TRANSCRIPTION | Sunday, May 2, 2021 | Be Kind: Rewind

 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Such a delight to be with you. We welcome everyone in the sanctuary and of course all of those who are online and an overflow. Aren't you grateful to God for this church? I mean, oh my goodness, wonderful praise music. Great pastors, community, and best of all, the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ here. Sometimes you don't know that God is all you need until God is all that you've got. And if you've got the presence of God here, that's really all we need. Jason already said it, and usually it's about this time in the service that we remind people they're in the right place at the right time. If you're ever sitting near Cinda and me when we're out there in the sanctuary, you will always see me lean over towards her and I will add something; I would say you're in the right place at the right time with the right guy. I do it every Sunday is kind of like an old joke, but I think of it like renewing my wedding vows; I don't know, sort of. Guys you can try it out, I don't know if it'll work for you. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Now the truth is, I have learned more about this message this morning about kindness from observing God in my wife than any other person. The Bible says that the kindness of the Lord leads to repentance. The kindness of the Lord leads to repentance. Of course, repentance just means doing a 180. You ever had a time in your life, where you've drifted away from God even for a few days, a month, a few months, even years. Everyone that's listening to me has had those times. And when that happens, repentance is simply doing what it says in the 119th Psalm. He wrote this, “I thought about my ways, and then I turned my feet to your testimonies.” When you think about your ways, and you compare it to Yaweah and God's ways, when you think on God's kindness to you, when we think about Jesus shed blood on the cross, when you think about the forgiveness that has been offered to you, when you think about God's favor on your life, it makes you start thinking about your blessings, instead of your problems. And you go, God, why did I ever stray from you? I'm like a bird that's gotten out of its nest. I'm going to turn my feet back to your testimonies, and when you do that, God smiles at you, and opens his arms wide and receives you back because you're repenting. That's all that it is. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

You see, God's loving kindness is not just made to make you feel better. God saved you to be better. To be better persons. We can do that. You can be in the right place at the right time, but not be thinking the right thoughts, not have the right attitudes, not be practicing the right actions in your private life. And so it's possible for us then, to miss God's blessings and God's best for our lives. And God's kindness is what should motivate us to serve him with due diligence. So this is a message on loving kindness. And unless you think it's one of those tepid, anemic, toothless sermons, just go out and be a nice person, that is not the case today. This is about rising up and being an army of God. It's about changing the atmosphere in your home, in your workplace, in your community, it is really Kingdom kindness. It is Kingdom kindness, and it is evangelism actually. And to be a kind person in our current toxic culture takes the stuff that only God through the Holy Spirit can put into an individual.

You want to be a Christian person in this cancel culture, you have to be made of steel and wrapped in velvet. By being made of steel, I mean, you got to be rooted and grounded in Christ, you got to know what you believe. You gotta be tough as nails on the inside. That's what it means to be made of steel. But to be wrapped in velvet means on the outside, you are kind, you are caring, you are gentle, you are compassionate. In other words, you are unlike most of the persons that surround you in this culture. Everyone pretty much agree that we live in a difficult, and decaying, and caustic culture right now? I mean, it's going on all around us. All the crime, the corruption, the greed, the hate, inflammatory language, the law breaking, the revenge, that's just in Frankfort. We are losing the idea of what it means to be a civilization, which simply means to be civil with each other. I have almost come to expect it, have you? When I get in my car, and I go out in the road, even right where I am. I get on the road, I expect there's going to be rude drivers, right? There's going to be distracted drivers. There's going to be angry drivers that cut you off in traffic, and then they wave at you but they don't use all their fingers. If you kind of catch my drift. You know when they do that. And God, God is saying to us, the forever family, the servants of the lamb, the twice born, the ones who have been forgiven by Christ's blood, you be different. You be different. Peter called us a peculiar people. And that means we stand out. We are acting differently from the people in the canceled culture, we are the kind culture, and that means we are the change culture. And why be kind? We are kind because, would you agree, that God is so kind to us? To every one of us, God is so kind.

