WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.480 I'd like to thank Corey and all of you for your warm welcome today. 00:00:05.480 --> 00:00:09.919 As I said in the morning, it's a real privilege and pleasure to be with you. 00:00:09.919 --> 00:00:13.759 And I want to bring you the greetings of the congregation in Carloway. 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:18.160 As I said in the morning, we are so excited at all the work that has been done by the 00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:22.000 congregations in Edinburgh and in the surrounding district. 00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:26.440 So we thank God for all that he's doing through you, and we bring you our best wishes and 00:00:26.440 --> 00:00:27.800 our warm greetings. 00:00:27.800 --> 00:00:29.280 So thank you for your warm welcome. 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:33.880 And it's been great to be together with you today. 00:00:33.880 --> 00:00:38.200 You are in the middle of a study on the fruit of the Spirit, which we are going to continue 00:00:38.200 --> 00:00:39.200 tonight. 00:00:39.200 --> 00:00:43.320 So please turn to Galatians chapter 5. 00:00:43.320 --> 00:00:49.799 And we will look at verses 22 and 23, where these nine elements of the fruit of the Spirit 00:00:49.799 --> 00:00:51.520 are listed. 00:00:51.520 --> 00:00:58.840 Galatians chapter 5 is on page 975, and the words are on the screen above you there. 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:07.880 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 00:01:07.880 --> 00:01:11.040 gentleness, self-control. 00:01:11.040 --> 00:01:15.200 Against such things, there is no law. 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:20.800 And as you have seen from the Order of Service, and as we've mentioned tonight, we're focusing 00:01:20.800 --> 00:01:24.640 on gentleness. 00:01:24.640 --> 00:01:30.799 As we come to look at these elements that are identified as the fruit of the Spirit, 00:01:30.799 --> 00:01:38.000 it's important to remember that this list describes two great aspects of the reality 00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:40.200 of being a Christian. 00:01:40.200 --> 00:01:46.079 First of all, that list there is the effect of having God, the Holy Spirit, dwelling in 00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:47.079 your heart. 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:52.640 When you become a Christian, God himself comes and dwells in your heart. 00:01:52.640 --> 00:01:55.840 And that has an effect. 00:01:55.840 --> 00:02:02.120 It changes you and makes a difference in your life, and this is the change that it brings. 00:02:02.120 --> 00:02:06.280 So being a Christian is not just something that you keep on the inside that's just totally 00:02:06.280 --> 00:02:07.760 private and totally hidden. 00:02:07.760 --> 00:02:12.120 It has an outward effect. 00:02:12.120 --> 00:02:19.159 But alongside that, that list there is also the evidence of having God, the Holy Spirit, 00:02:19.159 --> 00:02:21.639 dwelling in your heart. 00:02:21.639 --> 00:02:22.639 It's very simple. 00:02:22.639 --> 00:02:25.079 How do you know that an apple tree is an apple tree? 00:02:25.079 --> 00:02:27.839 It's got apples on it. 00:02:27.839 --> 00:02:29.719 How do you know a Christian is a Christian? 00:02:29.719 --> 00:02:33.119 They've got that on them. 00:02:33.119 --> 00:02:38.439 It's the outward evidence of being a follower of Jesus. 00:02:38.439 --> 00:02:46.319 So it's good to bear that in mind, effect and evidence simultaneously. 00:02:46.319 --> 00:02:47.319 Paul's great message. 00:02:47.319 --> 00:02:54.120 Paul, one of the early Christian leaders who wrote this letter to the church in Galatia, 00:02:54.120 --> 00:02:59.759 his great emphasis throughout the letter, and in this part in particular, is that as 00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:08.079 Christians we have been liberated from a bondage and a slavery that we faced under 00:03:08.079 --> 00:03:09.079 God's law. 00:03:09.079 --> 00:03:15.879 God's law was like a shadow hanging over people that they couldn't fulfill and that ultimately 00:03:15.879 --> 00:03:18.120 just highlighted their sinfulness. 00:03:18.120 --> 00:03:21.680 And Paul's great message was that you're not a slave to that law anymore. 00:03:21.680 --> 00:03:22.680 You're free. 00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:25.479 That's the big theme of Galatians. 00:03:25.479 --> 00:03:32.519 But in chapter 5, he makes a really important point that that freedom is not an opportunity 00:03:32.519 --> 00:03:34.719 to just do what you like. 00:03:34.719 --> 00:03:38.120 It's not an opportunity for the flesh, is the language that Paul uses, which basically 00:03:38.120 --> 00:03:45.079 means not an opportunity for the kind of corrupt, sinful nature that we have to just have a 00:03:45.080 --> 00:03:46.080 field day. 00:03:46.080 --> 00:03:47.320 It's not an opportunity for the flesh. 00:03:47.320 --> 00:03:54.360 It is an opportunity to bear beautiful fruit, to live a different life. 00:03:54.360 --> 00:03:58.960 So if the whole world is going that way, we're going that way. 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:00.920 We are following Jesus. 00:04:00.920 --> 00:04:02.680 We are different. 00:04:02.680 --> 00:04:09.600 And that difference manifests itself in nine ways, and they're listed there as the fruit 00:04:09.600 --> 00:04:11.880 of the Spirit. 00:04:11.880 --> 00:04:13.800 You've been studying them one by one. 00:04:13.800 --> 00:04:19.600 Tonight, we're looking at gentleness, highlighting the fact that as Christians, we should be 00:04:19.600 --> 00:04:23.920 characterised by gentleness. 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:28.080 This was the first question to ask us, well, what exactly do we mean by gentleness? 00:04:28.080 --> 00:04:31.560 And really, we mustn't make it any more complicated than it is. 00:04:31.560 --> 00:04:38.319 Gentleness or meekness, as it's sometimes described, is really expressing that mild, 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:44.240 impertious, considerate disposition that we should have. 