The Spirit’s Character Sketches of God’s Children
It is said that we need more assertive Christians, Christians who refuse to be pushed around, even Christians who are loud, boisterous, and opinionated. Our Lord, however, was kind and lowly, meek and longsuffering. He encouraged forgiving one’s enemies, patience under oppression, blessing when cursed, and loving all men, regardless of how they treat you. He was not timid or weak, for he spoke the truth, confronted evil, and stood calmly and confidently before the leaders of his day. He bore their insults patiently. In today’s “man culture” in some branches of the church, the Lord Jesus could have been accused of being a closet feminist. We must stand with him, for by giving us this list of spiritual fruits, his Spirit is painting for us character sketches of the Christian, of followers of Jesus Christ. He is painting the portrait of those who walk with him (Gal. 5:22-23). He is holding up a mirror of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we have an image for which to strive in this world (2 Cor. 13:5). We would perhaps rather look at the ugly pictures of sin so that we can critique what is wrong with everyone else, but this is not our Father’s way. He gives us a picture of the beautiful and good, of his Son, so that we can walk as he walked, know that he is in us, and shine as lights in the world.
Our Kind God and His Kind Children
His Kindness toward All Men
Kindness at its base is goodness that is courteous toward others, kind in one’s dealings with others, and a sweet disposition that easily makes friends because it shows itself friendly. Kindness gives generously and looks for opportunities to serve. It esteems others more important than self. This is who our God is. He is kind and good, toward all, even his enemies. “The earth is full of his goodness” (Ps. 33:5). He feeds and clothes everyone. He hears the cries for healing and help, even from those who are not his children, for all men know that he is their Maker and are in various seasons of life forced to look to him for what they lack. He gives and gives, for he is generous. He judges his enemies, to be sure, but he is in this life long-suffering and good to all (Ps. 145:9). We want him to send down fire, and he sends down rain, food, and health, even to the unkind and evil (Luke 6:35). Our Savior went about “doing kindness” to everyone (Acts 10:38). He healed and fed the sinful multitudes. None found him cold-hearted, unfriendly, or stingy. Our God is kind to all men, unreservedly generous with what belongs to him. He is willing to hear, ready to forgive, and abundant in goodness (Ps. 86:5). Whatever is happening to us, we always have many reasons to rejoice in the kindness of God – undeserved health, constant protection, food and clothing, to us and to all men (Matt. 5:45). It is one of the great sins in the lives of almost everyone that we do not praise God for his kindness and stand in awe of his constant kindness, from generation to generation. Instead, we complain and grumble. We are wretched.
His Kindness toward Sinners in Christ
Our Father’s kindness is especially and wonderfully shown in giving his Son to be our Savior. Jonah complained, yes, complained of the Lord’s saving kindness: “Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that you are a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repent you of the evil” (Jon. 4:2). We have many Jonah’s today, who do not want the Lord to show kindness but to judge with swiftness. Be careful not to wish for his sword that when unsheathed, cannot be sheathed by anyone, and may fall upon those who call most loudly for it (Jer. 47:6-7). Worthy of constant praise is the Lord’s kindness to sinners. His great work is to show the “exceeding riches of his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:7). All deserve his wrath, but instead he shows kindness and love in his Son (Tit. 3:4). Our Father was generous with what was precious to him, what he loved most, his beloved Son. And when he gave his Son, he laid upon him our curse, put him to grief, and made his soul an offering for sin. What kindness is this! What moved him to give such a gift to sinners? He did not show such kindness to good men or to his friends, but to his enemies (Rom. 5:8), to our sin-cursed race. Praise God for his kindness to sinners. Christian, you have a double praise to give to the Lord – for his undeserved goodness to you in life and his glorious kindness in salvation. Praise him! Praise him! Are you discouraged? Think of his goodness. Do you have a cold, proud, critical heart? Consider the kindness of God to you. Consider his goodness constantly and carefully and prayerfully. Ask him to work in you so that his kindness leads you to repentance and to a humbler frame of mind (Rom. 2:4).
