Patience, Kindness, Goodness - Manward Fruit

The authentic character of a believer is revealed not in comfortable church settings, but when pressure comes and the world challenges our values. As new creatures in Christ, we receive the fruit of the Spirit as evidence of our transformation - these aren't optional qualities but critical demonstrations of who we've become.

Long-suffering, or patience, comes from the Greek word 'macrothumia' meaning long-tempered - the capacity to endure provocation and difficult situations without eruption. This patience flows from understanding God's own long-suffering toward us, as He endures our failures and inconsistencies with purposeful love aimed at our growth. In our microwave world demanding instant results, we must remember that spiritual growth is garden work, not microwave work, requiring time and trust in the process.

Kindness represents active benevolence - practical tenderness that moves beyond warm feelings to serve others genuinely. Far from weakness, kindness demonstrates strength by choosing to benefit others, becoming a powerful form of evangelism that unlocks hearts where preaching alone might fail. Goodness takes this further, requiring moral courage to do what's right even when uncomfortable. While kindness shows warmth toward people, goodness maintains commitment to truth and justice. These fruits flow vertically from our connection to God and horizontally toward others, held together by love as the bond of perfection.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:08

It's our time. We must rise up and no longer despair it. It's our time, church, to honor our heritage. We have a savior. He gave it all on the cross. We stand beside martyrs who counted nothing as loss. They took God's mysteries, opened them up for us. Stephen, John the Baptist, Bonhoeffer, Jan Hoff. Surrounded by a cloud of witnesses above, it's now our turn to model his unending love. Our mission is one we cannot confuse your muddy up with some trite excuse. You say you're not well-versed, ready, or able. I think Moses even tried to use that fable. The time we have, it's now more urgent. If we should hear well done, faithful servants in the church. It's our time. It's our time to confess the ways we're mangled, the sins and selfishness that have us entangled. Lust, greed, and pride, their path leads to the grave. Yet we return to our sins as if we're a slave. Can we survive in this putrid dead sea? I quote Paul. May it never be. So let's cast aside our individual leprosy and begin to leave a biblical legacy. There's a glorious prize awaiting to be won. And the way to win is to start to run. Let's lace them up and fight the good fight. Become to the world most salt hand light. Our life on earth is merely a vapor. Our chapter must move from pen to paper. So, church, let's get to writing because it's our time. It's our time, church. We have what it takes to help the world from its slumber awake. To Jesus, we are his beautiful bride. Whom shall we fear with him on our side? We have each other, we are not alone. It's iron to iron in the combat zone. There's a promise of life full of adventure. As long as we give both talents and treasure. The workers are few, the harvest is plenty, with so many lives running on empty. Scores of people trying to cope. They've come to the end of their proverbial rope. Young eyes are wandering, looking for direction. Make sure we point them to his resurrection. The clock's ticking, we're on our dime. Hey church, rise up. It's our time.

SPEAKER_00 2:40

So week two, we established something profound. If you remember, we established that God values who you are over what you do. Amen. We don't hide behind the things we do. God is more vested in your character than the performance you put up. Does it make sense? You know, we got resources on YouTube, we've got certain resources on the podcast, LiveTripe Podcast, so you can always revisit uh those messages to get yourself uh up to part with what we discuss. And last week we looked into the three fruits the love, the joy, and the peace. And we call those the Godwin, Godward fruits. And what you need to know about those things, just in a brief recap, is that the Godword fruits define your vertical relationship with the Father. Amen? They define your vertical relationship with the Father, which I guess I hope I'll talk a bit a little bit more about it before we today uh we we end the sermon today. So today we are technically in week four, and we move to the next three, okay? We'll move to the next three, which is patience, kindness, goodness. And I call those the manward fruits. And why are they the man word fruits? These fruits govern how we treat each person, God places in your path. And one of the things you're going to learn today is that these fruits are going to be absolutely impossible unless the first three are already acted in your life. Amen? Because you will receive from God, which is a vertical relationship, and then we transfer it to people around us, which is a horizontal relationship. So there are two dimensions of fruit bearing in the believer's life we're going to talk about. Now, when you take a look at the nine fruits in Galatians 5.22, one thing you need to understand, and most of the time, and you know, it's honestly when it's interesting, when you read the Bible and you read it from a perspective of learning, you know, you notice something that there's nothing in the Bible that is random. Everything is placed there strategically. And that's why it's interesting when you pick up the Bible and you read the Bible from Jesus to Revelation. Even though there are different authors who wrote the book, it looks as if there is one single person because everything is in coordinates, right? And so when you take a look at the fruit closely, they are not randomly arranged. And last week, I think when we began, we explained this, they are into three distinct clusters of three. And these clusters follow deliberate orders. The first three, which is love, joy, and peace, we will call the God with fruits, they define what happens between you and God. Okay? The next three, which we're going to be studying today, kindness, goodness, and my and uh what's it called, patience, kindness, goodness, are man one, and they are defined, they define what happens between you and every person you encounter. Okay? So, and I think I briefly said this, think about it this way: the vertical cross, right? The vertical beam, all right, reaches out to God, okay? The horizontal beam reaches out to people. Now you remember when Jesus was one day questioned by the Pharisees, and he said something to me. He said, he