First of all, remember that kindness is not “niceness.” Kindness does not avoid conflict; kindness engages conflict, but with a goal of reconciliation. But, moreover, those against whom Paul wrote with such fury are those who have the “appearance of godliness” while “denying its power” (2 Tim. 3:5). They are those who “creep into households,” exploiting vulnerable women all the while purporting to represent Christ and the gospel (2 Tim. 3:6).
