The Beatitudes - Part 3
Blessed are the meek
9th June 2008
The third beatitude is:
Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth
When Jesus said this, He was quoting Psalm 37v11.
To be meek is to be gentle and humble. "Meek" is not the same as "weak". Indeed, it can take a great deal of strength to be gentle; If a strong man picks up an animal, he can do so gently but a weak man can't; he'll hurt the animal because he's struggling with the weight. And only the strong can be meek in life - handling life's problems, bearing life's burdens - without hurting others.
And it can take a great deal of inner strength to be humble. Jesus, as always, is our example:
John 19v7-11
The Jews insisted, "We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to
be the Son of God."
When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid,
and he went back inside the palace. "Where do you come from?" he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him
no answer.
"Do you refuse to speak to me?" Pilate said. "Don't you realise I have power either to free
you or to crucify you?"
Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above..."
Jesus could have defended Himself, He could have done anything. He could have answered all Pilate's questions. He could have struck him dead. He could have walked to freedom through the crowd, as He had done before (Luke 4v29-30). But:
Isaiah 53v7
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and
as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
The world says "look after number one - no-one else will", "don't let anyone push you around", "no-one tells me what to do". Jesus says "blessed are the meek".
The beatitudes (Matthew 5v3-10) form a progression. If we are truly poor in spirit (v3) and if we have truly mourned our own worthlessness (v4) then we can be meek (v5). That is, we can submit to God and choose to do things His way. That is, we can repent. And then we receive the forgiveness of God and His eternal life. And we're justified before God, our sins are forgiven, and we're born again. We become part of God's chosen people, His holy nation, His royal priesthood (1 Peter 2v9).
And in this process, I admit to myself and to God what I'm really like, and then I know that I have no right to expect anything from anyone. The wages of sin is death. We know we deserve nothing. And now we're in the wonderful, privileged position of being citizens of the Kingdom of God, His adopted children, we must never forget this lesson. We must never stop being meek.
How do we react now when someone tells us how weak and sinful and hopeless we are? How do we react when they say things about us that aren't even true? This is a test of how poor on spirit we are and how much of ourselves we have truly seen.
If we have become meek by God's grace, then we can submit to Earthly authorities, as Christ did:
1 Peter 2v20b-23
But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were
called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth. When they hurled their insults at Him, He did
not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats.
Instead he entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
1 Peter 2v13
Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the
supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who
do right.
Numbers 12v3
Moses was a very humble [AV: meek] man, more humble [AV: meek] than anyone else on the face of the on earth.
Moses considered himself unable to fulfil his commission from God at the burning bush, saying "I am not eloquent enough". And I feel the same about what God wants me to do - I can't do it, I'm not good enough, strong enough, clever enough, send someone else. And you probably feel the same, too.
Earlier in his life, Moses had been a proud man - a prince in the Egyptian court. He had murdered an Egyptian who was mistreating his fellow Israelite. And he knew he deserved nothing but judgment. But God had changed him, and made him meek. Now he was ready, his self-confidence was gone (he was poor in spirit). Now he knew he could do nothing, God called him to do a great deal.
A well known car sticker says "the meek will inherit the earth, if that's alright with the rest of you guys". This is blasphemy. And it's untrue. The meek will inherit the earth - Jesus said so. I'm rather looking forward to it.
But also, we can inherit the Earth right now. Because we're trusting God, because we're not always looking out for ourselves, trying to dominate those around us and improve our financial or social standing, but rather are submitting to God, to our leaders, to our rulers, to our employers and to our neighbours, we can actually enjoy our life. We're not trying any more. Life for those who are not meek is like trying to walk chest-deep down a river. Life for those who are meek is like floating down it. We inherit real life now. Abundant life, because we can put all our energies into living rather than empire building. Try it. It's marvellous.