Joy & Gentleness

Dave Leese and Jonny Newbould

During our summer preaching series on the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), Dave shares about joy and Jonny shares about gentleness.

Using scriptures like Habbakuk 3:17-18 and Luke 8:13, Dave makes the point that joy has nothing to do with our circumstances. It is our deep-seated and enduring sense of contentment that comes from our relationship with God. Joy is found deep in our heart, whereas happiness can be found in material things; therefore, we need to be careful that we don’t mistake joy for happiness or try to replace joy with happiness.

Gentle strength is love in action, gentleness is intentional and deliberate, and meekness is not weakness. These are are all key characteristics of gentleness. Jonny begins by defining what gentleness is, using the example of Jesus – the Good Shepherd – who gives us the greatest example of someone who had great power and strength and yet chose to be gentle, compassionate, and caring towards the most vulnerable.