Our Courteous, Kind, and Sweet Disposition toward Others
Our Father shows his great kindness to us so that we will love and worship him, depend upon him, and imitate him. After setting forth his Father’s kindness toward his enemies, our Savior said: “Be therefore perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). Kindness is the way of life for the Christian, for we are children of our Father who bear his renewed image and are followers of the kind Savior who loved and gave himself for us. To be kind means that we are courteous, not rude, respectful toward others, and concerned about doing them good. Kindness has an eye to the way we serve – that we are generous, not stingy, sweet and gentle, not angry, hard, or grouchy. The Lord does not give us gifts with the condescending bite of “I am doing you a favor, you poor fool,” but with a Father’s delight in giving good gifts to his children. The call to kindness confronts us with some hard questions. If asked, would those around us say that we are a pleasure to be around, or that our presence is quite distasteful? Are we known as a generous people, an open-hearted, giving people? Do they see in us our Savior’s kindly disposition to the needy and helpless – or hear us instead telling them all the reasons they are deservedly suffering, and if they would be more like us, these things would not happen to them. O, to be like our Father in heaven – kind to the unthankful, blessing those who hate him, doing good to all. Then, our witness would be vital, our lives more cheerful, and others blessed simply by our attitude – by Christ our Lord’s kindness in us. For, any kindness in us is really Christ in us (Col. 3:3-4).
Like Christ our Lord, Lowliness of Mind
To See Oneself as Truly Low
It is impossible to be truly kind unless we think of ourselves as small, not the most important person in the room, as being unworthy of notice – not for selfish or sensitive reasons. This is like our Savior, who although God, humbled himself to become the servant of all. The reason we will have small views of ourselves is because of Christ in us. The servant will be like his Master. Lowliness of mind is not smugness that even though we are actually better than others, we put on a show of humility because it is expected or to please others. There is a form of “lowness” that is nothing but pride screaming to be petted. True lowliness of mind springs, first, from a sense that we are creatures, utterly dependent upon the Lord for our next breath. Millions of processes are occurring in our bodies and in the universe every moment, over which we have no control and upon which we are completely dependent. If creaturely dependence does not breed lowliness of mind in us, an accurate and honest seeing ourselves as small, nothing else will. But we are also, blind and sinful. We deny our dependence, for we are rebellious creatures. We rejected our Maker’s word. We rebelled against him. We should be like children who have displeased their parents and walk quietly in the house, feeling our unworthiness of any consideration from our parents. Instead, we excuse ourselves and blame others, puffing our plumes like a peacock. We cannot see ourselves truly unless we see ourselves as sinners before a holy God.
Wonder of wonders, this same holy God, our Father has sent his Son to redeem us from our unrighteousness. The price of our redemption was the precious blood of the Son of God incarnate. He humbled himself lower than we can ever fathom to offer such a ransom. We cannot know ourselves to be redeemed without at the same time being small in our own eyes. Yes, we were loved by the Lord, but he did not love us for anything in us. And yet, he gave himself for us. Pride in any form is a contradiction of the Christian gospel. Where the grace of God is preeminent, his people are content to be lowly, without pomp in worship or luxury in life. Exalting God’s grace and Christ’s righteousness alone, our blessed Reformers wanted no saints or days named after them. Unmarked graves were their desire; Christ Jesus in his word was preeminent in their deaths as in their lives. Redeemed men and women think like this – lowly about ourselves, magnifying Jesus Christ. We must not give a thought to man’s neglect or hatred. The holy God has redeemed us by his Son. Our boast is that Jesus Christ suffered for us in our filth to redeem us to God by his blood.
Lowliness of mind is also the fruit of taking seriously that we are disciples of our Master. We cannot think highly of ourselves and look down upon others for the simple reason that he did not. Had he treated us this way, we would perish forever, burning in the flames kindled by our pride and vanity. But here was the Son of God, contented in the loving fellowship of his Father, together with the Spirit, who did not think himself too high to become so low for us. His life of joyful service and humbling of himself gives an invincible power to his call: “The disciple is not above his Master.” Ah, no, Lord, we are not, but how often we try to be above you, to avoid being lowly as you were, to push ourselves forward. We often yield to the devil’s temptation to him to “throw yourself down from the temple pinnacle.” Make yourself known – push yourself forward – let everyone know you are the Son of God. He refused. And his refusal was not fake modesty or putting on the air of lowliness. He said, “Come, learn of me, for I am meek and lowly of heart.” Lowly of heart? The Son of God in our flesh? Worthy of the worship of all the angels and every creature without end, with full hearts of wonder? Yes, he became the servant of all. And he did not wear a t-shirt – “The Jesus Humility Society.” This was his true heart. And in his fellowship, knowing his pride-killing cross, self-lowering humility, we shall be clothed with his meekness and gentleness so that we do not think ourselves higher than anyone else – sincerely, honestly, low in our own thoughts so that we can be kind and serve others.