summarized the law into two parts. He said, Love the Lord your God, which is the vertical aspect of it, okay? And so, and we explained those things last week. And then he said, love your neighbor as yourself, which now becomes a horizontal aspect of it. And so vertically, we're connected to God. And as God, and it's all about proximity, how close you are to Him, because you receive that from Him, and then you can transfer it to everyone around you. It doesn't make sense, it's very critical. A fruit-bearing Christian is living both dimensions simultaneously, and so somebody who is bearing fruit, it's always connected vertically to God, and horizontally, that which he received. But it's look at it this way: that the first three is something that we receive from God. But then we offer it back to God in worship. Amen. Then as we do that, then we cannot, because that empowers us now to horizontally now begin to distinctively suffer along with those that hate us, which we're gonna study, goodness and kindness to those around us. And here is a sequence you must understand. The man with fruits flow out of the goodwill fruit. So there's no way that you can extend long suffering, patience, long-suffering, goodness to anyone unless you actually have received the love of God and actually are in that close proximity from God when God has poured those things into you. So it begins with the God with fruits and then the extension of the man with fruits. Does it make sense? You cannot sustain patience with people if you have not first experienced God's long suffering towards you. You cannot give kindness if you have not received kindness, you cannot produce goodness apart from the one who is good. So, what we did last week, which was the root produces this week's fruit. Now let's read the main text together again. Go with me to Galatians chapter 5, verse 22 to 23 quickly. Let's read our anchor test for this study. It says, by the fruit of the spirit, amen. The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. And it says, Against that, there is no law. Okay? Now, long-suffering, kindness, gent goodness, we're gonna examine today these three. And I'm gonna show you something that these three are not personality traces, they are spirit-produced characters that transform that transform not just who you are on a Sunday morning, but how you live from Monday through Saturday. You want to know Christians always put up on our best behaviors on Sunday morning about what we are trying to understand through this study. It's something that should be your governing, something that you live through on Monday to Saturday, and then Sunday becomes the ice on the cake. Do you know why? Because because those are the nature, the actual nature of Jesus. When you show this nature to people, there's something actually going to you're actually showing the character of Jesus to those around you. And so it's not only reserved for when you come to church to be on your best behavior. When you are in your closet, when somebody puts pressure on you, when the world doesn't always align with the things you do, how do you react? Because if you react a different way from you react to church, you are living a phony life. Let's go. Somebody say, Let's go. All right. So we're gonna tackle the long suffering first. Now, you need to understand that we are talking about the character of the new man. Amen. So before you came to the cross, before you accepted Jesus as Lord and Personal Savior, we're all fallen. Okay? We all had character defaults. But when we come to him, and this is why Paul was so uh uh what's it called? Think about this, he said that so that the fruit of the spirit, in other words, the evidence of the new character we received are these things that we're talking about here. Amen. And so this is not something that is optional that we it's something that is critical that every single believer should be able to live and exhibit these characters, okay? Because this actually tells us that who you are, you are a new creature. It is not what we say, it is the the things is how people perceive you. Amen? Because you can tell people all you want, whoever is in Christ, a new creature, behold, all things are gone. How well are you doing are you demonstrating the character of Jesus to that new creature you say you are? This is what it said it's all about. Let's go to Colossians chapter 3, verse 12, quickly. Paul again, uh you know, and as I as we're doing this study, I I just had I always respected a lot, Paul, but I'm just really beginning to understand him more because the guy was a great guy. Paul was a great guy. He was an amazing, amazing, educated person. The way he outlined scriptures, the poetry in it, it's just unbelievable. He said, therefore, and I've really taught you guys that whenever you see the word therefore, there's a reason why saying therefore, right? Okay. So he said, therefore, as the elect of God. Oh, you're not hearing me. As the elect of God, you are not just a random person walking the face of the earth, you are not somebody that just stumbled upon something. God intentionally elected you. You know, one of my pastor friend, one of his most favorite scriptures in the Bible is found in the feet, he says, For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus, unto what good works. God elected you for good works, not just the same person you were before you came to the cross. The evidence has to be there for everybody to see. So he said, Therefore, because you are the elect of God, and look at how he continues, holy, oh you're not hearing me, and beloved. You know, the Bible says that God is holy. Paul says that you are holy, and you are beloved by the king. Don't put any cheap price on yourself, you know. This is how heaven sees you holy, beloved. So, because of this, because of this, because you are elect, because you are holy, because you are beloved by God, in other words, because the nature of very nature of God has been given to you, put on. Touch some must say put on, put on mercies. Why is Paul saying put it on? Because you are able to put it on. Why? Because the nature is in you. Put on kindness, put on humility, meekness, and long suffering. Now, the Greek word here, I don't prof, I don't, I don't dec I don't tell anybody I'm a Greek scholar, so I'm gonna be able to pronounce the word well. And if I don't, please have mercy on me, but it is in your notes, all right? The Greek word used here, pulling the notes for long suffering. I'm not gonna say it. Bishop, how does uh what is that word? Oh my god, but according to apostleton, that word is macrotumia, macro macrotumia.

unknown 13:57

It's Greek.