 

Dr. Terry Swan

This past week, I was preparing the message and so it's in my head all the time, but I hadn't experienced, maybe some of you have had before. Have you ever woke up in the morning and there's a song going through your head? You're singing a song. And I was singing a praise song in my head. I know a lot of you love this song. It was the song The blessing; you love that song? A great song, and when Kari Jobe sings that song, there's a part of it that moves me. I mean it just slays me. And it's the part where she sings let his favour be upon you, to 1000 generations, to your family, and to your children, and to your children, and to your children. And the reason it gets to me is because I so want my legacy, the Swan legacy that all of my generations that will follow me, will follow Christ, and they will serve him all the days of their lives. And then at that point, Kari Jobe, the singer starts singing over and over again, she says, and she does this with her hand, if you watch in the video, she goes, he is for you. He is for you. He is for you. She says it over and over again. And that, my friends, is God's loving kindness. God is for you. In this big impersonal universe, the God that we know is kindly disposed towards us. Yeah. It's a pretty remarkable thought when you think about it. In this universe, God thinks on you, the Bible says. And this wonderful word, loving kindness, actually occurs 248 times in the Old Testament. No, I did not read every single verse on it, but it's a rich Hebrew word. That when modern translations tried to take that word, loving kindness, they substitute many different words. And in your translations, when that word loving kindness shows up, and that's the word in the Hebrew it may say, covenant loyalty, tenderness, gentleness, mercy, grace, steadfast love, patience. And the thing is, loving kindness is all of those things. And it answers a question for me. Why, all throughout human history, when we are such failures as God followers, unfaithful people, even now, why does God still be so kindly disposed to us? You know what the answer is? It is God's character to be loving kind. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Jonah says, I'll tell you what God is like, here's what our God is like. I know that you are a gracious and merciful God. I know you're slow to anger. You are abundant in loving kindness, and you relent in doing harm. Jonathan asked David that he would show him the Lord's unfailing kindness. And Nehemiah said that God is abundant and kindness. God wants to forgive us. He's slow to anger. And he's merciful to us. All of the great saints knew that at the very core of who our God is, is loving kindness. And if that is the case, what does God expect from every single one of us? Proverbs 19:23, what is desired in a man is kindness. I'm speaking God's word this morning. What God desires in a man and a woman is that you be kind, and you can't do it on your own, it is a fruit of the Spirit. In Galatians fifth chapter. It's something the Holy Spirit will cultivate in you. And God desires that the very content of our character would be framed in kindness. See, Jesus got after people who thought they were being all kind and righteous and holy when they were around family and friends. And they thought they were being nice, because the people around them were nice to them. What kind of big deal is that? If you're being nice to the people who are nice to you? See, the real test of kindness is when someone is unkind to you, or someone has nothing to offer you, or very little in return. You ever had those moments, and I know you have, where maybe you're just not feeling your best, or you're stressed out. You got deadlines that you're facing. You're a little impatient. You're kind of worn out or exhausted, or maybe you've been criticized. And in those moments, that's when you and I find out how deeply the kindness of God is within us. What spills out of you, when you're bumped? What spills out of you when you're bumped, when you're taken off guard? 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Many of you have memorized the love chapter, 1 Corinthians 13. And I find it interesting that it starts out, help me out if you know the beginning, it says “love is patient and kind. That's what love is, love is patient and kind. And a few years ago, I actually learned a lesson about that in of all places, a subway shop. I went to a local subway here, and I was going to get a sandwich, and it was dinner time so there was a line. And I could see that the sandwich artists were working hard, so I figured I'd have to wait a little while but you know, maybe not too long. And usually, I got to tell you, if I see a line this long, I will think twice about it, okay, and maybe not. I actually wanted Arby's, but I had promised someone, no names mentioned, that I would get a subway sandwich, you know, eat fresh. So I kept my word. And as I stood there, I noticed I was right in the, you know, just inside the subway, I had never seen a subway restaurant so packed before. There were children everywhere. There's children sitting waiting for their food, children running around, just lots of people. And it was noisy and warm. It started to feel like a third world restaurant, you know, being in there. And as I got closer to the front to make my order, there was just one woman ahead of me making her orders, kind of a thin haired woman. And I hadn't really noticed her at that point. But I saw that she would call out to various children and ask their sandwich preferences, and then she would make the orders. And at that point, she turned around to me, and I saw that she had a list in her hand of her sandwiches she was ordering, and it was as long as a footlong sub, that list. And these are the words she said to me. Oh, I should have let you ahead of me because I'm ordering 14 sandwiches. I was wishing she would have told me that earlier, you know, but I was just trying to be patient. And then she went back yelling to all the children in the room, do you want mayonnaise with that? Hey, you should have lettuce, lettuce is good for you. Do you want one slice or two slices of cheese? And she made every single order like that, okay. And at this point, because it was taking her so long to order her 14 sandwiches, I happened to look around me, and now the line went all the way out the door, okay, out the door. And I noticed for the first time there was an old man behind me. And he was like a really old man. I think he sat behind Jesus in the third grade, okay, he was old. And the reason I noticed him is he started doing that really old man thing where they start clearing their throats and hawking, you know that terrible sound. And he started doing it over and over again. And it sounded like a fork stuck in a garbage disposal. You know, it was awful. And at that point, I was wishing that subway not only had those plastic sneeze shields over the food, I wish they had a sneeze shield between each customer. Because it was a horrible sound. So I kind of turned my back. And I got on my phone and I started texting Cinda to tell her why it was taking so long, and I was just trying to let off steam. And I was just trying to be patient and kind in this moment, because I wasn't feeling that way very much. Well, finally my turn came to make my order. So I got up from my foxhole position, and I looked directly at this young woman who was the sandwich artist and her hair was sticking all out. And she looked all worn out and everything and tired. And I thought of Dave Barry, that the person who is not nice to a waitress is not a nice person. And so I smiled, and I gave her my order. And then I complimented her. And I told her what a good job she was doing, moving this long line of customers along, and I appreciated her. And she paused just for a second. And she smiled. And she seemed to relax a bit. And she received it. And the reason that happened is because the Bible says this kind words are like honey, they're sweet to the soul, and their health to the body. See that the healthiest moment and that subway shop was not to eat fresh sandwiches piled high with the vegetables. Those kind words, the Bible says are health to the body. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan.

