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Name of Assembly: United Apostolic Church 

Type of service: Bible study

Date: March 24, 2020

Teacher: Minister Milton

Topic: Fruit of the Spirit

Lesson 6: Gentleness: Excellence in Character 

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:  against such there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23

“put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any:  even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.  And above all these things, put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.”  Colossians 3:12-14 (KJV)

I. Introduction

  • This aspect of gentleness can be a very ______________ one to instill and manifest in our lives.
  • A quick look at gentleness, without an in-depth understanding, can be very misleading as to its value.
  • Gentleness is actually defined by several other words such as ______________, kindness, and meekness.
  • The most accurate definition, relating to the fruit of the Spirit, is __________ in character or demeanour.
  1. Excellence is the highest level attainable.
  2. In our relationships, God expects and demands __________. (Matthew 5:48)

The word ‘gentleness’ in our text is derived from the Greek word chrestotes, pronounced, Khray-stot-ace.  It is that beauty of character which pervades the _______________nature, making ______________ all which would have been harsh and austere.

Chrestotes is rendered as ‘kindness’ in Colossians 3:12-14 quoted above, and in the following passage:  “But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.  Titus 3:4-5.

What is demonstrated in these verses is that there was nothing that we ______________ had done or could do which would have ______________ the salvation of God.  His mercy and grace were extended to us on the basis of His infinite love, which love was rooted in the chrestotes, the gentleness, the kindness which was inherent in His nature.  We who claim to be Christians must exemplify this aspect of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives as we relate to others.  It is a _____________ not an option.

  • Gentleness, in our Christian walk, is how we ___________ ourselves to those around us. 
  1. We need to always be aware of the words of the Apostle Paul when he said, “Do we begin again to commend ourselves?  Or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?  Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:  Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.”  II Corinthians 3:1-3
  2. In essence, he was stating that our actions precede us and we are known by those actions.

II.  The Necessity for Gentleness

  • In order for us to correctly manifest gentleness, we must understand the need for it.
  • Throughout the scripture we find instruction concerning our ______________ of character and how we treat other people.
  • We begin by realising that gentleness is a work of the spirit.

Romans 8:4-5, “That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.”

    • If left to the desires of the flesh, we would not act with _______________.
    • Rather, we would always respond and react from personal, ____________ motives. 
    • Once we have received the baptism of the Holy Ghost our nature is transformed.
  • The New Testament ___________ of gentleness with others has an Old Testament foundation.
  1. When the herdsmen of Abram and the herdsmen Lot began contending for the best grazing ground, Abram approached the situation with gentleness.
    1. Genesis 13:8-9  “And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we are brethren.  Is not the whole land before thee?  Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left.”  (KJV)
    2. Abram had the right, as the ____________, to choose the land he wanted.
    3. However, in order to avoid further ____________ he practiced gentleness and was blessed for it.

III. How Gentleness is Developed

A.  Since gentleness deals first of all with our approach to God, it is developed in _____________ towards God.

1. When you consider, like David did, the greatness and majesty of God, it is not difficult to be humbled in His presence.

Psalm 8:3-4,  “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him?”

2. Isaiah was overwhelmed by what he saw in the presence of the Lord.

Isaiah 6:1-5, “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.  Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.  And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.  And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.  Then said I, Woe is me! For I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (KJV)

3. In John’s vision in the Revelation, he beheld several instances of humility before God.

Revelation 4:10-11, “The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (KJV)

Revelation 7:11-12, “And the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, saying, Amen:  Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever.”

Revelation 19:4, “And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.”

B. Secondly, we must put it into ________________ with people.

1. Everyday we are given the opportunity to interact with people.

2. Titus 3:1-2, “Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, to speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.”  (KJV)

    • From these verses we find that God expects us to approach everyone, regardless of stature or position, with gentleness.
    • True gentleness is submissive, obedient, does good works, speaks positive, and is not contentious.

3. Colossians 3:12-14, “Put therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.  And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.”

From this passage we learn several things about expressing gentleness to people.

    1. We must _______________ put it on.
    2. We are to always take the high road and be ____________, patient, humble, and forgiving.
    3. We do this because ___________ did the very same for us.
    4. When we do, we prove ourselves to be part of the holy, ____________ of God.  

C.  Thirdly, we must allow the Spirit to work through us.

1.  Philippians 2:5, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.”

    • We are instructed to be “like-minded” with Christ.
    • When we are “like-minded”, our actions become the same actions that He would have taken.

2.  Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”

    • Portraying a spirit of meekness, with the help of the Holy Spirit, establishes our ________________ in the family of God.

3. I Thessalonians 5:19, “Quench not the Spirit.”

    • Let the Holy Spirit work on your behalf to keep you from falling.

Closing Illustration:

In his book, Be a People Person, John Maxwell tells this story:

Mr. Myrick had to go to Chicago on business and persuaded his brother to take care of his cat during his absence.  Though he hated cats, the brother agreed.  Upon his return, Myrick called from the airport to check on the cat.  “Your cat died,” the brother reported, then hung up.  Myrick was inconsolable.  His grief was magnified by his brother’s insensitivity, so he called again to express his pain.  “There was no need for you to be so blunt,” he said.  “What was I supposed to say?” asked the perplexed brother.  “You could have broken the news gradually,” explained Myrick.  “You could have said, “The cat was playing on the roof,” then, later in the conversation, you could have said, “He fell off.”  Then, you could have said, “He broke his leg.”  Then when I came to pick him up, you could have said, “I’m so sorry, your cat passed away during the night.”  “You’ve got to learn to be more tactful.”  “By the way, how’s Mom?”  After a long pause, the brother replied, “She’s playing on the roof.”

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