Introduction:
1. When was the last time you heard a sermon on gentleness? That’s what I thought. It doesn’t sound like something you would read about in the Bible. In fact, it doesn’t sound like something that important at all. However, it’s a fruit of the Spirit, so it really is a big deal.
2. The fact is that gentleness is more needed today than perhaps ever before because we live in a violent world. Consider these facts that were reported a few years ago in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. (3-31-97)
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According to the CDC, One Million people die in the US each year from violence.
3. Here’s another fact that illustrates how violent the world we live in is. . .
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The average TV watcher in the US sees about 18,000 violent events on screen each year.
4. I know those for the most part are fictional and meant for entertainment. However, those 50 violent events per day that many of us see on TV without ever thinking too much about them, do affect people as another statistic suggests.
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Each year in the US nearly 2 Million men severely batter their wives.
5. Let’s read the passage that I’ve shared with you at the beginning of each sermon on the Fruit of the Spirit, Galatians 5:22-23.
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Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (NAS)
6. Each fruit of the Spirit could be put down as strengths on a resume for the most part: loving, joyful, peaceful, patient etc. But that somehow doesn’t seem quite right when it comes to "gentleness."
Prayer
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I. Understanding Gentleness in the Real World
1. It’s hard for us to understand gentleness, because it’s not something we typically think of as being a part of the Christian life. Being faithful, yes. Having love, yes. But being gentle. . . well, that sounds almost wrong doesn’t it? But of course it isn’t. It’s very right the challenge for us is this question. . .
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"What does it mean to be Gentle?
2. In our world the word gentle doesn’t mean the same thing as it did when Paul wrote to the church at Galatia. To answer that question you need to know that the Greek word for "gentleness" used here is found a total of nine times in the New Testament. Let’s spend a few minutes looking at exactly how it’s used.
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The Greek word, PRAUTES, is translated Meek in Matthew 5:5
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Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5 (NIV)
3. Circle the word "meek" in your notes. If we don’t like the word, "gentle" we like the word "meek" even less. Many men hear this word & think of someone who’s wimpy at best or effeminate at worst. Let me assure you, women aren’t the only ones who are to have this Spiritual fruit in their lives. Let’s look at another passage.
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This same Greek word, PRAUTES, is translated Humility in Titus 3:2.
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Titus 3:2
2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men. (NIV)
4. This time circle the word "humility" in your notes. Humility is a bit more positive word in our culture. No one enjoys being around someone who thinks they are better than everyone else. So this word can be translated, "meek" or "humility." However. . .
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This same Greek word, PRAUTES, is translated Gentleness in Galatians 5:23.
5. I hope you are beginning to relate a bit more positively to this word. I want to be very clear that the perception of some people about this word is simply not correct.
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Many people think "gentleness" or "meekness" is just another word for Weakness.
6. That is simply not so. In fact, it’s not the meaning of this word at all. It’s certainly not something that the Holy Spirit would work to develop in our lives. Taking all that we’ve looked at so far let me suggest to you that. . .
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Gentleness is Strength under Control.
7. Make sure you write that in your notes. "Strength under Control!" It’s having God’s power alive and well in you as a Christian, but also having God’s Spirit showing you how that power is played out in your life. Let me show you one way this word is used in Greek writings. It’s the word used for what a trainer does with a horse. He puts a bit in his mouth, & then directs the horse wherever it needs to go. It’s the idea of "strength under control."
I’ve asked (1st service) Boris Kusminoff & (2nd service) Scott Kerby to help me out.
Have you been tossing the baby up in the air & catching him/her yet?
Have you and the baby been wrestling yet?
What about arm wrestling?
Have you started correcting the baby for messing up so many diapers. Aren’t you a real man?
You’re really gentle when you change the babies diapers aren’t you?
Would you mind if I toss the baby up in the air? In fact, the strength & defensiveness of a father would quickly show up. The way a father is with an infant is a great demonstration of "strength under control."
