Sharing the Love of Jesus through Acts of Kindness
Doing acts of kindness feels great as well as it makes the world or another person’s day a bit better. So I wonder why being kind isn’t second nature to me.
Doing acts of kindness feels great as well as it makes the world or another person’s day a bit better. So I wonder why being kind isn’t second nature to me.
In Micah 6:8, the bold prophet answered the question many people wonder about today: What does the Lord expect of us? Micah's answer is comprehensive: to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God. The first of these three expectations means to do what is right, regardless of the consequences. This kind of courageous obedience is illustrated for us in the lives of the first-century apostles.
Micah 6:8 reveals the second character quality of a life well lived: kindness—a quality often expressed in mercy or forgiveness. Few things catch the attention or remain in the memory more than acts of unmerited kindness, but it sometimes seems that everything around us works to block those acts. Of all the biblical examples of amazing acts of kindness, Joseph's treatment of his brothers may shine the brightest.
A silent battle rages in every one of us: the conflict between the sin of pride and the virtue of humility—the desire for significance versus the goal to be Christ-like. We should not be surprised that when God led the prophet Micah to tell us what He expects of us, He included “Walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). Contrary to popular opinion, humility—not self-promotion—marks the path of a life well lived.
The prophet Micah taught that God wants His people to do three things: “to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly” with Him (Micah 6:8 NASB).
A reporter once asked a couple how they had managed to stay married 65 years. The woman replied, “We were born in a time when if something was broken, we would fix it, not throw it away.”
We are to walk humbly with God on the path of justice and compassion. We are not allowed to privatize our faith and care only for our backyard. A social conscience extends compassion and justice to all.
Today, Christians ask themselves and fellow Christians “What would Jesus do?” when confronted with a situation in which they don't know what to do. I don't believe it is a good question for us to ask and here's why.
Being marginalized does not make anyone better or worse than anyone else—just different. In His sovereignty and providence, and for reasons unknown to us, God determines differences.