In today’s post, we’re looking at this characteristic of the Spirit’s fruit: gentleness. Do you know what gentleness really is?
Gentleness – A Word Study
Recently, God has shown me bold strength in the quality of gentleness. At first glance, the two almost seem inconsistent, don’t they?
Once upon a time, I thought that gentleness was simply defined as a soft touch or ation. God has shown me that spiritual gentleness isn’t this, but is something unique.
Looking back through my life, I’ve realized that I’ve had the pleasure of knowing several people that I’d classify as powerfully gentle. I’ve admired them greatly and the Lord has used them in my life to show me a better picture of what gentleness, as a fruit of the Spirit, truly is.
The Greek word for “gentleness” used in Galatians 5:23 is prautés (Srong’s #4240) which comes from praus, which means “mildness” and implies humility and meekness. Interestingly, the word emphasizes the divine origin of that meekness.
The definition uses the word meekness. Do you have a good understanding of meekness? I looked it up to make sure I did. Meekness isn’t a cowed, weak, passive, nor timid quality. Instead, Biblical meekness is a “gentle strength” or “power with reserve and gentleness.”
“It begins with the Lord’s inspiration and finishes by His direction and empowerment. It’s a divinely-balanced virtue that can only operate through faith.”
(HELPS Word studies)
Do you see how the the words “meekness” and “gentleness” are used in defining one another? Gentleness implies meekness and meekness is power with gentleness. The word “humility” is important in these definitions. They certainly all go together, don’t they? So, how can we get a good understanding of Biblical gentleness? Maybe a definition like this:
Gentleness: mildness with strength. A powerful humility that has a divine origin and can only operate through faith. It starts and finishes by God’s direction and empowerment.
The Quality Demonstrated
With a better understanding of what Biblical gentleness is, I could see this quality demonstrated in godly friends whom the Lord put in my path. They have been meek and humble, yet rooted powerfully in truth, and willing to boldly share that truth with others in a loving (rather than proud or self-righteous) way.
Their gentle, but powerful “touch” has been used to create beauty in my life and in a messy world.
What Gentleness Is Not
Spiritual gentleness isn’t timid, fearful, soft without strength, a tendency to “cave in,” nor an unwillingness to stand up for what’s right. It isn’t shying away from declaring or sharing truth. It’s also not selfish nor self-serving!
Where Does it Come From?
True to what’s denoted in its original meaning, spiritual gentleness is of divine origin. We can’t make it nor force it. The Holy Spirit (given to Believers at the time of salvation) grows it in Believers.
How Can I Foster its Growth?
Yes, God gives the fruit of the spirit, but we can agree with Him and work in partnership with Him. Fruit grows in soft soil and matures as we mature spiritually. When we stay close to God and obey Him, keeping the soil of our hearts fertile, fruit has an opportunity to grow.
Like Patti wrote in the introduction to this series:
The remarkable blessing of belonging to [Jesus] is that the closer we stick to Him, the more deeply we abide in Him, the more He makes these things true of us.
Patti Brown
And as I wrote here about the fruit of love,
As a Vine-abider (see John 15:1-17), I want to allow Him to work sanctification in me. I want to stay firmly attached to Him and bear fruit for His glory!
How Can I Practice Gentleness?
Our relationship with God and time spent with Him in prayer and obedience equips us to practice gentleness. We practice this quality best in our relationships with others.
Whether we’re guiding children into truth, standing up for our beliefs in a lost world, or catching ourselves before hurtful words fly out, we fare well when we season our words and actions with gentleness. Opportunities abound! We just need to pray for spiritual readiness and to be obedient to the Spirit’s direction and empowered by Him when situations for practice arise.
When we miss an opportunity, we should repent and pray for softened hearts that will do better next time.
A good understanding of the meaning of the word really enlightened me! Does it differ with what you thought gentleness was? How?
Share your thoughts with us right here in the comments or in our Facebook community.
Blessings!
Ali
Thanks for this study! I’ve often thought of gentleness as the forgotten fruit. We hear so much about the other aspects of the fruit of the Spirit, but I’ve rarely heard anything about this one.
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this study, Barbara! And I agree… I think gentleness often gets overlooked and it’s so important. I enjoyed learning more about it in my research for this post. Thanks for taking the time to post and let us know your thoughts!