SPEAKER_00 14:08

You laugh, Sherry. Whatever it is, we are not teaching Greek here. I am not teaching Greek, we are not in the Greek lesson, but what it means though, it's important. It means long-tempered. Amen. And this is what it is it is the capacity, listen carefully, capacity to endure provocation, the capacity to endure difficult situations and an injury for an extended period of time without eruption, the capacity to endure provocation. In other words, you get provoked and provoked and provoked, but there's no eruption. Difficult situations around you, and you don't react to them. Extended injury that will cause anyone to complain, but you keep quiet. For an extended period of time, you know what comes to mind? What comes to mind now is Jesus standing before Pilate, beating up, closed on, making fun of, and you're standing there quietly. That's long suffering, people. That's the nature that you receive. He had the power to call a legion of angels, but decided to keep quiet. That is long suffering. You see, notice what this word implies. There is provocation involving this. When I was studying this, I thought, oh Jesus, I need help. You have been offended, and the pain is real, but you refuse to react. Long suffering doesn't pretend the frustration isn't real, it simply refuses to designate uh uh designate. So, where does long suffering come from? Let's take a look at Romans chapter 2, verse 4 quickly. Or do you despise the riches of his goodness? Oh my god, forbearance and long suffering. And so, this is this is this just in case you're wondering, the subject here is God, okay? And Paul is saying that do you despise the riches of his goodness? In other words, God is good. Someone said God is good. Goodness comes from God, right? And he says his forbearance, in other words, God looks over things intentionally, okay? And so, and his long suffering, God is long suffering, he was demonstrated as Jesus stood on planet earth, being led to Calvary, being mugged by people, and decided to keep his mouth shut. Okay, and Paul says something, not knowing the reason why God does is that the goodness of God leads to repentance. You're not hearing me. God patience, God's patience with you is not passive, it is purposeful. So God has decided, you're not hearing me. He's decided to give you a long rope. He's decided that he's not going to react to the things, the foolish things you do. Why? Because when that is extended to you, that brings you to how good he is, and that leads you to repent to understand you're not hearing me. You see, he endures your failures. You're not hearing me. We don't endure other people's failures. Your inconsistencies. You know, we look with the binoculars at how people are struggling their lives, and we condemn them in a minute. But there you are, God is looking at your failures and he knows everything. He's looking at your inconsistencies, your slow growth. Some of you have been here for 20 years, you still haven't grown. Your repeated cycle of sin, not because he's unaware of it, but because his goal is your repentance and your transformation, not your immediate punishment. And so, whenever we extend long suffering to people, we gotta have a reason for doing that. Perhaps they will see a nature of Christ in you that they have not realized or noticed that might bring them to thinking to figure out what this guy has. You know, when I was in Bible school in London, I had I was, I think I shared this here before. There was a this gentleman that I was in Bible school with, he was from Zimbabwe, I think it was. Really great guy, great guy. But he was one of these laid-back people, man. You know, like we go, I used to leave church on a Sunday and go and stand and say, This is just to do evangelism. This guy would never do that. He was just a quiet guy. He used to work in the London Underground, you know, part-time. And according to his testimony, we're in Bible class one day and he shared this. That um he was mopping. There was a bit of a flood in the underground, and so he was mopping. But as he was doing that, the joy witch was doing it, singing just joy, just joy. So he had a co-worker who came to him and said, Man, what is it about you, man? That you are always joyful. What is it that you got? That was the entry point that he had to begin to share Jesus with that person. So it wasn't about preaching broomstone from the puppet like I'm doing, it was just simply demonstrating something that God has given us his joy, that he's given us the joy of the Lord, and that was an open door. And so the things that we do, people you might not think that people are not looking at you. Yeah, this is why when you have friends around you and you begin to behave stupidly, they actually I thought you were a Christian because they have a better expectation for you. Okay, so this is the foundation of your patience with others. You are not operating from an empty tank, you are extending to others people the same patience that has been extended to you by God who has not given up on you or on them, man. I tell you something. If God had given up on any one of us, none of us will be sitting here because don't sit here with the scriptures thinking that you're there's nothing going on with you. There is there's stuff going on, man. You can't convince me, but yes, still, his goodness is made available to you. Why is it that we want people to change just like that? Why is it that when folks offend us, we get so so defensive? I don't even know the words to use. Why? I'll tell you why, because the whole society has been programmed to live in a microwave microwave world. We live in an age that demands instant results, instant downloads. Tony go to your phone and download something on YouTube. Instant delivery. What do you call them? Door dash, and it's there. You want something? Instant answers, and we have imported that spirit into our relationships. We expect people to change quickly, we expect our prayers to produce immediate transformation, and when they don't, oh my god, when your spouse doesn't change, when your wood child keeps walking, when the col the colleagues continue to frustrate you at work, when your prayer goes on answered for one month, man, that's an eruption. You know, the same times we go before God with uh uh what we call him, Brandon uh uh chip on your shoulders like you deserve something, like heaven has to move everything to answer. Say you quickly because don't you know, God, that I'm in torment? Because our