8. I want to make sure we understand what’s involved in gentleness so I want us to think about something from a slightly different angle. Let’s spend a few minutes. . .
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II. Observing Gentleness in Jesus
1. With much of the fruit of the Spirit, the connection between God and the fruit is obvious. Is God faithful? Is God love? Is God a God of peace? The answer to each of those questions is so obviously yes. But when it comes to "gentleness," it’s a bit more difficult to get the right picture. So, I want us to spend a few minutes looking at the life of Jesus to help us understand. The Apostle John gives us two word pictures that describe Jesus strength and gentleness.
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Jesus isn’t only the Lion of Judah He’s also the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. (Revelation 5:5 & John 1:29)
2. You won’t get an accurate understanding of Jesus if you look only at His power or His gentleness. They’re both a part of who He is & you can’t understand Him without recognizing both.
3. Let me illustrate His power first by taking a quick look at Matthew 26:52-53. This passage is taken from the words Jesus said to Peter in the garden as He was being arrested. That context is central to understanding these verses.
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Matthew 26:52-53
Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, & He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? (NAS)
4. Now, based upon that passage, did Jesus have the power to bring the angels in to rescue Him? The answer is clearly yes. Jesus would only have had to utter a single word & His Father would have sent 12 legions of angels (literally 72,000) to rescue Him before He went to the cross. But this passage shows something else as well. Did Jesus call for the angels? No! In other words. . .
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Jesus had the Power to bring in the angels, but He also had the Restraint not to do it.
5. To put it another way, He demonstrated, "strength under control." We could go to Philippians 2 which speaks of how Jesus existed in the form of God, but didn’t view His deity as something to be grasped. But instead of looking at that passage, I want to remind you of something that happened at the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry. How did He demonstrate His gentleness on that last night with the disciples? What did He do to the disciples? That’s right, He washed their feet.
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He deserved to be worshipped, but He wasn’t afraid to wash the disciples feet.
6. He could have focused on His rights, but He focused on serving. One who is gentle will not attempt to push others around or arrogantly impose their will on friends, family & coworkers. Gentleness and decisive action aren’t opposites. It was, after all, the gentle Jesus who went into the temple & threw out the moneychangers. This is the same man who told His disciples in Matthew 11:29 to take His yoke because He was "meek and lowly." He knew what was important and He never lost sight of it.
It reminds me of the story of the great African American singer Marian Anderson. You may not remember her because she retired from singing in 1965, but she was one of the great singers of her day. Once in an interview a reporter asked her to "name the greatest moment in her life." She could have named:
* The night Conductor Arturo Toscanini announced, ’A voice like hers comes once in a century.’
* In 1955 she became the first African American to sing with the Metropolitan Opera in New York. * The following year her autobiography became a bestseller. * In 1958 she became the US delegate to the United Nations.
* She once gave a private concert at the White House for the Roosevelts, King George VI & Queen Elizabeth of England.
* Her hometown, of Philadelphia, awarded her the $10,000 Bok Award as the person who’d done the most for the city.
* In 1963 she was awarded the coveted Presidential Medal of Freedom.
* There was an Easter Sunday in Washington D. C. when she stood at the Lincoln monument and sang for a crowd of 75,000, which included Cabinet members, Supreme Court justices, and most of the members of Congress. Which of those big moments did she choose? None of them. She quietly told the reporter that the greatest moment of her life was the day she went to her mother and told her she wouldn’t have to take in washing anymore. The greatness of Marian Anderson didn’t merely stem from her extraordinary voice, but her gentle spirit.
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III. Demonstrating Gentleness in our daily lives
1. Jesus isn’t the only One who should live a life of strength and gentleness. That gentleness is to be a part of our lives as well. It certainly was a part of the early apostles. Notice what Paul wrote. . .
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1 Thessalonians 2:7
As apostles of Christ we certainly had a right to make some demands of you, but we were as gentle among you as a mother feeding and caring for her own children. (NLT)
2. The apostles could have pulled rank. They could have said, "I’ve spent time with Jesus, you really need to listen to what I have to say." They could have demanded the attention of those who needed to hear their message, but notice how they treated them. Circle the phrase, "as gentle among you as a mother." That’s really gentle. Their attitude in dealing with these Gentile believers was significant.
