Fruit of the Spirit Bible Study: Kindness

Study Scripture:

Hebrews 7:7 - "And without question, the person who has the power to give a blessing is greater than the one who is blessed." (NLT)

Lesson From Scripture: The Good Samaritan in Luke 10:30-37

Most Christian teens have heard the phrase "Good Samaritan," but the phrase itself comes from the parable told by Jesus in Luke 10. In the story a Jewish traveler is severely beaten by bandits. A priest and temple assistant both passed by the man and did nothing. Finally, a Samaritan man came to him, bandaged the wounds and arranged for rest and recovery at a local inn. Jesus tells us that the Samaritan man was a neighbor to the Jewish man and to be the ones to show others mercy.

Life Lessons:

There is great significance in the story of the Good Samaritan. We are commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves. In the time Jesus told his story, religious leaders were so wrapped up in "The Law" that they had set aside their compassion for others. Jesus reminded us that compassion and mercy are valuable traits. Samaritans at the time were not liked, and often mistreated, by Jews. The Good Samaritan showed a great deal of kindness for the Jew by being willing to put revenge or contempt aside to help a hurting man.  We live in a world that has a hard time setting aside grudges or past hurts to help another person.

Kindness is a fruit that you can build on, and it is a fruit that takes a lot of work. Christian teens can easily get caught up in day to day activities and anger at non-Christians to forget how to be kind to one another. Gossip is one way that many Christian teens lose sight of this fruit of the spirit, because it may not seem like much, but those simple words and stories can be hurtful. It is easy to be kind to those you like and those who like you. Yet are you willing to put your own contempt aside to help someone that has not been kind in return? Jesus tells us that we are to show mercy to all...not just the people we like.

The spiritual gift of kindness should not be taken lightly.  It's not easy to be kind to everyone, and there are many cases where it takes a good deal of effort.  However, a kind heart does more to show God to others than any words that come out of our mouths.  Actions truly do speak louder than words, and kind acts speak novels about how God is working in our lives.  Kindness is something that brings light to others and to ourselves.  While we're changing others lives by being kind to them, we're shaping our spiritual life for the better.

Prayer Focus:

Ask God to place kindness and mercy in your heart this week. Take a closer look at those who have not treated you kindly or mistreat others and ask God to give you a merciful heart and kind attitude toward those individuals. Eventually your mercy will reap the fruit of kindness in others, too.  Seek your heart as you bestow kindness on those around you, and see how you fulfill the study scripture.  It's amazing how a kind act can lift our own spirits.  Being kind to others not only helps them, but it goes far to lift our own spirits, too.