Producing the Fruit of Kindness

What comes to mind when you hear the word “kindness?” If you are like me, it is words like nice and polite. But in the scripture, kindness is deeper and richer than being nice or polite. It is a deliberate expression of God’s love that seeks to make life good for others. It is active, compassionate, and generous. Its source is God’s love.

One of the interesting things about kindness is that word “chrestotes,” that Paul uses in the Fruit of the Spirit, is the same word Jesus uses for easy in Matthew when he says, “…my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

From that scripture, kindness is an invitation to a new way of living in relationship with God and with people.

Read Matthew 11:28-30

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Reflect

Jesus offers an invitation to “come” to him. The invitation is not a set of rules, a philosophy, or a religion. The invitation is to him.

He is talking to people who are carrying many kinds of burdens. You can imagine what the burdens might have been: guilt, religious legalism, hardships of life under Roman rule, disappointments, grief, fear. The list goes on.

As you might know, many people carry similar burdens today. Burdens like anxiety, regret, unrealistic expectations, overwhelming financial pressure, spiritual exhaustion, again, the list goes on. But as you come to Jesus, he offers refreshment, relief, restoration, and renewal. He does not promise an easy life without problems, but he does promise rest for your weariness.

Here is where kindness, the fruit of the Spirit, comes in. Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you.” It sounds surprising until you put the emphasis upon “my.”

A yoke was a wooden beam placed over two oxen so they could pull together. It became a common Jewish metaphor for submitting to a teacher’s instruction or way of life.

What Jesus is saying is, “Exchange the yoke you’ve been carrying for mine.” In other words, “let me walk with you and you give me your burden, and I will give you mine.” Walking with Jesus requires trust. But his yoke is different because he walks beside us and shares the load. As you walk with him, you learn from him. You become more like him. You reflect his character.

His character reveals that he is approachable, patient, and compassionate. His character is of one who is welcoming the weary with kindness and humility.

Kindness is…

Here is the meaning of kindness. The word translated easy means kind, well-fitting, or good. So, like a well-crafted yoke that fits perfectly, Jesus’ yoke is designed for the life God created you to live. It is not a burden-free life, but a life made easier by walking with Jesus. He does not remove every burden from your shoulders; he removes the burden of carrying life alone. He invites you to walk beside him, to learn his way, until his peace becomes the deepest reality of your soul.

As I wrote earlier, the word for kindness in the fruit of the Spirit is the same work for easy in “my yoke is easy.” In other words, the natural result of living by God’s grace is living under Jesus’ “easy” or “kind” yoke. As you learn from him, his character is gradually formed within you, and you are identified as a child of God because of the fruit you produce.

Reflect on Matthew 11:28-30

During World War II, Eric Liddell was imprisoned in a Japanese internment camp in China. The conditions were harsh. Food was scarce, disease spread easily, and uncertainty hung over everyone. There were no cheering crowds, no medals, and no freedom.

Yet those who lived with Liddell noticed something remarkable. While others were consumed by fear and frustration, he seemed to possess a deep, quiet peace.

Every day he taught children, organized games, encouraged the discouraged, shared what little food he had, and visited the sick. One fellow prisoner later said that Liddell “radiated the love of Christ.” Another recalled that when tensions flared, people naturally sought him out because he brought calm wherever he went.

One evening a young man, overwhelmed by the hopelessness of the camp, asked him, “How can you stay so peaceful? Don’t you feel the weight of all this?”

Liddell smiled gently and replied, “Of course I feel it. But I’ve learned that when the load becomes too heavy, I don’t carry it alone.”

He wasn’t denying the burden. He was describing the yoke of Jesus. The circumstances never became easier. The food didn’t improve. The guards didn’t become kinder. Eventually, Liddell would die in that camp just months before liberation. But those who knew him testified that he carried a lightness of spirit that could only be explained by his relationship with Jesus.

Jesus never promised that life would become effortless. Instead, he said: “Come to me… Take my yoke upon you… and you will find rest for your souls.”

Eric Liddell discovered that rest. The burden was still real, but it was no longer his to bear alone.

The kindness of Jesus was not to take the burden away, but to help carry it with us. He steps under the yoke with us. Like two oxen pulling together, the stronger one bears the greater weight. Our peace comes not because the road is easy, but because we never walk it alone.

Return

Give thanks for the people you encountered today. In what ways did you extend kindness? In what ways did you assist others in being kind?  With whom do you need to celebrate the kindness you have experienced in and through them? What will you do differently tomorrow?