Sermon: Nothing is So Strong as Gentleness

 “Nothing is So Strong as Gentleness” Eph. 4:1-6 (unison); Prov. 15:1; Phil. 4:5

Preached by Rev. Dr. J. Ben Sloan at Eastminster Presbyterian 3/11/2024

The fruits of the Spirit: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control- all compliment and support one another beautifully.  Today we will look at the fruit of gentleness. 
Prov. 15:1- “A gentle answer turns away wrath- but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
Phil. 4:5 “let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” 
Eph. 4- “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient bearing with one another in love.  Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace- one Lord, one faith, one baptism…

In 1991 I went to the brand new Walmart to buy diapers in Asheville NC.  When I arrived I saw an old beat up pickup with an old guy in overalls leaving and a few Walmart employees waving goodbye.  Turns out it was Sam Walton, the richest guy in America at the time and founder of Walmart. He liked to visit his stores incognito.  His vision was to help people save money so they could live better.  He and his wife were elders at First Presbyterian, Bentonville AK where he taught high school SS. earlier that year they had left the equivalent of 12 million to the PCUSA Foundation to start new churches.  In another year he would die of leukemia.  He was smart, creative, and a meek humble guy.  

Our fruit of the Spirit today is gentleness. Sometimes translated meekness.  Jesus was God but he was described and even described himself as gentle and lowly in heart.  You don’t have to be weak to be meek. God in Jesus was not weak. In fact, I would argue it takes Great Strength to turn the other cheek, to love your neighbor as yourself- even when they are not lovable, or love your enemies, deny self, bear a cross while living, or die a sacrificial death on the cross.

Matthew 5:5 says, “God blesses those who are gentle- the whole earth will belong to them.  The KJV says, “Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.”
1)  We often don’t understand the Christian concept of meekness, gentleness or humility.  In fact the word “humility” was not even in the ancient Greek- it is a new Christian standard that other religions and people had not heard of.  But you cannot understand the person of Jesus or even the idea of the incarnation of God if you cannot grasp that humility is not antithetical to power.  Almighty God can accommodate to our level by stooping gently down.  Some have rightly said gentleness is strength under control- like bridled power.  A horse that is able to be ridden is still as strong as it was before it was a wild kicking bronco- but its strength is now under control.  The opposite of this is being egotistical, self-aggrandizing, or even bullying.  The story of Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorites.  A Prince is turned into a beast because he is harsh and not gentle toward a stranger.  He can only be softened by love.  It seems impossible that gentle love could be found toward a harsh beast before the pedals of life run out.  But the beauty of gentle love tames the beast and he softens and turns into a prince again.  It was not the raging beast, but the gentle beauty who had the power.  We each have our pedals dropping.  Life is to precious to not live it with gentleness. 
2) OUR WORLD needs Gentleness today.  We live in a bullying age.  One in five students say they have been bullied at school, 30% of report they have been bullied at work.  60% of kids and 40% of adults report they have been cyberbullied on social media.  In this political mud slinging year- we might do well to remember Christ’s call to us to be gentle through scripture.  Remember King Rehoboam.  He inherited a unified, wealthy kingdom under Solomon. The people went to Rehoboam and asked for some tax and work relief.  The older advisers said if Rehoboam would 1) Serve them and 2) Answer them gently- they would follow him.  The younger advisers said he needed to show them who is boss.  He returned and said, “My father used whips to keep you in line- I will use scorpions.”  The kingdom split then and never came back together.    Proverbs says a “Gentle answer turns away wrath.”  Washington, Lincoln, MLK Jr, Ghandi, Mandella, Moses were great leaders who were gentle yet strong.  Moses was said to be the most humble man alive at that time.Of course we could add Jesus to that list too.  Jesus said he is gentle and lowly in heart.  We see that in how he gently healed people who were hurting, and how terribly patient he was with his disciples.  Jesus said the gentle or meek shall inherit the earth.  Certainly He did.  Today He is the most popular figure in all the world.  He is the only religious figure who has adherents in every country in the world today.  Gentle Jesus.  The One who didn’t bring an army into Jerusalem, but rode on a humble donkey. Jesus said, “Foxes have holes, birds of the air have nests but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head. Yet.  He inherited the earth!  The root of gentleness- as all the fruits of the Spirit is found in God Himself.  

3) This, by the way would apply well to our HOMES.  Colossians 3:19- says “Husbands, love your wives and be gentle with them.”  1 Peter 3:4 says to the women that an unfading beauty is found in a gentle spirit.  Do you remember the story of Boaz and Ruth?  Boaz was a wealthy businessman, Ruth was a foreigner and had nothing, but she had a great humble heart caring for her widowed mother-in-law.  Boaz saw her on his land- he could have told her to get off.  Instead he gently allowed her and encouraged her to stay.  Ruth told him, “You have made me feel better by speaking gently with me.”  Guys- we can learn from that!  One pastor [Rick Warren] said, “If Boaz had been ruthless, he would have been Ruth-less.”  Of course, Boaz and Ruth are the great grandparents of King David and ancestors of Jesus.  So without his gentleness there would be no King David.  The Bible also encourages us to be gentle discipliners of our children and to not be overly harsh with them (Eph. 6:4).  A gentle answer to our spouse and to our children and to our parents goes a long way.   
4) OUR NEIGHBORS & CHURCH NEED IT- An old saying goes “love your neighbor as yourself-sometimes use words.”  Eph 6:4- be comepletely humble & gentle. EPC is that way. In our First Steps Class the new comers talk about how welcoming and gracious the church is.   I am grateful for Eastminster’s concrete way of helping others motivated by our love for God who calls us to love neighbor.  What we did on March Out missions day was amazing.  Our Habitat work is a way to love a stranger in Jesus’ name.  One of my favorite Habitat workers was a guy named Don Mabe in Georgetown.  He was the former CEO for Perdue Chicken.  He lived in Debordieu, had a plantation in Maryland, two beach houses.  But every time the church built a Habitat House he was both a major donor and a guy who came out and worked on the house.  Millard Fuller, who founded Habitat,  was a millionaire.  He had 2,000 acres of land, horses, cows, speed boats, luxury cars.  But he didn’t get to see his wife at all.  She left him and went to New York.  He flew there and said, “I have failed in my relationship with God and my relationship with you.  Let’s give it all up and start over.  She agreed.  They became missionaries to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) for three years. People thought they were crazy.  They came back and started Habitat for Humanity in 1976- with the idea that a home helps families.  So the homeowner doesn’t have to pay a downpayment, and they pay 0% interest on the building materials and their money goes to fund the next home.  Each homeowner gets a Bible along with their keys.  Almost a million homes in 92 countries have been built with these concepts.  But it started with a meek and gentle swallowing of ego- a giving up of all they had to save their marriage and to save others from homelessness in Christ’s name. 
5) THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS GENTLENESS-  Rather let the Spirit of Gentleness flow through you.  Embrace gentleness. Do not quench the Spirit of gentleness with your pride or ego.  Do not grieve the Spirit by turning away from His prompting to be gentle.  Rather, be filled with the Spirit of gentleness in your heart.  Open your heart to Him.  This stained glass says, “Come to me.”  That is the main point.  But the full verses says, Come to me  all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest for your souls.    Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls.”  (Mt. 11:28-29)  Do you want more gentleness?  The God of the Universe has this controlled, gentle power and He can give you just a taste of it and transform your life.   I like what Rick Warren said about applying gentleness:  when someone is helping you at a restaurant this week- seek to be Christ to them- by being understanding not demanding.  When someone disagrees with you this week be tender without surrender.  You can listen to those who disagree with you without stomping on them or stomping out of the room.  When someone disappoints you this week be gentle not judgmental.           
     I want to close with another concrete example of gentleness.  Billy Graham’s last remaining sibling died this past week- Jean Graham Ford.  She married Leighton Ford, who also was an evangelist.   She was a steady, peaceful, example of unity in the church to that family.  She was a member of Myer’s Park Presbyterian in Charlotte.    Not too many people knew about her.  She had polio and unlike her brother, could not speak loudly.  She suffered physically her entire life, but she led a gentle faith-filled life impacting her brother, her husband, and those around her.  Someone in her family said she was a peacemaker, and a gentle, faithful person who loved reaching others for Jesus.  The Bible says, “Let your gentleness be evident to all.”  What I am saying is that it is possible to see gentleness in others.  Look for it, and seek to be filled with the gentleness of God.  Amen. 

 

[Some of this was taken (not verbatim) from a sermon from Rick Warren 5/27/2014]