minds have been programmed. You know, this morning, uh, you know, you just put a couple of microwaves, three minutes, bing, bing. Your expectation is that everything has to happen within the time that I want it to happen. And so when somebody is close to you and a person is struggling with something, and and and and what besides that you you've you've just come from there. You know, at the same time, you want to step back from yourself, man, and go back 20 years ago and see the behavior. I don't know about anybody by me, I'm grateful to God. Because if y'all knew me 20 years ago, you can come near me. But God's goodness and his grace brings us to godly repentance. Tell somebody say, Extend the same courtesy to people around you. That is Christianity, you know, hear me. But growth is not microwave work, growth is like a garden work. You don't plant a seed and you, you know, there was this advert on TV a few years ago that this I gotta be careful. I'm I'm on I'm on I'm on the social media. This this dude, you know, he's he's just a bit, you know, he goes to the gym and then he starts on the scale. He weighs himself and then he runs around the gym once and comes back and stands on the scale. The instantly should lose weight. That is what we think people are. Growth in people, people, it's not a microwave work. A gardener will plant a seed and wait. He water the seed and wait, he turns to it and waits. The farmer does not just stand over the soil and shout, grow, grow. He tanks it and he trusts it, and the harvest eventually comes. I have an illustration for you. Go to image number one for me, please. You know, many years ago, early in the late 70s, my dad bought us uh an encyclopedia. Um uh what's it called? Uh uh, cluster encyclopedias. It wasn't Britannica, whatever your name was. It was years ago, man. And in it, one of my favorite pages in the encyclopedia was a volcano. Because when you read about the destruction and the beauty of the volcano, I never thought that these things were real. I thought that somebody just put it in there, remind you I was young. But here's what happens: let's imagine a volcano that impresses you in the moment, the explosion, the fire, the spectacles, and what, and and but when those things are over, the landscape is ruined. You see, what we don't seem to understand is that when we erupt in anger, at the moment you feel satisfied for what you've done, but the distraction you've left behind you, the same time that you can never fix that distraction. And then look at the other side of the mountain. A mountain, by contrast, makes no dramatic display. It simply endures centuries of weather, pressure, and storms, and the mountain remains. Zologists will tell you, man, that some of these mountains have been around for thousands of years. In bridge, we'll call something the something of Gibraltar, the mountain of Djibouti. It doesn't move, it just stays. Year after year, winter, summer, snowstorms, it stays, right? The way you gotta picture this is this long suffering is like a mountain. It does not erupt when it's provoked, it does not collapse under pressure, it's with us every storm and remains standing when lesser things have crumbled. What God wants us to understand about how profound long suffering is that you don't just erupt. Think about yourself as a mountain that I've stayed in the same place, same position for 6,000 years. No eruption. Doesn't make sense. Now, I'm sure this will minister to somebody here. This isn't profound. If it's not in your notes, write this down. The most influential people in your family, in this church, in any workplace, the most influential people are not those who react, people, they are those who endure. Did he hear that? Those who are influential in society don't react to things. These are people that endure situations, knowing that there's always a better day coming. Somebody say, Praise God. So watch this. In Colossians 3, verse 12, the Bible says, and therefore, as the legs of God, holy and beloved, put on tender messages, kindness, humility, meekness, and long suffering. And we said it this now, watch this now. What Paul was referring to to the churches in Colossian when he told them to put on, the same thing you need to think about is like when you were coming here this morning, I look at all your dressed so beautifully this morning. Did I come to your house and tell you what to wear? You had a choice. You're not hearing me. You had a choice what you wanted to put on today. Every morning you have a choice about what you wear. Now, the question is this will you wear the short fuse, reacting to every situation, every slow driver, every disappointment person, or will you put on the long fuse? What is the long fuse? The patience of God that believes He is still working on the person and it's still working on you. You see, Mr. Time when we react to things, we react as if we have arrived. We react, I don't know about anybody about me. We react as if we have arrived, we have attained everything. And that person, it's it's minuscule. That person is irrelevant, it's important. So get out of the way, let me go. But you don't know that God is also working on you still. And why do you think that God has finished working on that person? You see, the long view will ask where is God taking this person? Not where are they right now? Why is this person disturbing me? Your patience, watch this now. When we extend patience to people, might be the very thing that God is using to write the next chapter in their lives. You know, there's certain times that when you act a fool, you know they've acted a fool. So you expect somebody to to scream and shout at you. When the person extends grace to you, it makes you think there's some good people in this world. You might be going through something very challenging, but for somebody to just spend a minute just to extend God's goodness to you gets you to think. You know, I know that sometimes I've shouted at people, and I go back and I think, man, I shouldn't have done that. Because what is the point of doing it? Many a time the people we're angry with don't even know you're angry with them. You're not hearing me. You're driving, you get frustrated. The person doesn't even know what's going on in your car, but it's ruined your whole mood. But we are Christians, praise God. Now, watch this now. Kindness is a strength. So let's go to kindness. Kindness is a is a strength. It is this, it is the service, is a strength in the service of