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Demonstrating Gentleness in our lives means not acting like a know it all.
3. The apostles did know a lot, but they didn’t treat others as if they were second class citizens. Notice, they were demonstrating "gentleness." Jesus had this same kind of attitude when He dealt with His disciples. Gentleness, is one of the key attitudes that determines the actions we’re to take as Christians. In fact, it plays out in a wide variety of different areas in the Christian life. This fruit of the Spirit has implications even in areas that you might not dream. For example. . .
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The model for sharing our faith is Gentleness.
4. Before you think I’m stretching this whole concept of gentleness too far, consider the words of this next verse. I think you will see it’s pretty clearly.
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1 Peter 3:15b
and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness (gentleness) and fear. (KJV)
5. You’ve heard the first part of that verse talked about before. It only makes sense that we should have a ready answer for those who want to know about the Lord. However, we are to share that with gentleness. In other words we don’t have to be pushy for God to use us. Have an answer and the right attitude & trust God to do the rest when you’re faithful to give an answer. Gentleness relates to other areas as well.
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We must be patient with one another.
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Galatians 6:1
1 Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. (NAS)
6. So you see, gentleness is significant in our lives because it affects how we deal with one another. We are to patiently & kindly reach out to those who are struggling so that we can restore them. Notice, this restoration is to be done with a "spirit of gentleness." Paul makes the same point again when writes these words to the church at Ephesus.
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Ephesians 4:1-3
1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,
2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love,
3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (NAS)
4. Let me put it this way. Gentleness is what helps us reach those who don’t know the Lord. Gentleness is what helps us have unity in the church. Although it’s not something we talk about often, it’s central to the way God works in and through us.
Conclusion:
1. I want to conclude with one of the best stories on gentleness I’ve ever heard. It happened to a pastor by the name of Stu Weber. Stu had a bad temper, that got worse when he played basketball. Early in his ministry he stopped playing church-league basketball because his temper kept embarrassing him & the church. That seemed to work. A decade passed without a problem. Then, his oldest son made the high school basketball team. He wrote, "I began living my life again through my son." Stu terrorized referees. On one occasion he was seated in the second row, but wound up on floor level with no recollection of how he got there. He received nasty letters from church members, who he says now, "were absolutely right on." But then he got another note: "Stu, I know your heart. I know that’s not you. I know that you want to live for Christ and His reputation. And I know that’s not what happened at these ball games. If it would be helpful to you, I’d come to the games and sit beside you." It was from a close friend who knew & loved him. "Steve saved my life," Stu said, "It was a gracious extension of truth. He assumed the best & believed in me." (Tour of Duty, Dave Goetz)
2. When we allow the Holy Spirit to produce the fruit of gentleness in our lives, we will be able to make more of a difference than ever before, in sharing our faith, in cooperating with our friends & in living successfully. Would you join me in praying for more gentleness in your life & mine?
1) Bruce Barton, Linda Taylor, David Veerman, Neil Wilson, Life Application Bible Commentary: Galatians, (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers) 1994.
2) Frank Gaebelein, Ed. The Expostitor’s Bible Commentary: New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House) 1976-1992.
3) Donald Guthrie, The New Century Bible Commentary: Galatians, (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdsman Publishing Company) 1973.
4) Timothy George, The New American Commentary: Galatians, (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers) 1994.
5) Thomas Trask, Wayde Goodall, The Fruit of the Spirit, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing Company) 2000.
6) Philip Kenneson, Life on the Vine, (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press) 1999.
7) R. David Reynolds, The Fruit of the Spirit is Meekness, (sermoncentral) June, 2004.
8) Matt Kyzer, Developing Meekness, (sermoncentral) June, 2003.
9) Jeff Armbrester, The Virtue of Gentleness, (sermoncentral) March, 2003.
