Years ago, my wife roped me into watching the PBS adaptation of the classic Anne of Green Gables. Actually, she didn’t rope me into it; I came along willingly. I admit it wasn't my cup of tea, and only began to watch the series because she was, but soon found the story and characters interesting and compelling. Perhaps the thing I remember most is Anne Shirley's penchant for "kindred spirits."
Anne was an orphan mistakenly adopted by a middle-aged brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert. They thought they were getting a boy! She comes into a strange place with an unusual family and longs for someone with whom to connect. Her first kindred spirit was Matthew Cuthbert, the man who adopted her. He didn't talk much, but she knew from the first time she laid eyes on him that he was a kindred spirit. Another was her friend, Diana. From the time they first met, they hit it off, swore to be bosom friends for life, kept one another's secrets, saw eye to eye on most things, and shared their joys and sorrows.
The Apostle Paul said of Timothy in Philippians 2:20, "For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus." What, is Paul the Anne Shirley of the world of the Apostles? Hardly. But surely the idea is the same, that there are people in our lives with whom we labor. People we can trust to keep confidences. Bosom buddies with whom we agree on the essential things. Life-long friends with whom we share our joys and sorrows.
Paul and Timothy were very close. They had worked side-by-side for many years. Paul, the spiritual father, Timothy, the spiritual son. In the Talmud, the rabbis taught, “When a man teaches the son of another the Torah, the Scripture treats him as if he had begotten him.” That's why Paul called Timothy a “kindred spirit.” Fathers pass on to their sons wisdom, values, character qualities, and sin. (We'll save sin for another time). Paul said in his second letter to Timothy, “Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and suffering” (2 Tim. 3:10-11). Timothy became so like his spiritual father that they were kindred spirits.
The word “kindred spirit” that Paul uses in Philippians 2:20 is a compound word meaning “of like soul.” He uses a similar word in verse 2, where he says we are to be “united in spirit.” This is another compound word with the same root, “soul,” and is literally “one-souled.” So you can see what Paul was getting at, kindred spirits are those whose souls, hearts, minds, are united in shared beliefs, goals, and points of view. Another way to say it is that we are to be like-minded.
To be like-minded is crucial for us as Christians. Not only in our church, but also in our homes as well. We must share the same values, concerns, goals, philosophies of life. We won't always, so that's where God's truth comes in. If we have a shared love of the Scriptures and a shared commitment to submit to God's truth, then we will find answers in those times where we don't seem to be on the same page. It is to God's Word we must go to find solutions when we are at an impasse. You know that Paul and Timothy would lay aside any difference for their shared-belief in God's truth, for they were kindred spirits.
The same is true in our church family. We must be kindred spirits when it comes to theology and its application. Yes, there are some points of theology over which we might disagree, but we must hold to the fundamentals of the faith as kindred spirits who seek God's truth above our own. The essentials of the “faith once delivered,” the Gospel of Christ must be at the heart of our kindred bond.
It’s a wonderful thing to have kindred spirits in our lives. I’m fortunate to have several with whom I share the burden of ministry at Valley Bible Church. My wife is my kindred spirit as she is a fellow heir with whom I share the of the grace of life (1 Peter 3:7). But I've met many other kindred spirits over the years. It’s always a pleasant divine surprise to meet a fellow brother or sister in Christ in an unlikely place, even an unlikely country. I hope you've had that rare but satisfying experience—meeting someone for the very first time and immediately knowing that you are kindred spirits “in Christ.”
“Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It's splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.”
—Anne Shirley in L.M. Montgomery’s, Anne of Green Gables