Galatians [5:22] “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Gentleness, also known as Meekness or Humility The idea of being meek or humble holds different meanings to different people. Some people view being meek, gentle, or humble as a sign of weakness.
The root definition of this word is also found in Galatians 6:1 where it talks about restoring a person with a spirit of gentleness while also looking at yourself to be sure you do not fall into temptation. What would be the extreme opposite of Gentleness? I think humiliating others and enjoying doing it.
In our society today, the people who get noticed are those with the loudest voice. Lately it seems that all of society is screaming at each other. In this verse in Galatians [5:23], we are told that gentleness is a part of the fruit of the Spirit. As the Spirit lives within us, we produce the fruit of Gentleness. What lies in the middle of these two opposite ends of the spectrum? What about snobbery, or an air of superiority? Being bossy or a know it all? Enjoying being a big man or thinking that you’re perfect? Harshness and bullying. Being strong at the expense of others.
To live out our lives with humility does not mean to lie down and just let people trod on us. To cut ourselves down to other people or to allow ourselves to be humiliated by bullies is not what is expected. But we must have this inner strength which causes us to leave something unsaid when we wish we could have said it. Humility allows us to consider the opinions of others with respect. Gentleness causes us to share about our faith with others without shoving it down their throat.
In the book of the Revelation chapter 5, Jesus is referred to as the Lamb that was slain. In the Old Testament, a lamb was sacrificed to take away sins. But when Jesus died on the cross, He was sacrificed to take away our sins once and for all. He had other choices than to die. He could have saved Himself, but He humbled Himself in order to save us. He demonstrated that “self-control against” what He could have done. What things in our lives today do we need to sacrifice to be humbler and gentle? Do we need to sacrifice giving our strong opinion and just pray for the other person? Do we need to sacrifice the way we do our job so that we do not take advantage of others to enrich ourselves? Maybe we will drive an ugly car to use the money to help someone else. Perhaps we will take a moment to speak a friendly word to someone who doesn’t seem friendly. God help us to get this right!
As we head into the Thanksgiving Holiday it is a privilege to bring to you this opportunity for self-reflection. This series of devotions are written by Harriet Bowman and allow for us to consider the work of God’s Spirit in our lives.