WELCOME (15minutes)
Choose one of the following icebreakers:
(If you have first-time guests, begin with a round of introduction and warmly welcome the new visitors.)
1. Kindness Bingo
- Print Kindness Bingo Cards and give everyone a copy. (Appendix A).
- Everyone moves around to look for someone who can identify with an act of kindness he/she has done for others in the preceeding week and have them sign his/her name in the box.
- If someone has all boxes signed diagonally, across a row or vertically in a column, he/she calls out BINGO and is declared the winner!
- Next, Cell Leader then asks everyone to share about the act of kindness they have done the week before.
- Leader ends by encouraging everyone to continue with acts of kindness in the coming week and to share it in the next cell meeting.
2. Kindness Discussion Questions
Cell Leader finds creative ways to assign number to each cell member e.g. form a line based on their birthdays or their spiritual age etc.
Ask them the following questions based on the number they are assigned.
- What does it mean to you to clothe yourself in kindness? What are some ways you can do that?
- Have you ever regretted not showing kindness to someone?
- Do you think that kindness is more of an action or a lifestyle?
- When you talk without thinking about what you’re going to say, is the result usually kind or unkind?
- Do you take the time to think about whether your actions are kind? If not, is that something you want to start doing?
- Do you think that others would describe your attitude as kind? Why or why not?
- What are some ways that God has shown you kindness?
- Do you think it is possible to live out a lifestyle full of kindness?
- Have you ever withheld kindness from a friend? How does it make you feel to know that the Bible says that’s like forsaking the fear of God?
- What are some ways you can practice kindness this week?
Transition to Worship:
As we come before the Lord in worship, let’s quieten our hearts and pause for a moment to allow the Holy Spirit to move freely among us. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to prepare our hearts to worship Him. Holy Spirit, fill us with your presence. At the count of 3, let’s give God a standing ovation and welcome Him into our midst.
WORSHIP (20 minutes)
You may use the following suggested worship songs:
- Friend of God (G)
- Forever (D)
- I Love You Lord (E)
- God Is Able (E)
Do give time to wait upon the Holy Spirit for the release of any words, visions, tongues and interpretation of tongues for the edification of the body of Christ. At the end of the worship, Cell leaders can ask each member whether they received any word, vision, impression, etc. This is to encourage everyone to step out in faith to move in the gift of the Spirit.
Transition to Word:
Hallelujah! Praise the Lord Jesus for His ministry and presence among us! Lord, we thank You that You are here with us. We love You and we want more of You in our life. As we listen to Your word today, open our eyes and teach us to obey. In Jesus name. Amen!
WORD (45minutes)
Memory verse of the week: Song of Songs 2:10
10 My beloved spoke and said to me, “Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.”
Sermon Title: Evidence – Kindness
By Rev Daniel Khong on 18-19 Nov 2017
Scripture Passage: Galatians 5:22-23(NIVUK)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Titus 3:1-8 (NIVUK)
1Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle towards everyone. 3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
Introduction
Kindness is the fifth in this series on the Evidence of the fruit of the Spirit. Let’s bear in mind that the word “fruit” refers not only to the actual fruits we eat, but it also means “as a result of” or “a product of”. Just as an apple is a product of an apple tree; self-control, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, kindness, patience, peace, joy and hope, are a product of living (or keeping in step) with the Holy Spirit. They are the evidence that shows we have truly been transformed by the grace of God.
What does it mean to be kind? The Oxford dictionary’s definition of Kindness is:
- [mass noun] The quality of being friendly, generous and considerate.
- [count noun] A kind act.
Kindness does not exist for ourselves, but for others. To demonstrate kindness we need to do two things:
- What we think of others
- What we do for others
Discovery and Understanding Questions
Q1. What are some Bible passages that teach us about having kind thoughts of others?
A1. Consider the following verses:
Titus 3:2 (NIVUK)
2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle towards everyone.
Titus 3:2 (AMP)
2 to slander or abuse no one, to be kind and conciliatory and gentle, showing unqualified consideration and courtesy toward everyone.
Philippians 4:8 (NLT)
8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
Q2. Explain why is it so important to think kind thoughts of others?
A2. It is important because what we think matters! Often our thoughts lead to actions.
Consider the following quote and scriptural verses:
“Thoughts lead to feelings. Feelings lead to actions. Actions leads to results” – T. Harv Eker
2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIVUK)
5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Our thoughts govern how we live our lives and it contributes significantly to who we are and who we become.
Proverbs 23:7 (NKJV)
For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you.
1 Timothy 4:12 (TLB)
12 Don’t let anyone think little of you because you are young. Be their ideal; let them follow the way you teach and live; be a pattern for them in your love, your faith, and your clean thoughts.
If we want to live a life of kindness, we must learn to be kind in our thoughts, and the straightforward way is to demonstrate kindness through what we think of others. If we constantly think unkindly towards other people, we are NOT going to live out a life of kindness. In fact, we must be kind especially to those who wrong us or did something wrong to us.
It is important what we think about as it is an act of worship to God.
Romans 12:1-2 (NIVUK)
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Q3. Besides having kind thoughts of others, we are also to act kindly towards others. What does doing kind acts mean?
A3. With reference to the following scriptural passages:
Titus 3:8
8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.
The original Greek word which was used in scripture, both in Galatians and Titus for kindness is xrēstótēs (khray-stot’-ace), which means useful and profitable kindness, which refers to meeting real needs. Kindness isn’t about doing a good deed and just for the sake of it. No, it’s got to be something that is profitable for those around us, especially those receiving it. Kindness has to be something useful. It has to be practical.
It also means doing good to those who hate you. And to do good with no strings attached!
Luke 6:27-28 (NIVUK)
27 ‘But to you who are listening I say: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who ill-treat you.
Luke 6: 35-36 (NIVUK)
35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Galatians 6:9-10 (NIVUK)
9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
The person who sows seeds of kindness enjoys a perpetual feast. Be kind to those in the church and those outside the church.
Application Questions:
Break into smaller groups, pray and minister to one another
Q1. Knowing that what we think matters, are your thoughts obedient to Christ? What are some kind thoughts (e.g. slander no one, peaceable, considerate, gentle) you need to have with regards to people around you?
Q2. Share as a cell what are some possible kind actions you can do together, especially meeting some felt needs in your office, neighbourhood, community, school, etc.
Family Altar Time (F.A.T.)
(Cell Leader: Encourage your members to be faithful in keeping the weekly F.A.T. and refer them to this segment of the 4Ws for suggestions for their F.A.T. A possible time for them to have their F.A.T. is after a meal together, say during the weekend.)
Use either of the icebreakers in the WELCOME segment above and select worship songs that are meaningful to your family. If they are old enough, ask your children to select the songs and lead worship, and take this opportunity to teach them skills in waiting on God, praying, and leading with a servant’s heart and as a willing vessel for God.
After worship, you may wish to:
- Discuss last Sunday’s Family Bible Study in the Living Life journal, or
- Review your children’s take-home materials from GKidz (www.fcbc.org.sg/youthchildren/gkidz/parents), or
- Review and discuss this week’s memory verse, or
- Have one person to read Titus 3:1-8, another person to read John 3:16-17, and another, Matthew 25:35-40.
Kindness is one of the nine characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit. These nine characteristics are called “the fruit of the Spirit” because they are the result of being close to the Holy Spirit, of living in dependence on Him every day. Kindness is demonstrated in our lives through the following:
A. What we think of others
Question: What are some examples of unkind thoughts, and kind thoughts?
[Let your family members share openly on this. Then explain that God wants all our thoughts to be obedient to Christ, and if they’re not, we are to “take them captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). Process with them on how unkind thoughts are not obedient to Christ.]
Some people think that thoughts do not matter, as long as they do not result in unkind actions. However, thoughts matter because they govern our lives (Proverbs 23:7). Jesus taught that it is not right to even think bad thoughts (Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28). Instead, we are to fill our minds with whatever is excellent and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8), including kind thoughts towards others.
B. What we do for others
Kindness has to be demonstrated through actions. The Greek word translated as “kindness” in English suggests something that is “useful and profitable.” Kindness has to meet real needs, e.g., in Joshua 2, Rahab showed kindness to the spies by hiding them, which saved their lives (Joshua 2:2-7). In turn, the Israelites showed kindness to Rahab and her family by ensuring their safety when Israel conquered Jericho (Joshua 2:12-14).
Jesus demonstrated kindness by feeding the hungry (Mark 6:34-37), and He has taught us to do the same (Matthew 25:25-40). God demonstrated His kindness to mankind by sending Jesus to die on the cross for us (John 3:16-17). We are therefore to do the same, even when people are unkind to us (Luke 6:27-28, 32-36).
Question: When was the last time you showed kindness? Have you experienced any “missed opportunities” to show kindness? What did you do, or not do?
[Let your family members share openly about this. Explain that our motivation to be kind comes from having been moved to compassion through experiencing the same heartbreak that God feels towards sinners and this sinful world – sin brings pain, suffering, brokenness, disease, illnesses etc and God is stirred to compassion when He sees us suffer these consequences of sin.]
Question: Who do you need to think more kindly of? To whom can you offer an act of kindness this week, and what act of kindness can you do to him/her?
End by praying for each other, that our hearts will break for the things that break God’s heart. Pray that we would therefore practice having kind thoughts towards others and perform acts of kindness to others, with no strings attached. Pray also for the salvation of pre-believing family members, relatives and friends.
Transition to Works:
Lord, we thank You for blessing us with Your Word. Help us to apply Your Word daily in our life through good and kind thoughts and works. Lord, keep us faithful in our assigned tasks, as we live our life to be a blessing to others around us. In Jesus name. Amen!
WORKS (15minutes)
- 3x3 Prayer
Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the strongholds that bind the people. Ask Him to set divine appointments for us to minister His power over them (words of knowledge, healing, helps, etc.). Pray for one another for boldness, courage and obedience to follow through.
- Christmas Party 2018
Start planning the Christmas Party with cell members by firming up the date and venue for the party. Encourage everyone to start making contacts to invite their friends to the party. Get everyone to list their invitees and spend some time praying for them. As a cell, come together to craft a nice message to invite friends for the party using Social Media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Whatsapp.
- Inviting Friends to our Celebration Services
Continue to encourage one another to invite pre-believing friends to our weekend Services. Make time to listen to ‘The Voice of God’ for prophetic utterances that make speak to our pre-believing friends’ circumstances as a prelude to inviting them. In addition, take some time to discuss, plan an activity and pray toward achieving the goal you have set as a cell.
- Consolidation of New Converts
Consolidate those who have accepted Christ - contact them via phone calls; meet up with them over a meal; make house visits; introduce to them to members of the cell and invite them to fellowship with the faith community during cell meetings and celebration services. Make them feel belonged.Introduce them to LifeClass. LifeClass is an exciting package of equipping that guides new believers through the foundations of their faith and leads them into a life-transforming encounter with Jesus. It does this through nine weeks of personal study, combined with fun and interactive classroom sessions of Bible teaching and an Encounter Weekend. It replaces the current Pre-Encounter Class, Encounter Weekend and Post Encounter. Please check out the Equipping page at our website or Mobile App. Visit https://fcbc.org.sg/equipping/event-listing for more details.
Announcements:
Please visit https://www.fcbc.org.sg/bulletin/ or our FCBC app for more details.