See people may not ever remember what you said, they may not remember what you did, but they'll almost always remember how you made them feel in that moment. And the kingdom of God came down in a subway shop. Just for a moment, there was like a little 30 second island of kindness that was created, and God was looking down. And I was especially thanking God, that He helped me be patient in a moment that I'm usually not. And I was really thankful about a few minutes later when I finally got my precious footlong in my hand, and I walked past that long line of people because they watch you right? People see you. And when I came to the very end of the line, there was one of our 3trees Church leaders at the very end, and we kind of nodded at each other, and I realized he was learning the same lesson about being patient and kind. See kindness is so important. The apostle Paul wrote this he said, be kind to one another and be tender hearted. Kindness doesn't cost you anything, but it can mean everything to a person. And it is within your power because it is God working within you to create the fruit of the spirit of kindness. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

My wife and I are in Chicago, and I got up early to go get her a cup of coffee, or what he calls a good cup of coffee. And I had to walk several blocks to get to this coffee shop, and they don't call it the Windy City for anything you know. It was a stiff wind blowing. It was a cold fall morning, and I had my head down. And, you know, I got that cup of coffee. And then I was walking back as fast as I could. I just wanted to get in, out of the elements. And as I was walking along, carrying that cup of coffee back, I passed a homeless man who was sitting on a porch, and he had a blanket wrapped around him. And he was trying to keep out of the cold wind. And I kept walking past and fast. And then like the Bible says, I thought about my ways. And I turned, and I went back, and I put the warm cup of coffee in his hand and I said, here, friend, this will warm you up. And he looked up at me with this almost toothless, beautific grin, and he said, well, God bless you, and I said, God bless you in return. You know, the Bible says, sometimes we entertain angels, unaware. And the kingdom of God came down just for a moment again, it was another little 30 second island of kindness. And I thought of Abraham Lincoln's statement that God must just love poor people, because you made so many of them. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

See, kindness is like a passport. Just a moment ago, we were singing that beautiful song, the spirit breaks walls down. That's what the Holy Spirit does through the fruit of kindness. It opens doors, it melts hearts, it creates relationships, and it changes other people, but more important, it changes you and me. And cultivating kindness in our lives will catapult us into Christ's likeness. Don't make me say that sentence twice again. Okay? That's not easy to say. But it's as true as true can be. Because the more you practice kindness, the more you become like Christ, it changes you. Here's what the Proverbs say, once again, Proverbs 11:17, it says, “A man who is kind benefits himself.” A man or a woman who is kind, it actually benefits you. And that's really our second point. Some of you in the sanctuary, or online, you've heard this very famous quote before. It's attributed to John Watkins, his pen name was Ian McLaren, a writer back in the 19th century, and it is this “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.” Have you heard that before? “Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle,” and I know it's true. There are no exceptions. I fight them. You fight them. I spent a whole lifetime of counseling people. Everybody has their stuff. Everybody has their battles. And God's loving kindness within us and to us, changes us, even as we're impacting others who are struggling and need a kind word. See, a kind word or gesture sometimes reaches a wound that only compassion can do. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

