The Fruit of the Spirit is Gentleness Sermon by Pastor Andrew Marttinen, August 10, 2024.
Walk into any bookstore, browse through the internet, watch infomercials, and many of these sources are touting the same thing in their tapes, books, seminars, and training—look out for #1.
You are being told that unless you learn how to swim with the sharks you’ll never amount to anything, much less become the most respected, revered and worshiped individual in the universe–-a leader. Our society is obsessed with being aggressive, standing up for your rights, speaking out, and not being a wallflower. The contrast with what Jesus teaches on this subject is obvious. We have been told that to think like Jesus taught, that “the meek will inherit the earth,” is out-of-date, hopelessly impractical, and too naive for living and getting ahead in today’s world. To
today’s modern person, gentleness and meekness are not desirable character qualities.
In contrast to that, there is hardly a single characteristic which you can name which will better distinguish the Christian from the rest of the world. We are being taught to think that the blessed are those who are strong enough to take from the weak. It is people of such qualities who will be blessed with riches and strike success. We have set too high a premium on self-assertion. Gentleness is not a normal, native plant growing out of the human soul. It is not a natural part of our makeup. It grows as the Holy Spirit nurtures it.
Meekness is to be part of your makeup no matter what your temperament might be or has been.
Humility doesn’t equate itself to timidity. In reality the reverse may be true. Think of some of the figures from history which we normally associate with humility and we discover that none of these were of timid nature: Jesus Christ, Moses, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Abraham Lincoln, Leo Tolstoy, Feydor Dostoyevsky, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Dimitri Shostcovitch, and closer to home, Henry Feyerabend, Pastor Dan Jackson, Orville Parchment and Pastor Harry Sackett. They were or are not known for being stuffed shirts or having hugely inflated egos. Even in death, John Harvey
Kellogg’s tomb in Battle Creek was a simple lesson in “the early bird gets the worm” vs. C.W. Post’s giant mausoleum.
Definition: First an example of false humility and then we identify the truth. Gentleness/meekness is ot putting down oneself with an affected false sense of humility. I get a kick out of hearing the very first words from someone who has been elected to an important leadership position—it’s always the same—"I’m humbled that you have chosen me to be your president, depart-mental director or whatever…” Forget that—Real humility is a tough, free, confident kind of characteristic. Very desirable. It needs no introduction. You don’t have to point to yourself and brag about how humble you are. Meekness is first of all our attitude toward God and not man. When our attitude toward God is that of meekness, then, too, our attitude toward others will reflect the same kind of spirit. This is not a spineless kind of wandering-about in relationships, but a solid force which causes us to stand and do the will of God in the face of every obstacle.
Jesus is the supreme example when He affirmed for all time, “I am gentle and humble in heart.” Jesus was strength itself. It was not weakness but gentleness that was fulfilled when “He did not open His mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth” (Isa. 53:7).
Let’s take or focus off Jesus for a moment and place it on ourselves–but only ourselves in relation to Christ. In 2 Cor. 13:5 it says “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you or in you, it means you have failed the test. I hope you recognize that we have passed the test and are approved by God.” Now that we have a text that justifies what we are doing, how does the following work of prose make you feel?
Isn’t it funny, when the other fellow takes a long time to do something, he’s slow.
When I take a long time to do something, I’m thorough. When the other fellow doesn’t do it, he’s lazy. When I don’t do it, I’m busy. When the other fellow does it without being told, he’s overstepping his bounds. When I go ahead and do it without being told, that’s initiative. When the other fellow states his opinion strongly, he’s bullheaded. When I state my opinion strongly, I’m firm. When the other fellow overlooks a few rules of etiquette, he’s rude – and me, I’m perfect.
Funny, how the other fellow could be me in the other fellow’s eyes. - Tom Knight (19th Century British Politician)
You know, when we stop to think about it, this and all the other Fruit of the Spirit have a social element. They have to do with our interactions with people, how we think of others, how we compare ourselves to others, and so on. The following has to do with gentleness in attitude of mind. It has to do with how we think of ourselves—the Bible tells us to not think more highly than we should (Romans 12). There’s a balance to be struck. Just consider yourself mostly as you listen to this interesting piece:
Whose luck is far better than ours?
The other fellow's.
Whose road seems always lined with flowers?
The other fellow's.
Who is the man who seems to get
Most joy in life, with least regret,
Who always seems to win his bet?
The other fellow.
Who fills the place we think we'd like?
The other fellow.
