Galatians 5: 22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, 23 gentleness and
self-control. Against such
things there is no law.
Galatians 5
But the fruit of the Spirit is…
The Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness
2 Timothy 2:23-26, Matthew 11:25-30
Kindergarten teachers
Gentle
Sweet
Soft-spoken
Strong
In control
Safe
Focused
Gentleness is like that
It is kind
But it’s not a push-over
This is how God invites
into salvation
Matthew 11
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise
you, Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, because you have hidden
these things from the wise and
learned, and revealed them to
little children. 26 Yes, Father, for
this was your good pleasure.
What is hidden?
The ease of salvation
The answer to eternity
Control of our destiny by
giving up our control
27 “All
things have been committed
to me by my Father. No one knows
the Son except the Father, and no
one knows the Father except the
Son and those to whom the Son
chooses to reveal him.
Christ is the way
God has been given Christ authority
Everything has been placed in his
hands and under Christ’s power
But because Christ is gentle, he does
not flaunt his power and authority
Instead he offers a gentle invitation
28 “Come
to me, all you who are
weary and burdened, and I will
give you rest. 29 Take my yoke
upon you and learn from me, for
I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your
souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and
my burden is light.”
Come
Take
Learn
Rest
My yoke is easy
My burden is light
28 “Come
to me, all you who
are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Come
I know you are burdened
I know you are weary
You are tired
29 Take
my yoke upon you…
Come and take my gift
It is still a yoke
But it is my yoke
Not your yoke
…and learn from me,
Come, take my yoke and learn
Learn about your powerlessness
Learn who Jesus is
Learn about grace
Learn about being grateful
…for I am gentle and humble in
heart, and you will find rest for
your souls.
Come, take, learn from a gentle
and humble king
In learning from Christ we
discover rest, peace and
stability for our souls
30 For
my yoke is easy and my
burden is light.”
Everything has a yoke
Some are heavier than other
Rules, rituals and regulations
Belief, faith and grace that
leads to gratefulness
Being aware of God’s gentleness is
not enough
We are called to put it into action
in our own lives
What God does for us is never
supposed to be static
2 Timothy 2
23 Don’t have anything to do with
foolish and stupid arguments,
because you know they produce
quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant
must not quarrel; instead, he must
be kind to everyone, able to teach,
not resentful.
Paul, helping Timothy in his new
ministry, says
Be careful in what you invest yourself
Not in quarrels and resentments
Instead invest in kindness and teaching
25 Those
who oppose him he must
gently instruct, in the hope that
God will grant them repentance
leading them to a knowledge of
the truth, 26 and that they will
come to their senses and escape
from the trap of the devil, who has
taken them captive to do his will.
Satan attempts to trap us
He wants to keep us captive
Satan does not want us to escape
We are called to be gentle
Not brash or abusive
Not argumentative
We have our principles and faith
on which we stand
We are not weak
We are to be well mannered;
respectfully representing Christ