You know, I, I don't know. I don't know everything about how kindness is cultivated in our lives. I don't even know if because of our selfish sin nature, that kindness would come naturally to us. I know that Jesus was conceived supernaturally wasn't he, by the virgin birth, but he was raised naturally. God's plan was that he would be raised in a home with godly parents in Joseph and Mary. And then on top of that, he had six more siblings, at least, you know that? His four brothers are given by name in the New Testament. And then it says he also had sisters. So there were at least seven children in that family. And studies show that healthy families should be built on a foundation of kindness. Kindness in a family should be as indispensable as brushing your teeth. Kindness is so incredibly important to the development of a child. Oh, how we need to be kind to children. Jesus said, such as the kingdom of God, bring these little children under me. He showed them kindness. When you are kind to a child during those critical years, it gives a child a safe place. It gives them a proper identity, relational intelligence, self esteem, value. Kindness is unconditional acceptance of a child for her uniqueness. And what happens is, when you are kind to her, her world becomes a secure place. See, a child should be treated gently and lovingly, not roughly, with lots of hugs, and kisses, and touches and tenderness. That's the physical nurturing expression of kindness. And parents should above all show characteristics of godly kindness.

 

Dr. Terry Swan

I'm going to ask you to do something right now in the sanctuary. The title of the message is Be Kind and Rewind, and I'm going to ask you to do just a little rewind just for a moment here. I want you to think back on your family of origin. I want you to think about your growing up years, when you were a child and a teenager. What was the emotional atmosphere like? Were all the elements that we just mentioned a moment ago, were they present in abundance for healthy growth as human beings, and paving the way so you could have a relationship with a God of loving kindness? How did your father and mother who exemplify the relationship of God to you, how did they talk to you? And how did mom and dad talk to each other? How did the siblings treat each other? In the family, did you feel appreciated and included, and invited, and encouraged for your uniqueness? Were family members treated with great kindness and courtesy and gentleness? You know, that's really actually a parallel word. A synonym to this word loving kindness, gentleness? I've been thinking a little bit lately about what it means to be a gentleman. Would you agree with me, I think we're losing that idea of what it means to be a gentleman in our culture. For males to understand what it means to be masculine. I just so enjoyed having my precious daughter here this past week. We took her back to the airport yesterday. She lives in Los Angeles. And she calls most of the males that she meets in Los Angeles, man boys. She calls them man boys; they really don't know what it means to be gentlemen, and to be masculine, to be grown up. And you know, just just a couple of weeks ago, I read a survey of women. And in this particular survey, anyway, the number one fear of American women was that of being assaulted by a male, the number one fear. And that and it went on to describe how much of American women's lives are defined by hypervigilance. They have to be careful. They have to look both ways. They have to watch out and avoid men who would treat them roughly. And a gentleman, a gentleman is defined by the very word and particularly how he treats women, he would never treat a female roughly, a gentleman treats her gently, with courtesy and great kindness. He is a gentle man. And if we males and females didn't learn that in the family growing up, then we can learn in the family of God. And we can learn it from God's word. And is it in your family, today, that spirit of gentleness? In fact, I want to speak a word just for a moment, not going to try to exclude anybody, but I just want to say a word to married persons just for a moment. Why in the world would we ever say such unkind things sometimes to our spouses who are our lovers in our lifetime companions? God knows our spouses aren't perfect, are they? They're human beings. They make mistakes. Men, maybe your wife will never be able to equal Mama's cooking. You know, maybe you think sometimes that she worships you because she brings you burnt offerings, you know. And women I know it's allergy season, maybe your husband snores like a donkey with a head cold. I don't know, you know. Listen, be kind. Be kind to your spouse. I think those words ought to be inscribed on the inside of every wedding band. I don't like wearing jewelry much, but I wear my wedding ring out in public, you know, so I don't get hit on in Walmart, you know and stuff. Be kind, that is the secret to lasting love. I really believe that. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Psalm 31, it says that a Christian woman, a God follower, should have kindness on her tongue. And it should be on ours, that we speak as kindly and privately as we do in public, to these people in our gentlemen and ladies. In fact, do you know, the phrase an officer and a gentleman? You heard that phrase? Not just the movie we're talking about, but an officer and a gentleman. If I am that it's because of the way I was treated growing up, and then in adulthood, trying to conform to God's word. And that leads to our last point, be kind because it is the witness that overcomes the world. Be kind because it is the witness that overcomes the world. Many of you here know that I spent a lot of years in the military. I had to be gone from home a lot. My first nine years I was a sergeant, and then I became an officer, and then in the latter years, I became a chaplain who is a military minister. And my army reserve units would have these three day war games or field exercises, typically on a Friday, Saturday and a Sunday. And so we go out to the field and we'd be slathered in war paint and camouflage, and we'd be hot and dirty and tired, and we wouldn't get to shower those three days. And as a chaplain, I would go out and just visit the troops. And I would see how they're doing, and I would always ask them questions and try to find out what's going on in their lives. And I would just listen. You see, kindness is looking for someone to listen to, not someone to talk to. And very few of the soldiers ever went to church. I mean, they never darkened the doors of a church building, but Sunday morning would come out in the field. And so I would hold the worship service, somewhere out there under a tree or something, and all these soldiers would show up. I mean, these are people that never, never go to church, and their language would be salty during the week and stuff like that. And they would come and sit under a tree, and they would hear a gospel message about Jesus. And why did they come? Because I had earned the right to be heard. I had listened to them, and they came to listen to me see kindness, for those who don't know Christ, that is actually evangelism. It disarms people. They let their guard down. It creates an openness in their hearts. And when you are kind to someone, even someone who's not even a Christian, it makes it easier for them to be kind to someone else, and that's how it works. And then the world becomes a kinder, and better, and gentler place, just as God intended it. God made it simple in that way. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Now, we're going to invite the musicians to come back up, and the music will start playing. And I want you to think seriously about your response today. I'm thinking a couple minutes ago, and we did that activity where you did the rewind about growing up. I just bet that a few of you thought of persons who were unkind to you growing up, and you need to go back in your mind before God and just forgive and let them go. You know, one of the simplest ways to be happy is just let go of the things that make you sad. That's all you have to do. I learned a lot of this from my wife, I told you at the start of the message. She became a Christian at four. And she learned this lesson that if during the day anybody was unkind to her or she had a slight rejection, she could go to God and prayer at night and forgive them. And in the morning, she said she'd wake up, and her heart was cleansed. And rejection then really becomes redirection in that moment. And so I took that advice. And so I actually went back over all of my history. I mean, I went back to childhood, and I tried to think of times I remember that people were unkind to me and said things and did things, and I forgave them. Believe me, I've had plenty of unkindnesses done to me in my life. When you make your mark in the world, watch out for the people with erasers. People will say things to you. And so when I would give it up to God, I would call it having a grudge sale. Now not a garage sale, a grudge sale. I was just gonna give it up to God and leave it in the past. And our God, our wonderful God, who is the Alpha and the Omega, our God who is the God of the past, and the present and the future, only our God, only this God can heal wounds from the past with kindnesses. And then when God heals you, it makes it so much easier. You just feel free to be kind to others then in the present. Remember, the kindness of the Lord is to lead you to repentance. It means it moves you to do something. You must do something. And I think today, there's been like an arrow going out. There's an arrow going out, and it's God's word. And it pierces through all our arguments, and our discussions, and our thoughts, and our actions, and our talk. Because it all comes from the heart, and that's where God changes us. Who is the Holy Spirit right now bringing to your mind that you need to practice God's loving kindness to? And to do it this very week and to not delay, because it is God speaking to you in this moment. Is there someone that came into your mind? That's God through the Holy Spirit putting it there. A spouse, a child, a student, a co worker, a boss, a sibling, a friend, a neighbor? Maybe you just want to join in to one of the 3trees Captivate events, that's just Kingdom kindness right there. How about reaching out to that person that everybody else ignores, or to a clerk at the store? God will give you a kind word or gesture in that moment. Or maybe in some moment that happens today where someone is rude to you, ask God for the strength to not reciprocate. And this week, this week, be God's ambassador for Kingdom kindness. Through Christ, you can change the world. Be kind. Be kind. 

 

Dr. Terry Swan

Let me invite the campus pastor to come up now as we join in prayer, so would you

Please stand with me now. Let's all stand as we think about what God is motivating you to do. Who is God telling you to reach out to with the kingdom? So let's bow in prayer together. Dear God, thank you for your loving kindness to us. Day after day, you poured upon us and you fill us. And so now let us spill over. Let every single one of us be obedient and offer that kindness to others, because we're doing it in the mighty name of Jesus, in his strength and to his glory. Amen.