others. Let's go back to Colossians chapter 3, verse 12, please. Therefore, as the elect of God, and we're gonna read this verse verse a lot. Holy below, put on a tender message, loving kindness, kindness, humility, meekness, and long suffering. We're back again, man. The Greek word. I'm no Greek, I'm not gonna try. Bishop, what does the Greek word say? According to the bishop, he says the word is Chrestosis. If he's wrong, if I'm wrong, then he's wrong. Now, Crestosis, listen to this carefully. She's my Greek interpreter. Daniel, I'm coming to you next. Crestossi. So watch this now. We know what long suffering stands for, right? But what does goodness stand for? Goodness carries the idea of moral goodness and benevolence. The active intentional desire to do good towards others. I had a bishop talking about learning to the poor and taking care of those that are needy and learning to God. I heard it when I was in the office. What the way that Paul is interpreting this word in the Greek is an idea of moral goodness and benevolence. This is active and it's intentional. How many times have Gloria and I have been talking about intentionality? It's the intention to desire to do good towards others. In other words, it's like you don't need to be forced to do good. You see what is wrong and you try and fix it because it's in the capacity to do it. Many times, you know, I hear people ask me a question, why do I do what I do? And I said, I have a very simple principle in life. I do what I do because I can. You know, hearing me. And because it's the right thing to do. Because I can. I've been given the resources to do it. And because it's always the right thing to do. So whether it's something against me or eventually it's gonna affect me, I am bound, like Paul said, to do what is good because it's the right thing to do. Does it make sense? So it is practical tenderness, not just a warm feeling, but a kindness that moves your hand and feet. In other words, you're not gonna turn around and say, Oh, I'm gonna see, but I'm gonna pray for you. You're not hearing me. You see somebody need, it moves you because of the kindness of God towards you. You are moved in the same capacity to extend the hand and feet towards a person. It shows up, you're not hearing me. Goodness shows up whenever it needs to be shown up. It serves when it needs to be served, it notices the need that and does something about it. In other words, man, you are sitting here, you are stretched up with the goodness of God, and you are looking and kind of figure out a need that you only can meet. I remember years ago, years ago, man, years ago, years ago, years ago. This is when my what's called that uh callless microphones has just started coming, you know, this years, yes. And um, I was in church, and this great man of God came to minister to us on that uh Sunday, and he's very energetic, one of these energetic preachers, man. He he holds a microphone, he's always all over the place, and he goes in the crowd and he's laying hands on people, praying for people. But I saw something. I saw that the cord was restricting him. Okay? He was restricting his movement. So when nobody telling me, my brother was the uh what's called a worship leader of the church. So I went to him and I said to him, Listen, man, go look for a microphone. Come and tell me. Let me buy, but make sure that nobody knows I did it. You see, a good person, a kind person, is always looking for a need in the kingdom that they only can meet. You don't need somebody picking up your phone and telling you, do this. Why? Because of the kindness that God showed you, his work, the things he does are always ahead of you and always looking for different means to extend that goodness to people. This is the fruit that the Bible is talking about. The same way that Jesus did these things, these are the things we're supposed to do. I remember my brother when told me, it was a lot of money at the time. And we're talking, God remember 91, 90s, early 90s. At the time, that microphone was nearly a thousand pounds. A lot of money. I just started my business. And I just counted the money, cash, and gave it to him. Go by. I remember coming to church on Sunday, and uh my the founder's daughter was the one that did microphone, like announcements, you know, picking up the microphone, making announcements and doing this, and like it was something new. And after a while, Dr. Eastwood came back to the church and he was ministering, and he picked up the microphone and he was just moving in the crowd, man. Just laying hands, just ministering. And the Holy Spirit ministered to my heart. There are certain things we do in the kingdom that has residual value to it. Everybody that is getting blessed as the amplification of God's word is going on, God is remembering Augustine. You see, some of you wonder how we are able to stand here year after year and do what we do. Dude, we have sown some seeds, you know, that are following us. Nothing just happens in the kingdom. You don't want somebody to tell you, do something for me. This is what happened to David and and and and God. The reason why David received a prophecy from God that his seat, there is always going to be somebody's seat because David stood up one morning and said, My God, God has done a lot for me. But look at the ark of the covenant, it is moving from tent to tent. This is not good. I am going to build a house for God. God never told him. Goodness. He looked at the need and said, I am going to do this. Why? Because I value God and I value the ark, and I can't let the ark be staying in tents. So he goes to Nathan and tells Nathan, This is what I'm going to do. And Nathan, you see, prophets, prophets, prophets. They told me for the thing. They said, We said, Go ahead and do it without asking God. But that night God came to Nathan and rebuked him. David is not going to build a house, but his son, Solomon, is going to do it. But then God says something that just he said, Will a man build me a house? I did not ask him to do it. But he saw a need and decided he was going to do it. People, the true blessing in the kingdom comes when somebody doesn't age you to plant a seed, but you see a need and you step forward. In it doesn't mean that you are comfortable. Most people want to have an account overflow before they give to God. You just missed it. You don't have to have abundance to do that. But just the mere fact that there's a need, God has a need, and a man steps forward. That is