Welcome back and thanks for listening! Today, we think about gentleness as a fruit of the spirit. Paul puts it after faithfulness and before self-control, indicating that it marks out maturing faith. Yet gentleness is not the way of the world in Paul’s day or ours, and is also not always natural for how we live. Jesus washing his disciples’ feet just before his betrayal serves as one of the best pictures of gentleness in history.
Gentleness then serves as a guide for decision-making that places the gospel and our faith at the forefront instead of power, self-interest, or some other measure. Further, by placing it after goodness and faithfulness, Paul signals to us that as we mature in our faith gentleness becomes part of who we are instead of some external rule of life.
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