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:48.879 It manifests itself in a friendliness towards other people, an attitude that accommodates 00:04:48.879 --> 00:04:52.560 to other people's weaknesses and needs. 00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:56.759 Sometimes it's good to understand these things in terms of their opposite. 00:04:56.759 --> 00:05:02.319 And gentleness is basically the opposite of being harsh. 00:05:02.319 --> 00:05:06.920 And that's a key part of showing love to one another. 00:05:06.920 --> 00:05:12.560 Love is shown through a spirit of gentleness. 00:05:12.560 --> 00:05:14.560 Tonight I want us to initially look at two things. 00:05:14.560 --> 00:05:18.080 I want to look at God's gentleness and then our gentleness. 00:05:18.080 --> 00:05:22.240 And then I want us to focus on a specific issue that gets highlighted throughout the 00:05:22.240 --> 00:05:23.240 New Testament. 00:05:23.240 --> 00:05:24.240 But we'll come to that shortly. 00:05:24.240 --> 00:05:28.960 First of all, I just want to think about God's gentleness, because when we look at that list 00:05:28.960 --> 00:05:36.319 of the fruit of the Spirit there, we must first of all remember that this verse is primarily 00:05:36.319 --> 00:05:43.879 teaching us something about God, because the fruit of the Spirit is the fruit of God. 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:46.279 It's telling us what God is like. 00:05:46.279 --> 00:05:50.120 And that's a really important thing to remember, because what's the first things that come 00:05:50.120 --> 00:05:51.879 to your mind when you think of God? 00:05:51.879 --> 00:05:57.959 When you think of God's attributes, you think, well, He's powerful. 00:05:57.959 --> 00:05:58.959 He's wise. 00:05:58.959 --> 00:05:59.959 He's holy. 00:05:59.959 --> 00:06:00.959 He's righteous. 00:06:00.959 --> 00:06:08.199 And yes, He's all these things, we stand before God and we're amazed at His majesty, His glory, 00:06:08.199 --> 00:06:11.199 His greatness, His splendor. 00:06:11.199 --> 00:06:14.199 You look at the vastness of the universe, it's just in the palm of His hands. 00:06:14.199 --> 00:06:19.000 And when we think of the attributes of God, we tend to think of big, big stuff, and that's 00:06:19.000 --> 00:06:20.000 great. 00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:21.000 It's really good. 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:31.160 We are being reminded of an equally precious truth, that God is gentle. 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:34.879 And there's loads of examples of that in the Bible. 00:06:34.879 --> 00:06:43.519 Way back in the Old Testament, Samuel, who was a great leader and teacher and spoke 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:51.680 expression for God, when he was just a little boy, God gently spoke to him in the night. 00:06:51.680 --> 00:06:56.000 Later on in the Old Testament, there was another great leader called Elijah, who had lots of 00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:57.000 amazing experiences. 00:06:57.000 --> 00:07:01.279 He had one experience where he was in the wilderness and he saw an earthquake and he 00:07:01.279 --> 00:07:06.519 saw fire and he saw wind, all sorts of really powerful things, the kind of places where 00:07:06.519 --> 00:07:08.240 you would expect to see God speaking. 00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:16.639 And yet God didn't speak in any of those things, God spoke in a low whisper, in a gentle voice 00:07:16.639 --> 00:07:18.960 to Elijah. 00:07:18.960 --> 00:07:26.639 And the greatest demonstration of all is in God the Son Himself, Jesus Christ. 00:07:26.639 --> 00:07:32.079 And you read through Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the Bible, you will see many, many 00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:38.719 examples of the amazing gentleness of Jesus. 00:07:38.719 --> 00:07:44.879 You could go, for example, to Luke chapter 7, where a woman came to Jesus and started 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:50.360 anointing his feet with a very expensive perfume and she was a woman whose life was in a mess 00:07:50.360 --> 00:07:54.719 and the people around were saying, if Jesus knew what that woman was like, he would tell 00:07:54.719 --> 00:07:57.439 her to get lost. 00:07:57.439 --> 00:08:03.079 And yet Jesus spoke so gently and tenderly to her, he says, your sins are forgiven, your 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:07.079 faith has saved you, go in peace. 00:08:07.079 --> 00:08:12.240 Another example is the very beginning of Matthew's Gospel, where Jesus was confronted by somebody 00:08:12.240 --> 00:08:18.199 with leprosy, a horrible contagious skin disease that made somebody, you know, that meant people 00:08:18.199 --> 00:08:22.000 had to just be isolated from everybody else. 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:28.480 This leper came to Jesus and says, please, kneel before him, if you will, you will make 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:29.480 me clean. 00:08:29.480 --> 00:08:39.960 Jesus was moved with pity, stretched out his hand, he says, I'm willing, be clean. 00:08:39.960 --> 00:08:47.840 And then perhaps I think maybe the most amazing example of all is at the end of John chapter 00:08:47.840 --> 00:08:58.920 21, when Peter, who was one of the main leaders, if you like, of Jesus's disciples, had failed 00:08:58.920 --> 00:09:03.480 spectacularly as a disciple. 00:09:03.480 --> 00:09:14.080 He had denied Jesus three times, says, I don't know the guy, and Jesus came to him and did 00:09:14.080 --> 00:09:17.960 he hammer him, did he rebuke him, did he shed him? 00:09:17.960 --> 00:09:23.080 No, he gently took him aside and restored him. 00:09:23.080 --> 00:09:29.520 So Jesus meets a notorious sinner, he meets a social outcast, he meets a failed Christian 00:09:29.520 --> 00:09:38.879 who has denied his Savior, and with each one of them, Jesus is gentle. 00:09:38.879 --> 00:09:45.559 And that I suppose shouldn't surprise us when we come back to the passage that Corey read 00:09:45.559 --> 00:09:46.720 for us. 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:52.039 When Jesus says, come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, 00:09:52.039 --> 00:09:54.159 take my yoke upon you. 00:09:54.159 --> 00:09:59.919 Yoke is the idea of like the harness that gets put on an ox, like a kind of burden. 00:09:59.919 --> 00:10:07.480 He says, take my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will 00:10:07.480 --> 00:10:10.039 find rest for your souls. 00:10:10.039 --> 00:10:13.440 Never forget that when you read in the Bible, the big words are important, but the we words 00:10:13.440 --> 00:10:17.840 are really important too, and there's a really important we word right in the middle of that. 00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:20.560 That's the word for. 00:10:20.560 --> 00:10:27.759 It's the word that could also really be translated because, because it's introducing a reason, 00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:28.759 introducing a cause. 00:10:28.759 --> 00:10:36.920 And basically it's saying, Jesus is saying, come to me, because I am gentle. 00:10:36.919 --> 00:10:43.159 And it is so important that we grasp that, because all too often we are held back from 00:10:43.159 --> 00:10:48.159 God out of fear regarding how he will react. 00:10:48.159 --> 00:10:51.319 And that can be even through of us as Christians, not just people who aren't Christians, but 00:10:51.319 --> 00:10:53.159 people who are Christians. 00:10:53.159 --> 00:10:58.799 We can be afraid of how God is going to react, especially when it becomes, when it comes 00:10:58.799 --> 00:11:02.240 to confessing our sins. 00:11:02.240 --> 00:11:05.240 Confessing our sins are really, really important part of our Christian walk. 00:11:05.240 --> 00:11:07.720 Every day we should be confessing our sins to God. 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:11.720 The Bible even tells us that we should be confessing our sins to one another. 00:11:11.720 --> 00:11:16.159 That's something that we should be doing. 00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:18.879 Maybe it's not something that we're that good at doing. 00:11:18.879 --> 00:11:23.360 But sometimes we can be very reluctant to do that because we are afraid that God is 00:11:23.360 --> 00:11:31.840 going to be angry or disappointed or frustrated because we have mucked up. 00:11:31.840 --> 00:11:38.160 And I've found myself in life thinking, well, I don't really want to talk to God about this, 00:11:38.160 --> 00:11:41.240 because I've just, you know, I'm wrong. 00:11:41.240 --> 00:11:46.560 He knows I'm wrong, and it's just best to just keep away. 00:11:46.560 --> 00:11:51.879 And yet all the time the truth is that God is not going to be angry or disappointed or 00:11:51.879 --> 00:11:52.879 frustrated. 00:11:52.879 --> 00:11:58.560 God is going to be gentle with all who come to him. 00:11:58.560 --> 00:12:01.160 And that's why confession of sin is such a healthy thing. 00:12:01.159 --> 00:12:03.679 It's such a beneficial thing and such a good thing. 00:12:03.679 --> 00:12:07.439 Because all we're doing is acknowledging to God what he already knows. 00:12:07.439 --> 00:12:12.360 We're just saying the same thing that he's saying because he knows, and we are simply 00:12:12.360 --> 00:12:16.159 acknowledging that by confessing our sins to them. 00:12:16.159 --> 00:12:21.079 We are showing him that we're sorry, and we are showing him that we need his help. 00:12:21.079 --> 00:12:24.879 Now, that doesn't mean that God doesn't treat sin seriously. 00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:26.480 That's not what we're saying at all. 00:12:26.480 --> 00:12:33.600 But it's the very fact that sin is so serious that should make us run to God when we recognize 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:35.639 that there is sin in our lives. 00:12:35.639 --> 00:12:43.320 Because by staying away from God, we will only make a sinful situation worse. 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:47.000 You'll only make it worse. 00:12:47.000 --> 00:12:53.639 And of course, God knows that, which is why he says, come to me. 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:56.440 Come to me. 00:12:56.440 --> 00:13:02.160 So if you have kind of mucked up in your life, if you've mucked up in the past week, or if 00:13:02.160 --> 00:13:06.160 you've never really come to God, if you're not a Christian yet, or not sure if you're 00:13:06.160 --> 00:13:13.880 a Christian, how is God going to treat you if you come to him today? 00:13:13.880 --> 00:13:16.600 Is he going to be disappointed? 00:13:16.600 --> 00:13:18.560 Is he going to be reluctant? 00:13:18.560 --> 00:13:21.120 Is he going to be critical? 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:24.440 Is he going to be harsh? 00:13:24.440 --> 00:13:26.840 In no way. 00:13:26.840 --> 00:13:29.840 He's going to be gentle. 00:13:29.840 --> 00:13:37.520 And so there is a gentle God calling you to him today. 00:13:37.520 --> 00:13:48.400 And if you push him away, then I don't think it's God who's got the heart, heart. 00:13:48.400 --> 00:13:54.120 And the key point being emphasized here is that the answer to the traumas that we face 00:13:54.120 --> 00:13:57.279 in life is to go to God. 00:13:57.279 --> 00:14:04.360 So if you're frustrated with somebody at work, go to God and talk to him about it and ask 00:14:04.360 --> 00:14:09.700 him to give you patience and strength to deal with this. 00:14:09.700 --> 00:14:15.240 If you're confronted by difficult circumstances, go to God and ask him to help you and to use 00:14:15.240 --> 00:14:20.259 these situations and experiences for your benefit and for your growth as a Christian. 00:14:20.259 --> 00:14:24.159 If you are feeling stressed, feeling that kind of pressure, that kind of tense feeling 00:14:24.159 --> 00:14:29.000 that you get in the back of your neck when deadlines or emails or responsibilities are 00:14:29.000 --> 00:14:33.159 kind of hanging over you and pressurizing you and things are really weighing down heavy 00:14:33.159 --> 00:14:37.000 of you, which in all honesty, every single one of us faces at some point and we probably 00:14:37.000 --> 00:14:46.120 face it every Monday morning, go to God and talk to the gentle God of the Bible about 00:14:46.120 --> 00:14:51.519 it and ask for wisdom and strength and perseverance. 00:14:51.519 --> 00:14:55.840 So all are reminded that God should be hearing a lot from us during the week. 00:14:55.840 --> 00:14:57.679 He should be hearing a lot from us. 00:14:57.679 --> 00:15:01.440 He should be hearing from you when you're at work or at school or at your lectures or 00:15:01.440 --> 00:15:02.440 whatever it is you're doing. 00:15:02.440 --> 00:15:08.679 God should be hearing from you and do you know God will gently listen and he will always 00:15:08.679 --> 00:15:11.560 do what is best. 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:19.719 The Bible teaches us that God is gentle, God the Father is patient and long suffering, 00:15:19.719 --> 00:15:24.519 God the Holy Spirit is the comforter, the one who is our helper, the one who will stand 00:15:24.519 --> 00:15:32.359 alongside us and God the Son is the greatest model of gentleness that the world has ever 00:15:32.359 --> 00:15:34.839 seen. 00:15:34.839 --> 00:15:38.079 God is gentle. 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:44.960 But the fact that God is gentle and thus our text here tells us in particular that Jesus 00:15:44.960 --> 00:15:49.879 is gentle is a reminder of the fact that as Christians that gentleness should be seen 00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:51.879 in us as well. 00:15:51.879 --> 00:15:55.320 Christians should be gentle. 00:15:55.320 --> 00:15:58.840 But that raises the question, well how do we do that? 00:15:58.840 --> 00:16:03.720 Well in general terms, the New Testament makes it very clear that our walk, that's the phrase 00:16:03.720 --> 00:16:09.320 that the New Testament often uses to describe life as a Christian, our walk, our daily way 00:16:09.320 --> 00:16:13.160 of life must be characterised by gentleness. 00:16:13.160 --> 00:16:18.440 A really important passage is in Ephesians 4, another of Paul's letters. 00:16:18.440 --> 00:16:23.600 He says, I therefore, a prisoner of the Lord urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:30.639 calling to which you've been called with all humility and gentleness, with patience, 00:16:30.639 --> 00:16:33.320 bearing with one another in love. 00:16:33.320 --> 00:16:37.560 You see the connection that's before you there, he's describing our walk, walk in a worthy 00:16:37.560 --> 00:16:43.640 manner and then in verse 2 he gives us the specific characteristics of what that walk 00:16:43.640 --> 00:16:48.200 looks like and one of them is gentleness. 00:16:48.200 --> 00:16:57.040 We've been reminded here that gentleness is essential for walking through this week and 00:16:57.040 --> 00:17:01.200 through every week of your life in a worthy manner. 00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:06.279 That means bearing with one another, it means accommodating for one another's weaknesses 00:17:06.279 --> 00:17:11.559 because we all have weaknesses whether we are aware of them or not and seeking to maintain 00:17:11.559 --> 00:17:20.240 a unity as God's people and to build up the bonds of peace that we have. 00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:24.680 And of course all of these things, sometimes it maybe hits home more clearly when we think 00:17:24.680 --> 00:17:34.840 of it in the opposite terms, we must never forget that an un-gentle walk is an unworthy 00:17:34.840 --> 00:17:39.320 walk. 00:17:39.320 --> 00:17:45.600 And there's various ways that we could describe this but perhaps the simplest way to understand 00:17:45.599 --> 00:17:56.319 how we should be gentle is to say that Christians should be thoroughly nice people. 00:17:56.319 --> 00:18:00.199 Now that may sound superficial and you might say, oh man Thomas you're from Lewis, you're 00:18:00.199 --> 00:18:04.119 supposed to be much tougher than that in terms of what you say. 00:18:04.119 --> 00:18:07.319 But no, I don't agree with that at all, I think we need to reclaim the value of the 00:18:07.319 --> 00:18:14.319 word nice because it's something that we should take immensely seriously. 00:18:14.319 --> 00:18:20.639 Every single person who has contact with us as Christians should come away thinking they 00:18:20.639 --> 00:18:23.480 were nice. 00:18:23.480 --> 00:18:28.679 And every single person who comes into this congregation or into Carlyway or wherever 00:18:28.679 --> 00:18:34.399 should come away thinking those people were so nice. 00:18:34.399 --> 00:18:38.240 It should be a defining characteristic of us. 00:18:38.240 --> 00:18:44.720 And the reason that is so important is because a failure to be gentle and a failure to be 00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:50.720 nice is incredibly damaging. 00:18:50.720 --> 00:19:02.120 How many times has work been a nightmare for you because people have not been nice? 00:19:02.119 --> 00:19:09.439 How many times has school been hard because people have not been nice? 00:19:09.439 --> 00:19:19.159 Being un-gentle, being harsh is a horrible thing and if a Christian is not nice then 00:19:19.159 --> 00:19:22.000 I can do a huge amount of damage. 00:19:22.000 --> 00:19:27.039 If I go back to Galatians 5, Paul talks about that sort of thing. 00:19:27.039 --> 00:19:31.799 He says, if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you're not consumed by one 00:19:31.799 --> 00:19:32.799 another. 00:19:32.799 --> 00:19:35.639 It's like harshness is self-destructive. 00:19:35.639 --> 00:19:39.639 Same again, let's not become conceited, provoking one another, envy in one another. 00:19:39.639 --> 00:19:44.159 That kind of hostility and horribleness to one another is something that we must, must 00:19:44.159 --> 00:19:45.159 guard against. 00:19:45.159 --> 00:19:50.480 And at one level this is a really serious warning to us all because we must never forget 00:19:50.480 --> 00:19:59.279 that you are only one step away from not being nice. 00:19:59.279 --> 00:20:02.160 So you could get up in the morning with the best of intentions and you could think, you 00:20:02.160 --> 00:20:09.319 know, I'm going to really make sure and then somebody gets you by saying or doing something 00:20:09.319 --> 00:20:13.519 that pushes your buttons and that frustrates you. 00:20:13.519 --> 00:20:21.119 And before you even know it, you can react with harshness and coldness and cruelness. 00:20:21.119 --> 00:20:25.240 And that's why we need to pray that God would keep us. 00:20:25.240 --> 00:20:30.440 It's a great prayer to pray, Lord, keep me. 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:37.519 But at another level, this is not just a warning, it's a huge encouragement because how many 00:20:37.519 --> 00:20:41.799 of you, so how many of you here, you don't need to answer this, but just rhetorically, 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:45.599 how many of you here can go and work all that cool AV stuff at the back? 00:20:45.599 --> 00:20:47.120 Maybe some of you can, maybe you can't. 00:20:47.120 --> 00:20:52.039 How many of you could stand up here and talk for too long like people like me can? 00:20:52.039 --> 00:20:53.400 You know, not necessarily all of you. 00:20:53.400 --> 00:20:56.320 How many of you could go and do the church accounts? 00:20:56.320 --> 00:20:57.840 Definitely not me, no chance. 00:20:57.840 --> 00:20:58.840 Some people love that kind of thing. 00:20:58.840 --> 00:21:03.120 How many of you could go and entertain a room full of five-year-olds for an hour? 00:21:03.120 --> 00:21:06.440 You know, not all of us can do all of these things, all of these things. 00:21:06.440 --> 00:21:07.640 Some of us can do, some of us can't. 00:21:07.640 --> 00:21:11.840 How many of you can be nice tomorrow? 00:21:11.840 --> 00:21:14.759 All of you. 00:21:14.759 --> 00:21:17.040 All of you. 00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:24.079 So it's a brilliant opportunity to be a witness by showing your gentleness towards every single 00:21:24.079 --> 00:21:26.759 person that you meet. 00:21:26.759 --> 00:21:30.879 Gentleness should be a characteristic of every part of our lives. 00:21:30.879 --> 00:21:35.519 I'm sure this has been mentioned as part of this study. 00:21:35.519 --> 00:21:39.720 In the New Testament, you have gifts of the Spirit and fruit of the Spirit. 00:21:39.720 --> 00:21:45.680 Gifts of the Spirit are things that some people have, some of them. 00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:47.160 Everybody has all of them. 00:21:47.160 --> 00:21:49.640 Some have some, some have others. 00:21:49.640 --> 00:21:51.560 But fruit of the Spirit is different. 00:21:51.560 --> 00:21:56.620 Fruit of the Spirit is something that should be characterizing every single Christian. 00:21:56.620 --> 00:21:58.680 So God is gentle. 00:21:58.680 --> 00:22:00.400 We should be gentle. 00:22:00.400 --> 00:22:06.600 Two great principles, two really important things to remember. 00:22:06.600 --> 00:22:12.519 But if you look at the word gentleness in the New Testament, it's actually got more 00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:17.839 to teach us, I think, if you do what we call a word study. 00:22:17.839 --> 00:22:21.240 So it's a really good thing to do when you're looking at the Bible. 00:22:21.240 --> 00:22:26.079 If you come across a word that's maybe unusual or a phrase, just search for it. 00:22:26.079 --> 00:22:29.639 So if you've got a Bible app on your phone, you'll be able to pick a search and just type 00:22:29.639 --> 00:22:30.639 it in. 00:22:30.639 --> 00:22:35.079 So if you type in the word gentleness, the word gentle, it'll pick up for you where this 00:22:35.079 --> 00:22:37.119 is mentioned in other parts of the Bible. 00:22:37.119 --> 00:22:38.639 It's good to do with people's names. 00:22:38.639 --> 00:22:39.639 It's good to do with places. 00:22:39.639 --> 00:22:42.200 It's good to do with certain key words. 00:22:42.200 --> 00:22:46.920 If you do that with the word gentleness and see where it comes up elsewhere in the New 00:22:46.920 --> 00:22:54.759 Testament, you discover something very interesting because the New Testament makes a very, very 00:22:54.759 --> 00:22:59.559 clear link between gentleness and something. 00:22:59.559 --> 00:23:00.720 Okay? 00:23:00.720 --> 00:23:05.319 You don't have to answer it out loud, but in your heads answer that question. 00:23:05.319 --> 00:23:10.480 What do you think the New Testament links gentleness with? 00:23:10.480 --> 00:23:16.880 Marriage, parenting, church? 00:23:16.880 --> 00:23:18.880 What do you think? 00:23:18.880 --> 00:23:29.960 Well, the New Testament makes a very clear link between gentleness and controversy. 00:23:29.960 --> 00:23:35.319 And I want us to just look at this together and look at three or four examples together. 00:23:35.319 --> 00:23:43.439 There's actually an example of this just a few verses later in Genesis 6, chapter 1. 00:23:43.439 --> 00:23:51.319 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in 00:23:51.319 --> 00:23:55.759 a spirit of gentleness. 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:59.639 Keep watching yourself lest you two be tempted. 00:23:59.640 --> 00:24:05.400 There a link is being made between gentleness and church discipline. 00:24:05.400 --> 00:24:09.480 Now when we talk about church discipline, we're talking about something really important. 00:24:09.480 --> 00:24:15.280 It's actually what we would say an essential part of what defines a church. 00:24:15.280 --> 00:24:22.960 And it's basically conveying the fact that as a church, we have a responsibility to nurture, 00:24:22.960 --> 00:24:30.360 to encourage, to direct, and when necessary to correct those who are members of the church. 00:24:30.360 --> 00:24:34.840 As a reminder, the Christian church is not a do whatever you like society. 00:24:34.840 --> 00:24:39.720 There's certain things that we expect of people, certain responsibilities that need to be maintained, 00:24:39.720 --> 00:24:42.360 and there's certain things that are unacceptable. 00:24:42.360 --> 00:24:48.920 And if they were to manifest themselves, we would want to address. 00:24:48.920 --> 00:24:53.240 And so part of being a member of the church is that you are under the discipline of the 00:24:53.240 --> 00:24:56.400 church, in particularly under the discipline of your elders. 00:24:56.400 --> 00:25:00.680 They're like shepherds looking after a flock. 00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:05.960 They are watching over you, looking over you to make sure that you are okay. 00:25:05.960 --> 00:25:11.240 Now sometimes we might associate the word discipline with the idea of something bad 00:25:11.240 --> 00:25:15.600 and something harsh, kind of have negative connotations in our minds. 00:25:15.600 --> 00:25:18.840 But real proper discipline is not a harsh thing. 00:25:18.839 --> 00:25:26.959 It's a beautiful thing because at the heart of any family is discipline. 00:25:26.959 --> 00:25:33.159 And it's a clear demonstration that you care. 00:25:33.159 --> 00:25:38.639 I often think about the fact that when my children were we, I've got three wonderful 00:25:38.639 --> 00:25:48.079 children, but when they were we, like starting to walk and running around, I remember thinking 00:25:48.079 --> 00:25:51.279 you're constantly having to tell them off. 00:25:51.279 --> 00:25:56.559 You're constantly having to say, keep away from the stove, watch the road, watch the 00:25:56.559 --> 00:26:01.079 stairs, and you have to give them rows when they don't listen to you, and you're doing 00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:03.879 it to protect them. 00:26:03.879 --> 00:26:09.279 And I remember thinking, I'm constantly having to give them rows, and it's all to just protect 00:26:09.279 --> 00:26:10.279 them. 00:26:10.279 --> 00:26:14.159 It's not to hurt them. 00:26:14.159 --> 00:26:15.519 And the same principle applies as a church. 00:26:15.519 --> 00:26:21.440 If somebody wanders off, if someone gets into trouble, we want to bring them back and we 00:26:21.440 --> 00:26:22.720 want to help them. 00:26:22.720 --> 00:26:27.240 But the point that Paul is making, when a church has to engage in that kind of discipline, 00:26:27.240 --> 00:26:33.559 if somebody gets caught in a transgression, so if somebody makes a massive mistake, so 00:26:33.559 --> 00:26:43.200 if somebody develops an addiction that grips them and takes over their life, if somebody 00:26:43.200 --> 00:26:52.920 has a moral failure, a catastrophic moral failure in their life, we want to restore them. 00:26:52.920 --> 00:27:01.480 But Paul is saying that has always got to be done gently. 00:27:01.480 --> 00:27:05.160 And I noticed that you had New Elders last week. 00:27:05.160 --> 00:27:07.160 That's fantastic. 00:27:07.160 --> 00:27:11.080 Not that I'm an expert in giving people advice, but I would say one thing I would say to the 00:27:11.079 --> 00:27:22.480 New Elders to advise them is this, always, always be gentle. 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:27.119 The great goal of church discipline is to gently restore people so that they're no longer 00:27:27.119 --> 00:27:34.480 under sin and they're once again able to serve God in his church. 00:27:34.480 --> 00:27:42.720 Mental discipline is going against God's word. 00:27:42.720 --> 00:27:44.519 Going against God's word is another name for sin. 00:27:44.519 --> 00:27:51.240 It's a reminder of the fact that as a church, we should never, ever hurt people. 00:27:51.240 --> 00:27:54.400 Sometimes we need to challenge people, sometimes we need to correct people, sometimes we need 00:27:54.400 --> 00:28:01.759 to question people, sometimes we disagree with people, but we must never, ever hurt 00:28:01.759 --> 00:28:04.319 them. 00:28:04.319 --> 00:28:07.200 The world is where we get hurt. 00:28:07.200 --> 00:28:13.879 The church is where we are gentle. 00:28:13.879 --> 00:28:17.960 So that's a link between gentleness and discipline. 00:28:17.960 --> 00:28:26.720 Another example is in 2 Timothy 2, verse 24 to 26, the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:31.599 but kind to everyone able to teach patiently and during evil, correcting his opponents 00:28:31.599 --> 00:28:33.279 with gentleness. 00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:38.559 Here a link has been made between another controversy between gentleness and correcting 00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:40.160 opponents. 00:28:40.160 --> 00:28:43.639 So if someone is in the wrong, if someone opposes us as a church, if someone opposes 00:28:43.639 --> 00:28:49.039 us as a faith, we are to correct them, but we are to do so with gentleness. 00:28:49.039 --> 00:28:51.440 So apply that in practical terms. 00:28:51.440 --> 00:28:57.879 How should we act towards the people who want to remove all religious influence in schools? 00:28:57.879 --> 00:29:02.279 How should we deal with people who don't share our views, a biblical view on marriage or 00:29:02.279 --> 00:29:04.440 a biblical view on gender? 00:29:04.440 --> 00:29:10.879 How should we deal with militant secularism? 00:29:10.879 --> 00:29:16.200 We are to be gentle. 00:29:16.200 --> 00:29:19.440 Correct opponents with gentleness. 00:29:19.440 --> 00:29:25.399 Now that does not mean that we compromise because we have to always remain faithfulness to God's 00:29:25.399 --> 00:29:27.599 standards. 00:29:27.599 --> 00:29:34.199 Being uncompromising and kind of flattery, that would be a counterfeit of gentleness. 00:29:34.199 --> 00:29:40.639 Biblical gentleness does not compromise, but being uncompromising does not mean being 00:29:40.639 --> 00:29:41.639 harsh. 00:29:41.639 --> 00:29:45.959 That's a really important thing to remember. 00:29:45.959 --> 00:29:50.839 And the truth is, if we are aggressive to our opponents, that's when we are compromising 00:29:50.839 --> 00:29:56.959 our standards because that is when we are being worldly. 00:29:56.960 --> 00:30:05.759 Because aggression is a worldly thing, not a godly thing. 00:30:05.759 --> 00:30:13.680 Our gentleness is a witness, as Paul says in the very next verses, that our gentleness 00:30:13.680 --> 00:30:20.600 can help bring our opponents to their senses and put their trust in Jesus. 00:30:20.600 --> 00:30:26.360 So New Testament makes a very deliberate link between gentleness and correcting opponents. 00:30:26.359 --> 00:30:29.279 Question number three is in Titus 3. 00:30:29.279 --> 00:30:32.919 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for 00:30:32.919 --> 00:30:38.839 every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle. 00:30:38.839 --> 00:30:42.399 There's various things to highlight here, but I just want to pick the one that immediately 00:30:42.399 --> 00:30:43.679 precedes gentleness. 00:30:43.679 --> 00:30:46.759 That's the link between gentleness and quarreling. 00:30:46.759 --> 00:30:50.599 If we are confronted with quarreling as Christians, what should our attitude be? 00:30:50.599 --> 00:30:53.119 It should be gentleness. 00:30:53.119 --> 00:30:56.279 Now that's very, very challenging. 00:30:56.279 --> 00:31:00.799 We've been reminded that when somebody provokes us, when someone provokes you, what should 00:31:00.799 --> 00:31:04.319 our response be? 00:31:04.319 --> 00:31:06.160 Gentleness. 00:31:06.160 --> 00:31:08.480 And that is not easy. 00:31:08.480 --> 00:31:13.440 It's not easy, but it's incredibly important because what is our goal when we are confronted 00:31:13.440 --> 00:31:14.440 with our quarrel? 00:31:14.440 --> 00:31:18.119 Our goal is that the quarrel will come to an end. 00:31:18.119 --> 00:31:20.879 Christians should always be peacemakers. 00:31:20.879 --> 00:31:24.279 We should always be looking for reconciliation. 00:31:24.279 --> 00:31:28.359 As a good example of that in Philippians 4, when Paul entreats these two women, Yodia 00:31:28.359 --> 00:31:38.759 and Sinti, to agree in the Lord, Paul is trying to gently bring a resolution to this quarrel. 00:31:38.759 --> 00:31:40.920 So quarreling, gentleness. 00:31:40.920 --> 00:31:41.920 Again the connection is made. 00:31:41.920 --> 00:31:44.599 This is the last example, just to go through quickly. 00:31:44.599 --> 00:31:46.960 It's found this time from Peter. 00:31:46.960 --> 00:31:51.200 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed, have no fear of 00:31:51.200 --> 00:31:55.240 them nor be troubled, but in your hearts, honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being 00:31:55.240 --> 00:32:00.120 prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason, for the hope that is in 00:32:00.120 --> 00:32:04.440 you, yet do it with gentleness and respect. 00:32:04.440 --> 00:32:08.400 Here Peter makes a link between gentleness and apologetics. 00:32:08.400 --> 00:32:19.920 Apologetics is the defense of the faith whereby we are trying to present the proof of the 00:32:19.920 --> 00:32:23.480 truth of Christianity, where we are trying to defend it from opposition, where we are 00:32:23.480 --> 00:32:30.400 also trying to actually persuade others to turn from falsehood and to follow the truth. 00:32:30.400 --> 00:32:34.640 As Christians it's really important that we are ready to give an answer for the reasons 00:32:34.640 --> 00:32:36.800 why we believe what we believe. 00:32:36.800 --> 00:32:39.480 So if somebody says to us, why do you believe that there is a God? 00:32:39.480 --> 00:32:43.920 We can say there is clear evidence of order and design in the world around us. 00:32:43.920 --> 00:32:49.480 And nothing, absolutely nothing in our experience has ever demonstrated that order and reality 00:32:49.480 --> 00:32:52.960 like this can come from nothing simply by chance. 00:32:52.960 --> 00:32:59.559 Even the most basic principles of rationality, morality, truth and love do not point, do 00:32:59.559 --> 00:33:07.000 not evidence a world of meaningless chance but to created order. 00:33:07.000 --> 00:33:10.559 If someone says to us, why do you believe that the Bible is true? 00:33:10.559 --> 00:33:15.440 We can say it is the most historically attested document of the classical period. 00:33:15.440 --> 00:33:21.200 It has been repeatedly readified by archaeological evidence and the contents of the Bible itself 00:33:21.200 --> 00:33:27.320 are so perfectly coherent, so majestic in style and so relevant and powerful in its 00:33:27.320 --> 00:33:32.759 ability to speak to our situations that it abundantly evidences itself to be the Word 00:33:32.759 --> 00:33:34.160 of God. 00:33:34.160 --> 00:33:37.880 If someone says to us, are not all religions the same and different ways to the same God? 00:33:37.880 --> 00:33:43.200 We can say no, we believe that the claims of Jesus Christ are unique. 00:33:43.200 --> 00:33:47.279 But although His message is inclusive and that it is offered to everyone, yet at the 00:33:47.279 --> 00:33:53.720 same time that message is exclusive because He alone is the Savior of sinners. 00:33:53.720 --> 00:33:57.480 No one comes to the Father but by Him. 00:33:57.480 --> 00:34:00.640 There's many, many questions that we can face from people. 00:34:00.640 --> 00:34:06.600 That's just three examples we need to be ready to give answers. 00:34:06.599 --> 00:34:14.799 The Paul is reminding us that when we speak to the questioner, to the skeptic, or even 00:34:14.799 --> 00:34:23.599 to the opponent of the Christian faith, we need to speak with gentleness. 00:34:23.599 --> 00:34:33.119 So is it ever right for a Christian to insult an atheist on Twitter or on Facebook or face 00:34:33.119 --> 00:34:34.119 to face? 00:34:34.119 --> 00:34:37.119 Is it ever right? 00:34:37.119 --> 00:34:44.440 Well, the screen is telling you it's not. 00:34:44.440 --> 00:34:48.719 We should always be gentle, always. 00:34:48.719 --> 00:34:52.519 And these four examples show us that the New Testament makes a very, very clear link between 00:34:52.519 --> 00:34:54.839 gentleness and controversy. 00:34:54.839 --> 00:35:02.279 Quarrels, opposition, questions, discipline, all of these should be dealt with gently. 00:35:02.280 --> 00:35:05.840 And that raises the question, why is that? 00:35:05.840 --> 00:35:11.160 Why does the New Testament make the connection between gentleness and controversy? 00:35:11.160 --> 00:35:22.320 Well, I think the reason it makes the connection is because gentleness is incredibly powerful. 00:35:22.320 --> 00:35:26.360 And that might sound strange because gentleness is often seen as a weakness, but the reality 00:35:26.360 --> 00:35:31.200 is that gentleness is incredibly powerful. 