Kindness allows us to stand firm in our convictions while being gentle with people, and it's this supernatural kindness — not correctness — that opens hearts and restores dignity to those far from God.
God's kindness toward us was never approval of our sin, but the very thing meant to turn our hearts toward Him. When we extend that same undeserved, covenant kindness to people the world has written off, we become part of how God restores their sense of worth and draws them back to Himself.
A story from life
The preacher's multi-year friendship with Lorenzo, a man recently released from prison, built through patient kindness during tattoo sessions
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 1 of 7
Kindness is a third way, distinct from meanness and from niceness.
Pastor Daniel describes two ends of a spectrum: aggression, which has firm conviction but hard edges, and niceness, which avoids conflict but has no backbone. Using Barry Corey's book Kindness and the East Coast/West Coast tire-change illustration, he argues kindness is the middle path — treating people with charity and civility without dropping conviction.
“Kindness allows you and I to stand firm in our faith while being gentle with people”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
“Kindness is treating those with whom we disagree with charity and civility”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
“You can be courageous and not kind and miss the heart of God friends”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
Illustration
East Coast vs. West Coast people responding to a blown tire — kindness helps while criticizing vs. niceness sympathizes without helping
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 2 of 7
David's first act as king was to seek out someone to show covenant kindness to, for Jonathan's sake.
Pastor Daniel walks through the historical background of Saul, Jonathan, and David's covenant to care for each other's descendants. Ten years into his reign, at a moment of peace, David's first move is to ask if anyone from Saul's line is still alive so he can show them hesed — God's covenantal kindness — rather than kill them off as other kings would.
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 3 of 7
David understood a bigger mission was at play, which is why kindness could define him despite his own failures.
Even though David's sins were arguably worse than Saul's, David is remembered as a man after God's own heart because he grasped that being king was about representing God to the world, not building a bigger kingdom for himself.
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 4 of 7
Mephibosheth was introduced as someone with nothing to offer — crippled, named 'shame bearer,' living in 'no man's land' — yet David sought him out.
Pastor Daniel unpacks the details of 2 Samuel 9: Ziba's report that Mephibosheth is crippled in both feet, the meaning of his name, and the meaning of Lo Debar. He connects this to the cultural belief that disability signaled God's curse, and shows how David's kindness ran completely against what Mephibosheth, and everyone watching, expected.
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 5 of 7
Kindness restores dignity because it reminds people of the image of God still in them.
Pastor Daniel teaches that every person, no matter how broken or different from us, carries the Imago Dei, and that simple, sustained kindness slowly restores what sin and circumstance have stripped away — reminding people who they were always meant to be.
“We learned about each other as people with opposing views. We understood we were not opposing people”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
Illustration
Campus Pride leader's published account of his relationship with Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy during the 2012 protest controversy
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 6 of 7
Kindness eventually produced loyalty in Mephibosheth that David could see was real.
When Absalom's coup forces David to flee, Ziba lies and claims Mephibosheth is hoping David dies. Later David discovers Mephibosheth had actually been fasting and praying for him the whole time, proof that David's kindness had produced genuine transformation and loyalty.
“Kindness is the thing that ultimately is what leads to change in people”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Point 7 of 7
Kindness builds the relational equity that earns the right to have hard conversations.
Pastor Daniel returns to his own story with Lorenzo, showing how showing up patiently and consistently over a year and a half built enough trust that he could eventually challenge Lorenzo's habits and share the gospel with him, leading him to give his life to Jesus.
“Lorenzo, your story, man, it's my story”
— Pastor Daniel Goulding
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI
Take it into your week
Pastor Daniel's charge is to fight for the third option — kindness — that lets us hold our convictions while being gentle with people.
Application
Ask who you can show kindness to
Like David asking if anyone was left in Saul's line, bring to mind a specific person in your life you have no natural reason to be kind to and let God soften your heart toward them.
Reconsider how you talk about what you believe
Don't change your convictions or water down scripture, but think about the tone and posture you bring when you talk about what you believe with people who disagree.
Build relational equity before the hard conversation
Show up for people consistently and patiently, the way Pastor Daniel did with Lorenzo, so that trust earns you the right to eventually speak truth into their life.
Remember the kindness God showed you
Let the memory of how patient and kind God was with you in your own mess be the thing that fuels your kindness toward others this season.
Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI