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Kindness - Week 5

Monday

Mark 10.46-52

46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” 50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Our passage today starts out with a mighty roar from an unlikely source. Jesus is walking along the road with a large crowd, and he hears a man shouting: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Bartimaeus is crying out, desperately seeking for this healer to hear him, to see him. The blind man who cannot see is asking to be seen, to step out of the shadows, to live as one of the invisibles any longer.

And Jesus’ trusted followers totally miss the mark. Instead of stopping, hearing, and seeing this man, they rebuke him to be silent, to remain invisible. But Jesus does something peculiar. Our text says that in response, “Jesus stopped.”

Jesus stopped. That short sentence tells us so much about our Savior. Jesus had much to do; He had a mission to complete. In the very next chapter Jesus arrives in Jerusalem and is celebrated as King. And yet, Jesus stopped. Jesus paused, He saw this man in his beautiful humanity, and He asked Bartimaeus what he wanted. Jesus saw who had been invisible to so many people, and He invited Bartimaeus to share more of himself with the world.

Jesus was kind to Bartimaeus. Kindness is often dismissed as a lesser fruit, as a characteristic that’s seen as weak or shallow, diametrically opposed to such things as boldness and leadership. And yet here, Jesus’ kindness spills out of him with Bartimaeus. And he is BOLD in his kindness!

As I look at this passage, I wonder how many times we are being asked by the Spirit to STOP, to LOOK, and to SEE the people around us who need the grace of love of Jesus Christ. This is the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit, kindness. If we are truly walking in step with the Spirit, paying attention to His movements, we are probably being asked to stop and be with people more than we realize. Maybe it’s the homeless man on the street; maybe it’s our child asking for more cookies or more time or more cuddles; maybe it’s whole people groups who’ve been oppressed for far too long; maybe it’s our roommate or spouse, whose pleas to be seen are cloaked with nagging comments about the dishes.

The Spirit is at work, and He is extending kindness to those who are invisible in our world, both individually and corporately. The Spirit and Jesus are stopping to see and love, stopping to be kind. Are we with them?

How has Jesus stopped to see you, love you, forgive you? How have you felt his kindness?

How is the Spirit asking you to stop, to see, to listen to, and to love people around you? To whom do you need to extend more kindness? Where do you need to be bold in your kindness?

~Annie Neufeld

Tuesday

Luke 7.11-17

11 Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12 As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”

14 Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.

16 They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

Today we have the privilege of looking at kindness. It is an incredible quality of God where He demonstrates or blesses us by acting upon our behalf. Often times we get to demonstrate that same kindness to others by living out the gospel message in our own actions.

In reflecting upon God’s kindness and compassion, I am reminded that I have experienced it firsthand. A friend of mine ended up in the hospital with a really bad infection, close to death and for a number of weeks in an induced coma. During this horrible and painful time for us all, we gathered in prayer for our brother. He truly was close to death. In fact, numerous times, the doctors told his wife to be prepared that her husband may not make it.

My friend was much like the young man in the story today. Though not declared dead, he was as close to death as one possibly could be. However, just like in the story, we saw the kindness of Jesus as he intervened in his situation. We were like the mother in the story. We were crying and pleading to Jesus to hear our prayers.

I believe Jesus did hear our crying and pleading on the behalf of our brother. I believe His heart was filled with compassion for our brother. Just like the boy in the story, my friend was brought out of his coma and today – 3 years later – he is a living, walking miracle. In fact, we all call him “our miracle” and he agrees.

I believe we saw the kindness of Jesus prevail and my brother in Christ had his life restored. I believe that Jesus entered into the pain of his family, had a heart to empathize, felt compassion and brought my friend back to his family.

As a result, just like in the story, the news of the miracle spread and many came to hear about Jesus. If you were to go back to the ICU floor today, you could still hear the nurses talking about my friend, brought back to life through medicine and prayer.

I believe the kindness of God prevailed and was demonstrated by the kindness of people who continually came to pray for my friend and to sit with his wife. However, all the honor, glory and praise must go to God, who truly did display His kindness to raise my friend from near death to life.

So let’s be ready to see the Lord’s kindness to us and be His hands and feet and voice of kindness to others.

~Bill Mead

Wednesday

Matthew 9.35-38

35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Injustice is unsettling. It seems we are confronted more and more with injustices in our world. Daily we can see something that doesn’t sit right in our spirit, but how do we react? What kindness can we show?

In Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus gives us an example of true care and empathy. He has pity on the crowd, but that pity evokes action. The authentic, unassuming, non-demanding kindness that can only come from Jesus looks at injustice and must respond. Jesus shows us that our response to injustice should be kindness, even in the face of trial and persecution.

When we read through the Gospels it might seem that Jesus’ loving acts of kindness are often met with doubting and questioning. Yet, Jesus demonstrates for us a continuous desire to give to others. He shows us that true kindness cannot be self-seeking or looking for anything to be given in return. Jesus’ concern for others is not a show, but a desire to know each one’s individual story and need. His teaching and care for people is unceasing.

In the Gospels, Jesus went from town to town and village to village with crowds being drawn to Him daily. Even in His human exhaustion He never stopped giving. He might have been frustrated or beaten down by the constant harassing and questioning of the love He gave so freely. Yet He gave without ceasing. He continued to look on the crowds with compassion and true kindness. In Matthew, Jesus saw the outward needs of the crowd and had pity on them. Then He quickly looked past those outward needs to the inner void that could only be filled by His love.

Jesus still sees the great needs of His people. He sees our filth that needs to be covered by His kindness. As we look at the world around us we should pray to have eyes like Jesus, hearts filled with His compassion, minds focused on His message of love, as well as, hands and feet willing to guide our community to the foot of the cross. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is the only place we see an authentic example of kindness.

Therefore, when we ask ourselves how we are to respond to the injustices that swirl around us the only answer is to turn to our Savior. Through prayer and reading of the Bible we can gain the strength to look at our neighbor differently. We pray for eyes to see the world as they do. We pray for empathy to understand their deep hurt. We pray for Jesus to fill the void in all of our hurting hearts. Clinging to our Lord and leading others into His presence is the only way to respond to the injustices and darkness in our world.

~Melinda Manus

Thursday

Matthew 15.29-38

29 Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. 30 Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. 31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

32 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”

33 His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”

34 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.

“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”

35 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. 36 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. 37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 38 The number of those who ate was four thousand men, besides women and children.

In this great feeding miracle that Jesus performed we see God’s care in such a tangible way. He cares for and brings healing not just to those with physical ailments and various levels of ability, he cares for all of those gathered, for their hunger and for their physical well-being. We meet the Savior who has compassion on his people. He had compassion for each one. Jesus sees a people who are longing for just a taste of his goodness and he expresses his deep care and love.

However, there was something deeper going on that mountainside. Here was a glimpse of right relationship between God and his people—he spending time with them and meeting their needs, they praising God and enjoying his presence. It wasn’t time for this beautiful fellowship to end. He notices that there would be real risk in the journey that each would have to go on to find food. So he provides for them. It says, “They all ate and were satisfied.” He cares in a holistic way. He brought a satisfaction like no other.

This is the same Savior, who says, just a few chapters earlier in the book of Matthew:

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26)

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:29-31)

This is where we get the beautiful lyrics that say:

“His eye is on the sparrow; And I know he watches over me.”

Hear Jesus saying to you that he cares for you. You are much more valuable to him than you will ever know. The kindness and compassion of God has no limits. The God who can multiply fish and loaves to feed over 4,000 people can certainly care for your needs.

Life in the Spirit calls for the same kind of attitude and effort toward others that Christ Jesus has shown to us. He offers to us not only food and satisfaction, but also the opportunity to meet the needs (physical and spiritual) of others in this world. In James 2:15-16 we read:

“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?”

Jesus shows us the good and the right way. We can be agents of his kindness and benevolence to this world through the work of his Spirit.

~Jeremy Rose

Friday

Mark 1.40-42

40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”

41 Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

This passage is really confusing! Here’s why: verse 41 says that Jesus was indignant and that just doesn’t seem right. Why would Jesus be indignant toward a leper? But this story is part of the Bible, so we must try to make sense of it.

First, there are some manuscripts that say “Jesus was full of compassion” in verse 41. However, I agree with the editors of the NIV that “indignant” is correct. The best ancient manuscripts have “indignant” and the reading that is a bit confusing is often the one that is most likely to be original. That second point needs a bit of explanation: when an ancient scribe came across verse 41, he was likely to feel odd about it too. And this feeling may have led him to change it, intentionally or not, to “full of compassion.”

Second, if “indignant” is correct, and I think it is, then we must attempt to make sense of it. When I first read this text, it’s easy to interpret it as saying that Jesus was feeling indignation toward the leper. However, this doesn’t line up well what we know about Jesus or with the context. We know that Jesus very often goes out of his way to care for those who are ignored or forgotten by others, including those who beg and plead with him. So Jesus feeling indignation for the leper doesn’t fit with what we know about him.

And in this particular context we see Jesus immediately reaching out to touch this man, which was a great act of kindness. No one who wasn’t infected with leprosy had touched this man since it became known that he had the disease. Not one person. And here Jesus touches him…and then heals him! So it is clear that Jesus having indignation toward the leper doesn’t fit within this story either.

So how do we make sense of this? What else could Jesus be indignant about? I think the answer is pretty clear: Jesus is indignant that this man, who was created in God’s image and for whom Jesus would soon die, was stricken with this horrible disease. Jesus was indignant that this disease had caused this man to experience social isolation and to beg strangers for help. In short, Jesus was indignant that this man was suffering in a myriad of ways from this horrible disease.

And, as I already mentioned, Jesus great act of kindness was that he touched this man. But he also showed kindness by responding to his question and by healing him. So, as Jesus was connected to the inner-guidance of the Spirit, he showed great kindness to this man. He acted on his frustration about the leper’s situation and was deeply kind to him.

This all begs a few questions for us: What sorts of things should we be indignant about today and how can we show kindness when we are made aware of these realities?

~Matt Barnes

Saturday

Luke 15.11-20

11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

Which is worse? Prodigal or Restored?

This devotional will skate on the edge of plagiarism because I am influenced significantly by the thoughts of Henri Nouwen and Dallas Willard. I’ve always wanted to mix together the two concepts from Nouwen and Willard: Nouwen essentially wants us all to know that we are all prodigals, and Willard wants us to understand we are all going to be uncomfortable when we get our veal.

Everyone knows the story of the prodigal son. I remember listening to a student describe their thoughts on “a day in the life of the prodigal son…living on the street, wasting away on drugs, etc.” When we see the prodigal painted with such extreme strokes, it’s easy to dismiss, thus protecting us from interacting with the story. In Henry Nouwen’s book, The Return of the Prodigal Son, he points out that the parable is ultimately about our relationship with God the Father. The son is basically saying "I don't want you, just the things you can give me." Nouwen brings forward the concept that each of us can become prodigals many times a day. Whenever we choose to use God only as a dispenser of prayer answers or if we remember Him in times of crisis only, we are the prodigal son. When we choose his gifts rather than Him we are a prodigal. Obviously all of us have been prodigals in light of how Nouwen frames this passage.

Let’s take a look through the lens of Dallas Willard. Willard was in a group of theologians and Steve Wiens when someone asked: "who do you think will be in heaven?” He responded, "Everybody who can stand it." First, we see the family ring on the son’s finger; it’s the signature on the official document from the father saying "I trust you." The robe placed on his shoulders reminded him of his worth saying, "you are valuable to me." And now, the best part, the fattened calf: veal! Uncorked wine! Everyone is at the celebration! The father is saying, "I want everybody to know that you're back, and that I accept you."

As the prodigal son, you look around the room knowing everybody is aware of where you've been. They know what you've done, they smell your breath and it tells the story. The Father is standing behind you beaming. You are elevated to the highest position where you take your seat on the throne knowing full well you don't deserve any of this. You're the only person that doesn't belong here. You're being treated as if you were the best, but inside you know who you really are. Yet here you are, at your Father’s table, and that's how things work here. So get up and do the Dougie. You know your older brother is standing in the corner saying “dad’s slippin.’”

So, as Dallas Willard says, here you are. Can you stand it? It's the basic story of reconciliation, restoration, making things right. It's an overwhelming love story that you're in the middle of, and your Father's love is gushing on you. So enjoy your veal with a glass of 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape!

~Curt Gibson