"Love (Agape) is kind."
1 Corinthians 13:4 (NIV)
Kindness is not the absence of cruelty. It's the active pursuit of someone else's good. You can avoid being mean and still never be kind. You can refrain from hurting people and never actually help them. Kindness requires energy, intention, and sacrifice. It sees a need and moves toward it. It costs you time, comfort, or convenience. Most of us confuse neutrality with kindness. We think not being rude equals being loving. God has a higher standard.
Notice Paul didn't say love 'feels kind.' He said love is kind. The difference matters. When Paul wrote chrēsteuomai, he chose a word meaning to show oneself useful, to act benevolently. This isn't about warm feelings toward people. It's about doing good to them regardless of how you feel. Kindness is love with its work boots on. It doesn't wait for the right mood or perfect circumstances. It sees what needs to be done and does it. No fanfare, no recognition required. Just quiet, consistent goodness toward others.
Kindness reveals what you truly believe about people. When you're kind to someone, you're saying they matter. Their struggle is worth your attention. Their burden is worth your help. But when you withhold kindness, you're declaring they're not worth the inconvenience. Every time you see a need and look away, you're making a statement. Every time you choose comfort over compassion, you're showing your values. Your kindness or lack of it broadcasts what you worship.
Ephesians 4:32 connects kindness directly to forgiveness. Be kind and compassionate to one another. Forgive each other just as Christ forgave you. Notice the pattern. God's kindness toward you in forgiveness becomes the model. You didn't earn His compassion. You didn't deserve His mercy. Yet He gave it freely, lavishly, completely. That same undeserved kindness should flow from you to others. This is what love looks like when it stops being theoretical. When someone irritates you, remember how much God has forgiven you. Then let His kindness overflow through you.
Here's what stops most people from being kind. They're waiting for others to deserve it first. They think kindness should be earned through good behavior. But that's not how God operates. Jesus showed kindness to tax collectors, prostitutes, and religious hypocrites. He touched lepers, defended adulteresses, and washed betrayers' feet. His kindness wasn't a reward for righteousness. It was a gift to the unrighteous. That's the kindness He calls you to show. Not to people who've earned it, but to people who desperately need it.
Godseekers, kindness is not weakness. It takes supernatural strength to actively pursue someone's good when they've done nothing to deserve it. It requires Spirit-power to see a need and meet it when you're tired, busy, or frustrated. Stop waiting to feel kind before you act kind. Instead, choose one specific person today and do something intentionally good for them. Make the call, send the text, offer the help. Let God's kindness toward you become your kindness toward them. That's not pretending. That's transformation by the Spirit's power.
Prayer
Gracious Father, I praise You for Your overwhelming kindness toward me. You saw me in my rebellion and moved toward me with compassion. You met my deepest need when I deserved nothing but judgment. Forgive me for withholding kindness from others while freely receiving it from You. I confess I am often passive, neutral, and self-focused. Fill me with Your Spirit so I can actively pursue others' good. Help me see needs and move toward them today. Make me an instrument of Your kindness. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Personal Reflection
Who in your life right now has a visible need that you've been avoiding because helping would cost you comfort or convenience?
What specific act of kindness could you do today for someone who hasn't earned it and might not even appreciate it?
Step of Faith
Today, I will identify one person's specific need and take one concrete action to meet it, regardless of whether they deserve my help or will thank me for it.
