Being gentle is part of God’s character and this virtue is highly treasured by God: "a gentle and quiet spirit…is of great worth in God's sight.” But what is it? I believe that we really do not understand what Biblical gentleness is.
There are several words in the Greek which are translated "gentleness." One is a word which comes from two words which mean "fitting" and "into." Putting them together we come up with "fitting into" or better still, "appropriate." We must learn to be appropriate. This would include manners, ethics, etc. If we learn to “better fit into” people’s lives, then like Jesus, we too can meet them where they are and share the love of God with them.
The story is told that Abraham Lincoln was once eating at a formal banquet when a fellow next to him poured his coffee into his saucer and drank from the saucer. The elite audience was shocked at such a gesture. Abraham Lincoln realized the man's embarrassment and likewise poured his coffee into his saucer and began to drink from it. This is Biblical gentleness.
An additional translation of "gentleness" in the Bible is "firm care." This is found in II Timothy 2:24, "And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient." Gentleness is not weakness. It is not even what the average person calls meekness. It is not softness. Gentleness is firmness. Gentleness is strength. It is love wrapped in character. It shows itself as a mother’s loving discipline with her children.
Still another word used in the New Testament for gentleness could be translated "evenness." We have learned that meekness is not looking down upon or up to anyone, not thinking ourselves better or worse than anyone, not thinking of ourselves at all, but looking at everyone equally. Now gentleness could be called "the acting out of meekness." Meekness is a feeling that we have toward all men; gentleness is the acting out of that feeling. It is the laboratory of the theory of meekness. In other words, there should be evenness in our handling of people. We should be as nice to the poor as to the rich. We should be as courteous to those who need our help as to those who help us.
How do we live out Bible gentleness? We must make an effort to better “fit into” the lives of the people around us. We must use “firm care” in our relationships. We must demonstrate “evenness” by seeing and treating all people as equal. Do our words and actions express gentleness to all people, or are we gentle to some but harsh with others?
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