easy. [6]

Rebirth and Renewal by the Holy Spirit

Just 2 weeks ago, Ty Buckingham was with us and preached 2 tremendous messages. Do you know what I heard most frequently from the congregation? It was that Ty never said “the Holy Spirit” but referred to “Holy Spirit” like a person. I didn’t really notice but I am convinced that He is a person, the third person of the Trinity.

Jesus insisted that He had to go so that Another would come. Here Paul is pointing out that our lives must be lived out with Holy Spirit’s help (it will take me some time to get used to it):

Titus 3:5–6 NIV

he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior,

To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be energized and controlled by the third person of the Godhead in such a way that under the acknowledged lordship of Jesus Christ the full presence and power of God are experienced. Spirit-filling leads to renewal, obedience, boldness in testimony and an arresting quality in believers’ lives.[7]

The Apostle Paul goes on to remind them that they are heirs of God and heirs of eternal life through Jesus Christ. So, the kindnesses of Jesus are salvation, mercy, renewal and rebirth through the Holy Spirit, heirs of God and heirs of eternal life.

What amazing kindnesses have been given to us!

Is It Too Much to Ask, Then, to be Kind to Others?

At about age fifty, Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy developed a profound interest in spiritual things and began studying the Gospels in earnest. Unfortunately, he rejected more than he accepted, repudiating belief in miracles, the deity of Christ, the personality of God, and the plan of salvation. Tolstoy reduced Christianity to little more than charity and good works.

He nonetheless wrote about it beautifully, and nothing sums up his philosophy better than this story which Tolstoy based on one of his favorite passages, Matthew 25:31-40.

One might Martin Avdeitch, a humble shoemaker, dozing over his open Bible, suddenly seemed to hear a voice saying, “Martin! Look thou into the street tomorrow, for I am coming to visit thee.” Convince the Lord Jesus was going to visit him, Martin awoke the next morning with nervous excitement. But no one showed up that day except a succession of penniless and pitiful souls: an aged veteran, a shivering mother and newborn, an old peddler woman and a frightened boy who had filched one of her apples.

With a kind heart, Martin cared for each person, but as evening fell, he was disappointed that Jesus had not visited that day. Putting on his spectacles, he took up his Bible with a sigh, and it opened to Matthew 25. Martin read: “For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a strange and you took Me in.”

“Lord, when did we do these things?”

Looking on down the page, Martin read: “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”

Then Avdeitch understodd that the vision had come true, and that his Savior had in very truth visited him that day, and that he had received Him.

Folks, we have been truly blessed by the kindness of Jesus. Let’s be sure to share that kindness with others around us, even the people of Crete who are hard to love!

[1] Stephen R. Covey. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989), 192-193.

[2] Litfin, A. D. (1985). Titus. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 767). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

[3] Stott, J. R. W. (1996). Guard the truth: the message of 1 Timothy & Titus (p. 201). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[4] Stott, J. R. W. (1996). Guard the truth: the message of 1 Timothy & Titus (pp. 202–203). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[5] Stott, J. R. W. (1996). Guard the truth: the message of 1 Timothy & Titus (p. 203). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[6] R. W. De Haan Our Daily Bread,

[7] Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser.