Never Out Of Date – Never Out Of Order- Never Out Of Fashion…
“Be… Being Kind…
“Be… Being Tender-hearted…
“Be… Being Forgiving…
“…Just as God For Christ Sake has Forgiven you.” -{Eph 4:32} Anything other than Be Being Kind, Be being tenderhearted, Be being forgiving…. is out of date, out of order, out of line, outside His revealed will in His Word, when it comes to God’s will for you and me! No matter what date, what time, what is culturally fashionable it is always time, to … Be being kind… Be being tenderhearted… Be Being forgiving of others…
“Be…”
is to bring into existence. The verb, (ginomai) “is that they had to abandon one mental condition and make their way, beginning there and then, into its opposite…The present imperative calls for this to now be their new lifestyle! Keep on becoming kind, ” it is to become more and more Christlike in kindness
“KIND…”… the word speaks of “useful…”
“Kind (5543) (chrestos from chráomai = furnish what is needed or from chresteuomai = to act kindly) has a basic meaning being well adapted to fulfill a purpose and so describes that which is useful, suitable, excellent, serviceable. It means goodness with a nuance of ‘serviceableness.’ (as in Luke 5:39 where the old wine is fine or superior for use). Chrestos refers to morals in 1Cor 15:33 as those which are useful or benevolent. Kind as opposed to harsh, hard, bitter, sharp, caustic! In several NT verses (Lk 6:35, Ro 2:4–note; Ep 4:32–note; 1Pe 2:3–note) the main idea of chrestos is kind, an adjective which includes the attributes of loving affection, sympathy, friendliness, patience, pleasantness, gentleness, and goodness. Kindness is a quality shown in the way a person speaks and acts. It is more volitional than emotional. Matthew Poole – sweet, amiable, facile in words and conversation, Luke 6:35. Vine writes that chrestos “primarily signifies “fit for use, able to be used” (akin to chraomai, “to use”), hence, “good, virtuous, mild, pleasant” (in contrast to what is hard, harsh, sharp, bitter).
Barclay writes that chrestos was defined by the Greeks…
as the disposition of mind which thinks as much of its neighbour’s affairs as it does of its own. Kindness has learned the secret of looking outwards all the time, and not inwards. He tells us to forgive others as God forgave us. So, in one sentence, Paul lays down the law of personal relationships—that we should treat others as Jesus Christ has treated us. (Daily Study Bible)”
“TENDERHEARTED”
” Tender hearted (2155) (eusplagchnos from eú = well + splagchnon = bowel) literally means “having strong, healthy bowels” (as used once literally in a medical sense by Hippocrates, 430BC). The inward organs were considered the seat of emotion and intention. The word then means compassionate, easily (quickly) moved to love, pity, or sorrow. It describes one having tender feeling for someone else.
UBS Handbook comments that eusplagchnos “may often be expressed idiomatically as “show how your heart feels toward others” or “let your heart go out to others” or “feel sorrow in your heart for others”
The root word splagchnon was used by the Greeks to refer to the upper abdominal viscera, the heart, lungs, liver and upper bowels, which the ancients regarded as the seat of affections and emotions, such as anger and love. The phrase “I feel it in the pit of my stomach” is a modern parallel. And we all know how that feels! So splagchnonrefers to that deep, internal caring comparable to the modern expressions of deep feeling such as “broken-hearted” or “gut-wrenching”. Splagchnon is the strongest Greek word for expressing compassionate love or tender mercy and involves one’s entire being. It describes the compassion which moves a man to the deepest depths of his being. In the gospels, apart from its use in some of the parables, it is used only of Jesus
John Eadie – So far from being churlish or waspish, Christians are to be noted for their tenderness of heart. They are to be full of deep and mellow affection, in opposition to that wrath and anger which they are summoned to abandon. A rich and genial sympathy should ever characterize all their intercourse. (Ephesians 4 Commentary Online)
Eusplagchnos not a word about conduct but about your insides — literally, your innards, your belly. Be well-disposed to each other in your deepest parts. It’s exactly the opposite of hypocrisy that acts tender and feels malice.
Webster says that the English word tender hearted means easily moved to love, pity, or sorrow
The only other Biblical use of eusplagchnos is “1Pe 3:8 (see note) To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; ” ” -{preceptaustin}
“FORGIVING”
“Forgiving (“given as an act of grace”) (5483) (charizomai [word study] from charis= grace) means literally to give freely and unconditionally or to bestow as a gift of grace and then to remit a debt, and hence to forgive. Look at the word “forgive” and observe the last 4 letters which speak volumes about what is required to forgive others (forGIVE). Charizomai means to extend grace, to show kindness or to bestow favor. The concept came to include both the gracious action and agreeable human qualities. The present tense calls for this to be the believer’s continual practice, our new way of life (our “new garment” worn continually) as saints. Don’t say you can’t forgive, for what you are really saying is you won’t forgive. We can forgive others because He forgave us! As an act of mercy make the conscious choice to extend grace to others who don’t necessarily deserve it. In fact Paul uses the Middle voice which pictures believers as those who are to initiate the action of forgiving and then to participate in the results of forgiveness, not the least of which is we free ourselves from the “prison” and “poison” of unforgiveness!
Another way to explain the tense using the context of Paul’s exhortation to put on new garments, the present tense pictures that those who have put off the old man and put on the new man and now are to wear this “garment” at all times and in all places. The middle voice indicates that we as new men (and women of course) in Christ are to initiate the decision to put on the “garment of forgiveness” and that we participate in the effects of this new “attire” (the freedom that comes by living with an attitude of letting the injuries of others go, of remitting the debts they owe us).” – {Preceptaustin}
WHAT IS THE GOD INSPIRING MOTIVATION,TO BE?- “…Just as God For Christ’s sake has forgiven you!” Back to the Cross and the Love of the Father in sending His Son and accepting the work of His Son to satisfy His demands and to enable you to be permanently forgiven! Never a time when you are not to CHOOSE to, BE BEING KIND… BE BEING TENDERHEARTED… BE BEING FORGIVING…!
As you are choosing to practice these three you are redeeming the time and it is having eternal significance and is counting and is honoring Him and expressing love to Him. “He who has My commandments and obeys them He it is who loves Me!”- {John 14:21}.
” Warren Wiersbe – Here Paul put his finger on the basic cause of a bitter attitude: We cannot forgive people. An unforgiving spirit is the devil’s playground (cp Ep 4:26, 27–note), and before long it becomes the Christian’s battleground. If somebody hurts us, either deliberately or unintentionally, and we do not forgive him, then we begin to develop bitterness within, which hardens the heart. We should be tenderhearted and kind, but instead we are hardhearted and bitter. Actually, we are not hurting the person who hurt us; we are only hurting ourselves. Bitterness in the heart makes us treat others the way Satan treats them, when we should treat others the way God has treated us. In His gracious kindness, God has forgiven us, and we should forgive others. We do not forgive for our sake (though we do get a blessing from it) or even for their sake, but for Jesus’ sake. Learning how to forgive and forget is one of the secrets of a happy Christian life. Review once again the motives for “walking in purity”: We are members one of another (Ep 4:25–note); Satan wants to get a foothold in our lives (Ep 4:27–note); we ought to share with others (Ep 4:28–note); we ought to build one another up (Ep 4:29–note); and we ought not to grieve God (Ep 4:30–note). And, after all, we have been raised from the dead—so why wear the grave clothes? (Ep 4:22–note, Ep 4:23–note) Jesus says of us as He said of Lazarus: “Loose him, and let him go!” (Jn 11:44KJV) (Bible Exposition Commentary. 1989. Victor) (Bolding and color added for emphasis)
Each other (1438) (heautois) is the third third person reflexive pronoun which in this context emphasizes the fact that believers are all members of Christ’s body—everyone members one of another. As Alford phrases it “Doing as a body for yourselves that which God did once for you all”
DOCTRINE
PRECEDES DUTY
Just as God in Christ has forgiven us (cp Col 2:13–note) – The underlying motive (and power) for believers to forgive others is God’s action through Christ toward us (cp 1Jn 3:16) and the gift of His Spirit Who enables us. The believer’s duty (even privilege) is to forgive, based on the doctrine that we have been forgiven. Revelationalways calls for a response from the heart (cp Mt 18:35). If the revelation remains in the head, we run the risk of becoming modern day Pharisees, hearers but not doers of truth. What we believe should always determine how we behave. If we believe (and comprehend to some degree the measure of) God’s immeasurable forgiveness, we should behave according to that truth in which we trust.
As someone has said, God’s imperatives (commands, instructions) are always preceded by His indicatives(mood of reality = statement of objective fact).
It follows that we as God’s children are most like our Father when we exercise the Spirit enabled, supernatural grace of forgiving those who have offended us and in a sense owe us a “debt”. The old adage is appropriate “Like Father, like son.” As sons (and daughters) we are to accurately reflect His character, especially His gift of unconditional forgiveness, to a lost, skeptical and cynical world which desperately needs to see God’s love in action vis–à–vis forgiveness freely given to those who don’t deserve it! (cp Mt 5:16–note, Php 2:15–note).
THE CRUCIAL
QUALIFYING PHRASE
Just as (2531) (kathos from kata = down + hos = as) is a marker of cause or reason and here designates the grounds on which believers are enabled and (should be) motivated to forgive others. It conveys the sense of “in the same way as”, “just like”, “according as”, “to the degree that”. Meditate on this transformative truth! It should serve as a strong motive to supernaturally stimulate us to forgive those who have wronged us!
In Christ – The idea can be expressed as “through Christ”, conveying the sense of Christ’s finished work being the means (“instrumentality”) through which the Father can now forgive sinners. Some take “in Christ” as alluding to our union or oneness with Christ and so render this phrase “in your union with Christ.” UBS adds that “Most translations, which simply have “God in Christ,” seem to take it in the sense that God is present in Christ, that is, he is active, working, forgiving, in Christ’s person.” (Ibid)
Wuest interprets in Christ as meaning that “It is the God Who forgives in the sphere of Christ in that His forgiveness is made possible from the point of the law, through the atonement.” (Ibid)
Christ (5547) (Christos from chrio = to anoint, rub with oil, consecrate to an office) is the Anointed One, the Messiah, Christos being the Greek equivalent of the transliterated Hebrew word Messiah. As a Jew learned the Torah, now the Christian learns Christ!”- {preceptaustin}
NO ONE OUTSIDE OF YOU, CAN HINDER YOU, FROM CHOOSING TO –
BE BEING KIND…
BE BEING TENDERHEARTED…
BE BEING FORGIVING…
NEWNESS OF LIFE;
God has given you the NEWNESS of Life which includes His POWER for you and His PROMISES of His Spirit and Word to enable you to do so and have Divine PERSPECTIVE, MOTIVATION, “…. Just as God FOR CHRIST SAKE has Forgiven You.” … And APPRECIATION of HIS PROVISION of HIS SON you can choose for His sake to… BE… BEING KIND, BE… BEING TENDERHERATED, BE… BEING FORGIVING OF OTHERS…
You have the COMMAND from God
You have the CAPACITY to exercise theis newness of life is yours.
You have the CHOICE to make moment by moment. It is a CHOICE OF …LOVE….. LOVE FOR HIM, ultimately….
LOVE IS – Never Out Of Date – Never Out Of Order- Never Out Of Fashion! LOVE Chooses to EXPRESS….KINDNESS….LOVE CHOOSES TO EXPRESS TENDERHEARTEDNESS…. LOVE CHOOSES TO EXTEND FORGIVENESS….. LOVE IS MOTIVATED BY GOD’S LOVING FORGIVENESS OF US THROUGH CHRIST AND FOR CHRIST SAKE
LOVE IS NEVER OUT OF DATE- NEVER OUT OF ORDER- NEVER OUT OF FASHION!
Are you Loving ? How do you know? Are you being kind, tenderhearted, forgiving? Look to God’s love for you and the sacrifice of His Son for you…LOVE testifies you are one of Christ’s followers-{John 13:34-35}…
LOVE ….in Never Out Of Date…. for it is Eternal!