Luke 6:32-36
Kindness Is Not Weakness: The Great Strength of Loving Without Return – Luke 6:32-36
Luke 6:32-36 (NIVUK)
f you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 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. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Commentary
There are a couple of important things, however, to say that kindness is not. So first kindness is not weakness. I think our modern world often perceives it as such and attempts to exploit it. But on the contrary, kindness is great strength. Jesus says in verse 35, love your enemies. Do good and lend expecting nothing in return. Loving people who don’t love you back requires a great strength of character. The strength to forgive, to persevere, to love, and to not react in frustration or anger. To turn the other cheek metaphorically or literally. To be kind in those circumstances is to resist our own will and manage our own self-interest, and to act in a way, which is not the obvious way. No. To be angry is the easy way, is the weak way. To be kind is the way of strength. So first kindness is not weakness, and secondly, kindness is not naivety.