Gentleness

Have you wondered about how the dove conducts itself? Well, if you have ever seen one, you will bear with me that this species of birds appear calm yet go for what they want. At the least attempt to go near it or even catch it, it begins to move away as quickly as possible?

How about the lion when hunting? It gently organises itself, often hiding through the camouflage in the environment and its prey is not able to realise, at least most of the time, that it is around until it strikes?

Or if you have a friend, relative or acquaintance who is calm in their demeanour and would often seem to be weak but will be quick to let you know when you have crossed the line?

What is it about these three illustrations? Well, I will tell you! Their composure. Each of them have distinct personalities yet have one thing in common given their contexts. This is their calm composure. This often tends to invite their recipients to respond or accommodate their presence. If you ask me to sum it all up in one word, I’d say they are gentle.

In our series so far, we have been looking at the Fruit of the Spirit and fleshing out the distinct qualities of the Fruit, found in Galatians 5:22,23. This time, we will look at the penultimate quality i.e. Gentleness.

The word in the Hebrew used to describe gentleness in Galatians 5:22,23 is “prautēs” (meaning Mildness, gentleness. From praus; mildness, i.e. humility) according to Strong’s concordance 4240. In the cultural context this was written (i.e. Greco-roman era), this was seen as a weakness (although it is not in the least!) just like it is seen in the 21st century. However Jesus, our perfect example was seen exemplifying gentleness time and time again in the gospels (i.e. Matthew, mark, Luke and John).

Gentleness is the ability and capacity to put yourself under control in both calm and tempestuous circumstances. In fact the Oxford dictionary defines it as “the quality of being kind, tender, or mild-mannered”. To put it more bluntly, being gentle means exuding kindness, tenderness and temperate character in spite of the situation.

Hear me out: I acknowledge that there will be moments we will falter and that is okay. What is not okay is dwelling there, where you have fallen. You really do not have an excuse. The Lord requires of us to press for perfection not by our own might but by faith through grace made available by the agency of the Holy Spirit and till the Lord Jesus comes, we will have to keep striving. Paul expresses this in Philippians 3:12 NKJV “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me“. The word used to represent “…I press on..” is the Greek word “diōkō“, a prolonged form of the primary verb “dio” which means “to pursue” or in other terms, to keep pursuing.

This implies that we must, by the grace of God, keep pursuing Godliness in our character and in this wise, being gentle until Jesus comes back (which is gentleness will be made perfect). It is the reason why we cannot do it by our own strength. We need help and Jesus has provided all the help we need in the person of the Holy Spirit. Engage Him. I can boldly tell you that He really loves to be engaged in fellowship. Therefore be encouraged to do so.

So far we have seen similitudes of gentleness, what it is and is not, how we can engage it. Now let us look at how we can apply this to ourselves.

I need you understand that once you have given your life to Jesus and have been filled with the Holy Spirit, He resides in your heart (i.e. the central part of your life). And by implication you have His Fruit. He embodies the Fruit. It is the reason why it is called the Fruit of the Spirit. And this fruit has different qualities, one of which is gentleness. This quality must characterise you as a child of God till Jesus returns.

As human beings as we are, we do not sustain the ability to be consistently gentle in every situation because we will grow tired. The human body was created such that it gets spent after being used for some time after which it would need to rest and recharge. Even at that, as time flies by, the human body ages. I could go on but all i am saying is this: we are not self-sufficient especially when it comes to character. We learn and unlearn in every season of our lives.

To be gentle according to the measure of Christ Jesus, it will have to be done His way. What’s His way? It’s simple. Having His Spirit dwelling in you and finding expression over time through experiences and the washing of the Word of God to build that quality to the degree of satisfaction and standard of the Lord found in His Word. This can only happen Jesus’ way.

You can choose to do it outside Him but it won’t last. True gentleness is found in Jesus and finds expression in the life of the believer through the active participation of the believer in the activities of the Holy Spirit. The Lord will grant you understanding as you pray. Here’s a place to start: “Dear Lord Jesus, I thank you for your activities in my life by your Holy Spirit. Please help me live out gentleness to your standard, Lord. Help me Lord Jesus through your word and prayer and every other means right in your eyes to exemplify gentleness by the outworking of your mighty power, in the name of Jesus. Thank you for making me gentle and the ability to keep pursuing it in my life till You come back Lord. Thank you for an answered prayer. Amen.”

Remember, it is never too late to start or pick up from where you left off. There is grace to walk in gentleness.

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you and establish you. Amen.