The Gifts of the Holy Spirit: - Vital Christianity

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KINDNESS—Love in little things.
Kindness is another positive characteristic of love (I Cor. 13:4). It is an attribute rooted in the
very fiber of God’s character: “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the
heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable
riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6-7).
Like goodness, kindness is love that is active. It is that gentle and gracious spirit which Jesus
manifested in forgiving the sinful woman who washed His feet with her hair (Lk.7: 37-50).
Kindness offers a cup of cold water in the name of Christ (Mt. 10:42). It visits orphans and
widows in distress (James 1:27). It stops to help the injured traveler on the road (Lk. 10:29-37).
GOODNESS—Active benevolence expressed in deeds for others.
Goodness is not a passive, pietistic withdrawal from society. It is that characteristic of
ministry which Peter referred to in Jesus: “You know . . . how God anointed Him with the Holy
Spirit and with power and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by
the devil; for God was with Him” (Acts 10:38; 11:24).
In the same way Jesus’ disciples (all of His followers) are to be active in “well-doing”-- in
selflessly reaching out to do good for the benefit of others (I Peter 2:15,20; 3:6,11,17; 4:19). The
Spirit of Christ is the spirit of goodness.
BELIEVERS RELATION TO SELF
(BELIEVER AS A PERSON):
Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control
FAITHFULNESS—Trustworthiness, loyalty and reliability in fulfilling a promise or
completing a task.
Faithfulness is faith in the sense of fidelity (Titus 2:10). It (pistos) describes the trustworthy
nature of God. He remains available, accessible and always dependable. He is never too busy or
distracted to pay attention to any of us. Our present and future life depends on the reliability of
God to honor His covenants (I Thess. 5:24).
Faithfulness is not only a characteristic of Christ (Rev. 19:11); “Faithful” is also one of His
names (Rev. 1:5). Faithful describes Jesus’ witness (Rev. 1:5), priesthood (Heb. 2:17) and
ministry (Heb. 3:2).