Whom does good fortune always strike?
The other fellow.
Whom do we envy, day by day?
Who has more time than we to play?
Who is it, when we mourn, seems gay?
The other fellow.
Who seems to miss the thorns we find?
The other fellow.
Who seems to leave us all behind?
The other fellow.
Who never seems to feel the woe,
The anguish and the pain we know?
Who gets the best seats at the show?
The other fellow.
And yet, my friend, who envies you?
The other fellow.
Who thinks he gathers only rue?
The other fellow.
Who sighs because he thinks that he
Would infinitely happier he,
If he could be like you or me?
The other fellow.
Edgar Albert Guest
What does the Bible mean by gentleness?
In order to be gentle, we must not view ourselves as better than someone else. Rather than asserting superiority, someone who is gentle wants to help others, even when they have been done wrong. An example of gentleness can be seen in John 8, when the Pharisees bring a woman who was caught in adultery to Jesus.
The Bible makes interesting analogies of how we are to exhibit and apply the fruit of gentleness. This is to be much more than just a theory of behavior which we are to talk about and teach others about. It’s to be a lifestyle, it’s another harvest of special fruit especially for others. Paul has written about specific applications of this fruit. It goes without saying that gentleness is to mark the Christian at all times, but there are at least three ways we can show gentleness to address three specific needs.
1. We are to show gentleness with spiritual babies: Paul the writer describes his ministry to the young church at Thessalonica as being “gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children” (1 Thess. 2:7). This is a picture we can all identify with–a mother caring. A better translation would have been that the mother was nursing her child. There is something wrong in the family when we treat the newly born harshly. Yes, there are spiritual babies and they are not to remain in that condition. But in order to mature and develop, babies require special care. It’s the truly strong Christian who can be gentle just because they have become strong. Note this admonition, “We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves” (Rom. 15:1). Every one of us can be gentle!
2. We are to serve as a nurse to the spiritually sick. There is a physical sickness as
well as a spiritual sickness. Face it, some among us are sick and need a
combination of firmness and gentleness in helping them back to health. There
may be a problem in that some sickly Christians exhibit their condition by being
touchy or having little or no appetite for the things of God. Again, Paul writes
about this responsibility: “The Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must
be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful” (2 Tim. 2:24). It’s with some of
these folks that the soothing touch and the kindly word can work wonders. This
is not putting another down or quenching the Spirit–it’s an expression of this fruit
at work.
3. We are to be gentle as a craftsman with his work: What a delight it is to watch a
true craftsman at work–likewise, we are called to deal with people with the touch of a skilled craftsman. Jesus Christ supplied some of the best examples of this ministry in action—the woman at the well, the father of Jairus, or with Peter after his betrayal. “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17). It is wise to be gentle!
Christians seem to like the image of the lighthouse. New startup churches, bookstores
and inner-city ministries are often called “The Lighthouse.” They do their job, shine
brightly and are really useful for those who want to navigate past rocky coastlines. But
when you get real close you’ll see that there’s not much to them. In the real world,
lighthouses are simple constructions. Just a candle/high wattage bulb and a mirror.
There’s no aggression, haughtiness, or a sense of bragging genius philosopher king in a
lighthouse. It stands there, shines, reflects and shows true leadership. Simple.
There’s a children’s song that we used to sing that’s probably not so popular now
because preachers mentioned that if you asked God to humble you, He will find a way to
do it. Nevertheless, here it is in all its simplicity:
HUMBLE ME
Chorus
Humble me, humble me, oh Lord; humble me,
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
I went to the valley, but I didn't go to stay,
Humble me, so I can do thy will.
My soul got happy and I stayed all day,
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
There is a tree in Paradise
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
The pilgrims call it the Tree of Life,
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
If religion were a thing that money could buy,
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
The rich would live and the poor would die,
Humble me, so I can do Thy will.
However short our service or humble our work, if in simple faith we follow Christ, we shall not be disappointed for the reward. That which even the greatest and wisest cannot earn, the weakest and most humble may receive. Heaven’s golden gate opens not to the self-exalted. It is not lifted up to the proud in spirit. But the everlasting portals will be open wide to the trembling touch of a little child. Blessed be the recompense of grace to those who have wrought for God in the simplicity of faith and love. COL 404
To finish off, 2 quotations—one for the OT and the other from the NT. But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace (Ps. 37:11)
I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love (Eph. 4:1-2).
And the fruit of the Spirit is…Gentleness!