Lowliness in Practice
Lowliness of mind, small views of ourselves, is one of the distinguishing marks of a Christian. It is not moroseness or melancholy – pride disappointed. It is the recovery of self-honesty in the grace of Christ-consciousness. Nothing like this is even suggested in the morality of pagans. There is sometimes the suggestion that we should at least affect a certain kind of self-effacing magnanimity, especially the great ones, or no one will be able to endure their haughtiness. Jesus Christ breaks this delusion. There are no superiors in his kingdom – only inferiors. And this is not to underestimate his gifts and graces, which he gives according to the measure of his gifts (Eph. 4:7). In his kingdom, a different principle rules – his own humbling of himself. Even in the final phase of his kingdom, there is a hint in one of his parables, so it must not be overpressed, that he will serve us even then (Luke 12:37), for he would never use a false idea in parable imagery. Like their Master, husbands serve their wives, nourishing and cherishing them. As Master, he washed his disciples feet, and then stated that we should do the same, for we are to be like him in everything (John 13:14-17). Therefore, we must conclude that there is a divine work of quickening grace in each of his disciples that presses his unique imprint upon the soul of the redeemed. Like our Lord, we are small in our own eyes so that we prefer others to ourselves, do not push ourselves forward, and honestly take the lowest seat, without seeking anything higher. This is all by the delivering power of Jesus Christ in us.
Perhaps we need a catechism of lowliness, so that we may be like our Master: “I am meek and lowly of heart” (Matt. 11:29). Notice that he joins a restful soul to taking his yoke upon us and learning of him, including his meekness and lowliness. So much agitation comes from our haughtiness – from trying to convince ourselves and others that we are in control, either by knowledge or experience, position or wealth, upbringing or education. So many relationships are set on edge by conceitedness – the desire and demand to be right in every situation or to belittle others so that they are kept in their place and reminded of their smallness. Spirit-wrought meekness exerts no effort to make others feel small, but like our Master, prefers others, tries to promote their good, and takes delight in serving them. There is little room in this heart for self-aggrandizement . By the grace of the Spirit, the temptation to push oneself forward, or to be cynical toward others with less attainments, or to push oneself into the center poses little danger to the kind and lowly Christian. Satan could not understand why his clever temptation to our Lord to make himself known by hurling himself down from the temple was so easily foiled. It is what he wants – to be noticed, to be first, to dominate, to be God. He cannot understand the lowliness of God himself, the Son of God incarnate, the condescending God who humbles himself.
But we can understand a little. It is our great Master and Savior in us, who became a worm and did not parade his humility before everyone in a kind of false pride. It is the reality of the Holy Spirit who condescends to dwell with us – God himself dwelling in you and me? When we sin against him so much, underestimate his strength, depend upon our own, and generally lack that quietness before his presence that would settle our souls in peace and strength. How can we be kind and lowly? First, understand and worship the God who humbles himself in his Son. Constantly study his life, his interactions with others, his statements about himself, and his preferring others attitude. Second, come often before the cross and witness his sufferings with joy, his blood flowing with love, and his sacrifice that brings peace. Only the cross can break the rebel creature’s self-oriented and self-seeking ways. We cannot believe in the crucified Lamb of God, hear heaven by faith still singing with amazement, and go on our way as full of ourselves as we were before. Third, put on Jesus Christ. It is in his fellowship, in union with him in his word, in communion with him by prayer, that we seek and obtain his kind and lowly heart. He must teach it to us, as he said in Matthew’s Gospel. He must teach us our joy and peace lie not in realizing our own desires but in being filled with him and walking as he walked. He will form the new man in us, the kind and lowly Christian. Others will marvel, and we shall gladly praise the Lord for his grace. And the world will see there is a reality to the gospel of which they know nothing but must have or else destroy themselves as Satan did – by pride.
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