goodness. Now there's a misconception between goodness and weakness. Many people mistake kindness for softness. You got to be hard. As though kind people are simply those who lack the courage to say hard things. Let's take a look at Jesus. This is the one. You know, when you study Jesus, you learn so many things. Jesus was kind enough to minister to those that are needy, minister to kids, minister to every single person that came to him. But the same Jesus was the one that took a whip and went to the temple and whipped them. Kindness is not weakness, it is doing what is right. Kindness, he welcomed children, restored the broken, fed thousands. The same hands, like I said. Kindness does not lack expine, it simply chooses to bend that spine in the direction to benefit others. It's not that you're weak when you do those things, not that you're stupid, you don't know what to use your money for. You can go to Chick-fil-A and enjoy. But then you decide that you're gonna sacrifice something for the kingdom. You are not stupid. You're simply bending that spine to benefit others, and God sees it, and that is the God that we serve. He could have stood in heaven and look at these miserable people. Look at how stupid these people are. But he left. I tell people the actual sacrifice of Jesus was not the cross, you know. Go read Revelations. What he had to let go to become who he was. You didn't hear me. What Jesus had to let go to become who he was. The Bible says that because it did that, humbled himself, even though, read Philippians 2, it's even though he was equal with God, did not consider himself robbery, but he lowered himself to the point of being a bond servant so that he can come and rescue you. Some of you want to be kings, you want to be served. No, people. True kindness, it's when you bend a spine to serve somebody because you have received kindness yourself. In Romans chapter 2, verse 4, we say, or do you despise the riches of goodness, forbearance and long suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads to repentance. I want that to settle in for a minute. What leads to repentance is not what, you know, preaching broomstone and shouting and screaming. No. What leads to repentance, it's what Paul said. It is the kindness of God, his generosity, his patience, his goodness towards people who have not done anything to deserve it. That is what breaks hardened hearts. When you were in that state, he came to die for you. So Paul says that when you extend these things to people, something happens. It breaks the heart and heart because they see something. You know, it restores back the thing that we have in humanity. Most people have lost trust in humanity. But then when somebody, man, when you extend that to the person, that restores that thing, but man, there's some still some good people. So this means that every act of genuine, unexpandable kindness you extend to another person is a form of evangelism. Now, next we're gonna be next week is the first, right? Man, I've already said it, we gotta do it, right? When we show kindness, we're doing something, we are putting the character of God on display. When you show kindness to a person who hasn't ended, and remember, God extended kindness to a big where we had not ended, and the person you are showing kindness who cannot repay you, who may never be in a position to thank you for it. You're giving them a glimpse of who God is and the kindness that supersedes all understanding. You see, evangelism, well, if you study the root word of evangelism, what really is to say something to Harold. But then I shared the testimony of the guy I went to Bible school with. Just the act of God, demonstrating the act of God, makes people think. You see, there's any put an image up now. Let's say you guys came into the room and this door was locked, right? Can you imagine the type of force that you need to put to try and open that door? It's not gonna open. But if the door was unlocked, you just click the latch and the door opens, right? Kindness is a key that unlocks the door of a human heart. You see, there's a reason why Jesus came and preached, but yes, it'll feather. You're not hearing me. You don't understand times that we have preacher and we preach to people, and what they are going through, they don't know if you hear what you're saying. Wait for a minute from your busy microwave lifestyle and extend some kindness to the person. Unlock that door before you preach anything to them. Because kindness says that God cares, God sees you, you're not hearing me. Kindness is the kid that unlocks the door, preaching alone can assault a closed door. Arguments can push against it, but the act of genuine, unexpected kindness, a meal that you brought to a grieving neighbor, a word of encouragement to a struggling colleague, a grace extended to someone who deserves the opposite. Swings open the door, nothing else can move. And once that door is open, the gospel can walk into that door. You don't just go banging on doors, mate. You go opening the heart of the person with kindness. Love on people. Tell somebody say, love on people. Why? Because you have been loved, man. Show long suffering to people. Why? Because God has shown long suffering towards you. Show kindness to folks because God has been really, really good to you. While we are yes, sinners. While we were yes, sinners, while that your name was not even written in the books of life, Jesus stepped in from eternity to Just to demonstrate God's goodness to you. How much more are we sitting here today, people? So remember the one of the verses we read, Colossians 3 12. We are commanded to put on kindness. And again, it's the same Greek word we'll put it on clothes again. So Paul says that you have a choice in this. And let me explain this to you, man. You have a choice in this. You have a choice to put on kindness, you have a choice to be kind, or a choice to be arrogant and proud. You have that choice. So he commands the church in Colossian, put on kindness. The same way they get one morning and you go to the bathroom and you shower and you put on beautiful clothes and you get out. You know, Paul talks about putting on the armor of God. Put on kindness, man. Before you step out. Kindness does not happen accidentally. It is not a mood that descends on a certain day when everything goes well. So you can't decide, oh today, I'm going to be kind, Bishop. I'm going to be very kind. But tomorrow I'm mad. When the mood is not right, you choose to.

