Kindness

Good Friday – The Kindness of Calvary

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Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment and cast lots. Luke 23:34 KJV

During the six long hours of the suffering of Jesus, He hung from nails driven through His hands and feet, and blood streamed down His face from the thorns that pierced His scalp. No one could have expected Him to do more than simply endure: But He did. Jesus was busy with an amazing number of things, and busy, not because He hoped to gain anything, but because His kindness and compassion was stirred up for those around Him. We can’t be sure of their exact order, but during those hours, Jesus promised the repentant thief, dying next to Him a place in paradise, He made sure that Mary would be cared for by His disciple John. In His agony, Jesus showed the world the love of God, so much so that as He died, one of the soldiers who had crucified Him, began to believe and confessed that He was the Son of God.

But of all the things Jesus did, none showed His kindness more than His final prayer “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do!” Though prayed when He was at HIs weakest, that prayer is still being powerfully answered today. And today, on this Good Friday, If the sight of children starving in war-torn villages while evil dictators plan their next attack angers you, remember that in God’s kindness, lies an even greater power than guns and bombs. There is a stronger force than fear and hatred. And on that afternoon, when Jesus breathed His last, friend and foe alike thought that He was finished. And they were right! Jesus was finished paying the penalty for you and I – finished with taking away the sins of the world – finished with His Father’s mission for Him on earth but just beginning by kindness and love to change the course of history, one lost sinner at a time!

Making Time for Kindness

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments 
God asks us to make time for kindness
No hurried decision or worried collision
Is worth overlooking a friend 

So, when we run late for appointments
And we ‘re making a fuss about those around us
We are missing the chance just to spend

A lifetime of sharing and listening
To stories and tears and the sorrows and fears
Of those He loved right to the end

 Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble.
Philippians 4:14

Making Time for Kindness
by Peter Caligiuri
Copyright © 2024 All rights reserved

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”
 Mother Teresa

God’s Kindness Changes One Life at a Time

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments 
Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, 
not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 
Romans 2:4 ESV

It is easy to become overwhelmed with a sense of hopelessness, when reading the headlines of the latest cruelty, perversion or political movement that seems to hate even the merest vestige of Christianity. Such temptations to despair sometimes can get our eyes off of what God has called us to do and call us to respond with harshness, criticism or sarcasm. But Jesus had another way when He faced an unreasonable and seemingly hopeless mission. The path that Jesus took, unleashed the power of God’s kindness.

Yes, Jesus wept over the city, but then He walked down into it and gave His life. No, Jesus did not stop teaching the hard things about the Kingdom of God, but when they nailed Him to the cross, He didn’t hurl angry accusations against His opponents, instead He prayed, “Father forgive them.” How foolish and weak that must have sounded! Forgive? What good would forgiveness do? How could that change the situation? The answer came not only on the third day, when they found Jesus alive again, it also unfolded on the day of Pentecost when three thousand of the people He had wept over repented and believed. Soon all of Jerusalem was shaken, and tens of thousands became Christians. It all began in a moment on a hillside, when judgement seemed the more logical response, but Jesus chose the power of kindness, and that kindness has changed the world. Kindness doesn’t win military victories, elections or Hollywood awards but God’s kindness changes the world one life at a time. I know it has changed mine!