00:35:31.199 --> 00:35:34.519 Because if you have a quarrel between two people, or if you have a sin in the life of 00:35:34.519 --> 00:35:38.919 a believer, or if you have opposition from somebody, if you are faced with a situation 00:35:38.919 --> 00:35:43.559 like that, if you are faced with some kind of controversy as a Christian, if you go into 00:35:43.559 --> 00:35:50.839 that situation and you are harsh, then you are only going to make the situation worse. 00:35:50.839 --> 00:35:56.519 But if you are gentle, you can turn a quarrel into reconciliation. 00:35:56.519 --> 00:36:01.719 You can turn a fall into sin, into a sanctifying experience, and you can turn an opponent into 00:36:01.719 --> 00:36:02.719 a brother. 00:36:02.719 --> 00:36:09.039 And you are not going to do any of those things if you are cold, or harsh, or arrogant, but 00:36:09.039 --> 00:36:14.199 you can if you are gentle. 00:36:14.199 --> 00:36:23.239 And that's highlighted very clearly in Romans 12, repay no one evil for evil. 00:36:23.239 --> 00:36:27.639 But give thought to what is honourable in the sight of all, if possible, so far as it 00:36:27.639 --> 00:36:32.439 is dependent on you, live peaceably with all, beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave 00:36:32.439 --> 00:36:37.119 it to the wrath of God for its written vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord, to the 00:36:37.119 --> 00:36:39.359 contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. 00:36:39.359 --> 00:36:43.879 If he is thirsty, give him something to drink, for by doing so you will heap burning coals 00:36:43.879 --> 00:36:45.159 in his head. 00:36:45.159 --> 00:36:51.359 Do not overcome, do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. 00:36:51.360 --> 00:36:56.120 And as always, the Bible makes perfect sense when it's compared with reality, because ask 00:36:56.120 --> 00:37:03.920 yourself the question, who are the people you respect most in your life? 00:37:03.920 --> 00:37:09.880 Think of them, and then ask the question, are they harsh people, or are they gentle 00:37:09.880 --> 00:37:12.720 people? 00:37:12.720 --> 00:37:16.920 And the key point in it all is that God knows that gentleness is powerful. 00:37:16.920 --> 00:37:21.760 That's why when it comes to the most difficult and controversial situations that we will 00:37:21.760 --> 00:37:26.760 face as a church, God says, be gentle. 00:37:26.760 --> 00:37:31.960 Now, a couple of important things to remember, I want to just mention them very briefly before 00:37:31.960 --> 00:37:35.119 I close, and really I'm going to close in a second. 00:37:35.119 --> 00:37:41.559 One is doctrinal accuracy is not an excuse for a lack of gentleness. 00:37:41.559 --> 00:37:45.559 We can be orthodox in what we say, but we can be sinful in how we say it. 00:37:45.559 --> 00:37:50.159 We must never think that orthodoxy is an excuse for a lack of gentleness. 00:37:50.159 --> 00:37:54.960 But on the other side, we must never think that gentleness is an excuse for poor theology, 00:37:54.960 --> 00:37:57.880 because being gentle does not mean being spineless. 00:37:57.880 --> 00:38:00.079 It does not mean compromising on our theology. 00:38:00.079 --> 00:38:04.119 In fact, it means the very opposite, because the gentle Christian is the one who really 00:38:04.119 --> 00:38:10.440 knows their theology, because it is theology that teaches us that we ourselves are recipients 00:38:10.440 --> 00:38:13.119 of grace from our gentle God. 00:38:13.119 --> 00:38:18.679 And it teaches us that vengeance and judgment is ultimately God's prerogative and not ours. 00:38:18.679 --> 00:38:22.920 Theology teaches us that the Christian church is a family where we nurture and guide and 00:38:22.920 --> 00:38:27.239 discipline and help each other because we love each other and because we want to help 00:38:27.239 --> 00:38:28.920 one another. 00:38:28.920 --> 00:38:35.000 Theology teaches us that hostility, aggression, and conflict is worldly, and therefore it's 00:38:35.000 --> 00:38:38.599 damaging to the distinctive witness of the Church of Christ. 00:38:38.599 --> 00:38:48.759 And theology teaches us that Jesus is gentle, and we never have an excuse to be anything 00:38:48.759 --> 00:38:53.400 other than Christlike. 00:38:53.400 --> 00:39:01.159 So the truth is, gentleness is a quality that is found in the strongest. 00:39:01.159 --> 00:39:09.759 Jesus is the strongest, most powerful, most influential person who's ever walked on this 00:39:09.759 --> 00:39:10.759 earth. 00:39:10.759 --> 00:39:14.960 He was also the most gentle. 00:39:14.960 --> 00:39:17.239 Gentleness is an amazing thing. 00:39:17.239 --> 00:39:20.480 That's why it's part of the fruit of the Spirit. 00:39:20.480 --> 00:39:27.399 Gentleness is incredibly powerful, and that's why our prayer must be, oh God, make me more 00:39:27.399 --> 00:39:28.399 gentle. 00:39:28.399 --> 00:39:29.399 Amen. 00:39:29.400 --> 00:39:31.400 Let's pray. 00:39:31.400 --> 00:39:43.880 God our Father, we thank you for your gentleness. 00:39:43.880 --> 00:39:52.760 A gentleness that goes beyond what we can really grasp. 00:39:52.760 --> 00:39:54.880 Your gentleness is just amazing. 00:39:54.880 --> 00:39:57.519 We thank you for that so, so much. 00:39:57.519 --> 00:40:08.840 We thank you that we can come to the God who reigns over all and know that you will be gentle. 00:40:08.840 --> 00:40:12.079 And we pray, oh God, that we will be gentle as well. 00:40:12.079 --> 00:40:19.480 That in the week ahead, we would be gentle with the people around us, the people who 00:40:19.480 --> 00:40:26.239 are battered by the effects of a broken world. 00:40:26.239 --> 00:40:35.759 We pray that we would be a source of gentle love and care and hope to these people. 00:40:35.759 --> 00:40:40.239 Please forgive us for all the times that we've been un-gental, all the times we've judged, 00:40:40.239 --> 00:40:43.599 all the times we've been harsh, all the times we've been aggressive, all the times we've 00:40:43.599 --> 00:40:47.399 lacked self-control. 00:40:47.399 --> 00:40:51.119 And oh God, please make us more gentle. 00:40:51.119 --> 00:40:53.119 Make us more like Jesus. 00:40:53.119 --> 00:40:54.119 Amen. 00:40:54.119 --> 00:40:56.440 Amen.