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This is a daily decision you make. A garment you reach for every morning. You put it on when you respond gently to someone who was rude to you. When you have the ability to just smile at someone. You know, some of you may want to kill your husband, your husbands. But when you decide I'm going to be kind to him. Oh, be kind to him. You put on your garment of kindness. You put it on when you respond gently to someone who's rude to you. You put it on when you tip generously. When you serve quietly, when you encourage unexpectedly. You put it on when the spirit whispers this person needs the word and you give it. You are being kind. People, let me tell you this. This world is starving for an encounter with someone who is genuinely kind without an agenda. You know, human beings, we are very transactional. Very transactional beings. I'll do this for you. You gotta do this for me. But genuine kindness doesn't expect anything back. You do it because it is the right thing to do, and because you can. And the world is hungry for people, man, that will extend God's kindness to them. And it's a genuine level of kindness. I'm not doing this because I want you to come to my church, I'm not doing this because I want to give an offering. I'm not doing this because I'm doing it because it's the nature of God, it's the right thing to do, and I'm able to do it because I've received it from Him. You're not hearing me. You are that person, and that kindness carries the scent of God. Goodness, quickly. I have 10 minutes to do this, five minutes. Let's go back to Colossians chapter 3, verse 13 to 14. Watch this now. It begins like this bearing with one another. You're not hearing me. This is what in the Bible, you know. So when you are a Christian fighting with another Christian, you are a Christian angry because somebody else spoke rudely to you, you are a Christian leaving church because something's going on. You were a Christian. He said, Bearing with one another, man. The same way that God beared with you, bear with that person. That person might have a bad night. Watch this. And forgiving one another. Testimonies as a command. Henceforth, nobody's uh permitted to be angry with me. Because the Bible says that bear with me. Amen. So I'm going to demand you to bear with me, and I'm going to demand forgiveness from you. Forgiveness is not something that you do by choice, it's something that you're commanded to do. Oh, you don't know that? You don't know Jesus said that if you stand to pray, forgive. Don't forgive this one. This one is exempt. He's exempt. If anyone has a complaint against another, listen carefully. Hmm. What's the problem in this church? You have a problem with me today. I demand freedom. If anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. Not try, must tell somebody say mast. The professors in English, please teach them what must mean. Mandatory to forgive. Mandatory. I want you to say the mandatory for me. Mandatory. You are forced to forgive. Then he ends by saying something profound. He says, Above all these things, put on life. What is the bond of perfection? You're not hearing me. You are not listening to me. I am coming back to my Greek interpreter. What is the Greek way says that one? Agato sune. Come on, Daniel. I didn't know how the Greek interpreter this sounds. From today, I'll give you other Greek words. Agato sune. What does it mean? It means to distinguish carefully from kindness. It needs to be distinguished carefully from kindness. Now watch this now. Kindness is the warmth towards people. Please understand the distinction. Kindness is when you extend warmness towards people. But goodness is a commitment to do what is right, even when it required discomfort. In the past, I've been accused of being harsh. When I found this, I say, God, thank you. Listen to this. Goodness has a moral fiber to it. It is not merely being pleasant, it is principled. It is the fruit that gives you both the grace to forgive and the courage to come from. A character of a person marked by goodness is not shaped by what people want to hear. Oh, I'm in my element today. But what is needed? There are times that people don't want to hear. But somebody who is demonstrating the fruit of goodness will tell you because it's important for you to hear. Does it make sense? So listen to the distinction. Kindness will comfort you, but goodness will correct you. Think of the difference between a kind friend and a good doctor. The kind friend waiting to avoid, wanting to avoid conflict, might see something concerning and say nothing because they don't want to upset you. You don't need that friend like that. But a good doctor, because of the commitment to your health, rather than your comfort, will tell you the difficult truth. The kind friend prioritizes your feelings, but the good doctor will prioritize your life. We need both. Testimony we need both. But goodness has a moral backbone to do what kindness left it to himself. Goodness is what compelled Jesus, the same Jesus who was abundantly kind to overturn the tables in the temple. That was not a loss of control. That was a man of goodness refusing to let the scared place be defiled. Goodness is holy courage. Put illustration three on there as we end our service today. So when I wanted to show this illustration, I thought about it. I said, I don't like this guy. This guy is too harsh. Now imagine you're just going for routine blood work. Doctor sees something alarming in the blood work. He has two options to give you a friendly response, not to mention it, protect the patient's worry, let him live in a good mood. Or the good response is to sit down, look him eye to eye. We need to talk about what I found. That conversation might ruin the afternoon by my savior's life. I know my doctor has had many ruining conversations with me. I don't like him, but he saved my life. Now watch this now. Goodness is a fruit that would rather save your life than make your afternoon comfortable. It is the love with a spine. And because it is produced by the Spirit, it is delivered not on harshness, but with the very tenderness that makes it bearable to hear. And so Colossians 3:40 says something. It said, Above all these things, put on love, which is the bond of perfection. So Paul tells us a list of garments we should put on, right? It's a tender message, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering, forgiveness, and then says, Overall, you should have to put on love. So love becomes like the outer garment that holds everything in place. Without love, listen to this, patience becomes cold influence and cold endurance. I'm sorry. Without love, patience becomes cold endurance. Without love, kindness becomes manipulation. Without love, goodness becomes self-righteousness. Love is what makes all three manwork fruits genuinely reflect the character of Christ rather than the performance of religion. So watch this. Goodness is not a private virtue. It must be visible. It must be practiced in the marketplace, in your family, in your workplace, in a space where it costs you something. Thank you, Jesus. Goodness