God expects us to show kindness to loved ones and strangers alike. Jesus was kind to people who were mean to him and those that were sinners.
He did not retaliate when they told him he had a demon, nor did he look down on sinners. He showed compassion to the sick and the destitute.
Every child of God needs to be kind like Jesus. (Colossians 3:12)
But let's be honest:
It is challenging to be kind, especially to people who are mean and judgmental.
Kindness is a virtue that we have to practice all our lives. There will be moments when people will rub us the wrong way, and we will feel like being unkind to them. But we should glorify God with our acts of kindness because:
Kindness disarms the enemy
You will fall into the trap of the enemy when you retaliate against a mean person, that is why it is essential to treat such people with kindness.
Be gentle to rude people; keep quiet when they expect you to lash out and love people who despise you. God will reward you, and the enemy will be defeated.
Kindness leads to repentance
When you become rude to someone offensive to you, they will continue acting out and saying mean things because they feel justified to continue being mean. But kindness softens people’s hearts.
Now that does not mean that everyone who is rude to you will apologize, but the fact that you're kind to them will cause them to question their actions at some point, or they will respect you.
We rebel against God because we think he's a harsh God. But once we hear the word of God, we realize how kind God is, our hearts get softened, and we turn to him instead of away from him.
Why?
His goodness or kindness leads to repentance. (Roman 2:4)
Makes you feel good
Remember the time you were so mean to a friend or a stranger? How did you feel afterward?
Bad, right?
The world will have us believe that being rude or unkind to others is a cool thing, but the thing is it makes you feel so bad on the inside.
Being kind to others will make you feel good about yourself. Knowing that you have been a blessing to someone else will warm your heart.
Opportunity for you to help others
In a world where people only think about themselves, it is becoming harder for one to find kind people.
Being kind will open up doors for you to help others. (Acts 28:2)
Reach out to people who are hurting and help them through small acts of kindness never know you might be a great blessing to their lives.
To sum it up:
Kindness is a virtue that every Christian must-have. Do not wait for other people to be kind to you first. Show others kindness by talking to them gently and helping them when they need your help.
Remember, your kindness may be the only Bible that someone in this world will read.