means you don't forge the numbers when you're doing your taxes. You don't repeat the gossip. You heard something about somebody. You don't stand up there and repeat it. You don't look away when injustice is happening. You stand for what is right when even no one is watching because you are not performing for the audience. You are bearing the fruit of the king. Somebody say amen to that. And here's a word, somebody. Here's a word for somebody today who is probably tempted to let goodness slide. You want to stay silent because you probably said something once and it came back to bite you. So you want to stay silent when you have to speak. You want to compromise when you should stand, to give a pass when correction was needed. Goodness requires courage. Tell somebody say it requires courage. But you do not have to manufacture the courage yourself. It is a fruit of the spirit. It grows out of abiding, it produces in you as you stay connected to the one who is very good, perfectly good. You remember the story in the Bible that there's a gentleman who came to Jesus once and called Jesus good master. And Jesus looked around and said to him, Why do you call me good? It's only God who is good. And so all these things that we're discussing, you have to be connected to him because everything comes from him to us. But what I need you to understand is that these things are not optional if you're a Christian. Heaven is waiting to see this evidence of the fruit in your life. Because he has given you the access, and listening we're talking about this, he gave us the keys. You know what keys is? Keys authority, keys grant you access. God has given you access to who he is. Does that make sense? And so it's not an issue that, oh, I'm I'm lacking in this. No, no. Paul says, put it on. In other words, it's a decision that you make to be good, kind, and long-suffering towards people. So we're gonna conclude today. Huh? We just looked at patience, kindness, and goodness. And these are three ways that the character of Christ becomes visible to how you treat the people around you every single day. You see, most people will not follow you to church. Do you know why? Because there's nothing in church in you. So what are they coming to church for? You talk to them about Jesus. Why are they coming to this Jesus? Because the Jesus they seen in you, it's what Jesus they like. You're not hearing me. You know, pastors who stand and say, Oh, bring people to church, invite people to church. You invite them, they're not coming because the Jesus they are you are inviting them to come and see. They don't like that Jesus. I said to a friend of mine, if I wasn't what I am today, and somebody tried to preach the gospel to me, I will slap you. Because the gospel I'm seeing, it is not what you are telling me. Why am I going to come to Jesus? This Jesus, why am I coming to him? This Jesus who's angry all the time. Gossiping, stealing your taxes, sleeping with other woman's other husband's wife, this Jesus. Why am I coming to this Jesus? I'm okay where I am. But beginning to demonstrate love, kind of joy, peace, all these fruits to the people, and say, Man, there's something different about you. Imagine if there's a situation in my life that I'm struggling with, and I see the total opposite in your life. Man, I'm attracted to that. Because every human being has a conscience. And every human being knows that what he's doing is wrong. He wants an answer to that. But the answer they are telling me, come and see a person who I don't see that trace in you. So let's take a look at the three weeks. Week one, fruit revealed character. Week two, life, joy, peace flows upwards from the roots in God. Week three, which is today, patience, kindness, goodness flow towards every person God places in your path. So you receive from Him, you extend it to others. Vertical produces the horizontal. You cannot sustain the outward without an inward. You cannot give patience you have not received from a God who has been long suffering with you for years. Imagine we stand before the throne of grace and God pulls it up and says you are very impatient with people. What excuse do you have? When he tells you that I've given it all this to you. You cannot extend kindness you have not first experienced in his goodness that led you to repentance. You cannot produce goodness apart from abiding in the one who is good. God is good. Every one of these man word fruit is all overflow. Testimony overflow. Overflow only happens when the vessel is full. You cannot have an overflow when the vessel that you have is empty. And so the reason why we're struggling with this fruit is because we we don't have an overflow. It has to come from an overflow. And where does overflow come? He that is planted by the trees of water shall do what? Somebody quote someone for me. Oh, I thought we all we we memorized it. Blessed is the man who does not what? And do what? And do what? And do what? And that's what? And then what happens? That's right. That's right. You are planted, that's right. The overflow only comes from where you are planted. The proximity from where you are to where the sources. So the question is, am I patient enough? Am I kind enough? Am I good enough? The question is, I am con am I connected to the one who is all these things completely, perfectly, without an end. It's possible that every human being can demonstrate the goodness, the love, the kindness, the gentleness of Jesus. But it's a choice that we make today that we want to be planted in close proximity to the source. Because if you are, the fruit will come not by starving, but by abiding. The cross is a proof. Vertically, God reached down to us in love. That is God's word dimension. Horizontally, the love now flows through us to a broken well. That is the manward dimension. We are called to leave both arms of the cross. So today, we want to leave this place with a newfound laugh for patience. I want you to go and be kind to the world. Go and be good because you know clearly what that means. You know what it means to be patient, you know what it means to be kind, you know what it means to be good. And this is not in your own strength, but from the overflow of the life that is rooted in Christ. So the first part of it is this we got to make a decision today where we're rooted. If we are rooted in him and we continue, as apostles said, continue in the things of the apostles' doctrine, continue in giving our lives to him. Oh my God. The world is about to see something that it's never seen. The world is starving for the true Jesus, man. If people saw Jesus, they will rush to him. Because in his time, every single person that has a challenge came to him and their lives were changed. I got good news for you. Jesus is sitting here, you know, there was a time that we went to a conference for Gloria and I. And the preacher man is preaching, preacher was preaching. He said, Jesus is sitting here, sitting here, sitting here. Jesus is sitting right here. How do I know that? Because he's in you. And when we live here today, the world is looking for something they've had but they have not experienced.