Blessed Are The Meek

(Part 2)

 

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We have been looking at men and women on their way to what we call “success”. Though subtle and hypocritical, man by life, if not by lips, has adopted a goal which involves the pleasure of self and the glorification of self both at the expense of everyone else. Now, Jesus Christ changes that. Because the world has its imprint so emblazoned upon us, even we, as believers, cling tenaciously to three things: our reputation, our authority and our possessions. The battle seems to be continuous and costly. Most of all, it produces physical, emotional, and spiritual weakness and weariness.

It was for this reason that the Lord Jesus Christ, placed Himself in the center of that life in Matthew 11:28-30. He pictured Himself as an oasis of meekness and rest in a world characterized by toil, exhaustion and self-centeredness. The picture not only clarifies Jesus’ role, but yours and mine, also. It brings into focus the effects of what a meek life and a lowly spirit in a proud and weary world can have. You and I have the potential to be the same kind of oasis in the desert of life as Jesus. Let’s read that passage in Matthew 11:28-30. Many of you even have this memorized. Jesus, reaching His arms out to the people said,

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.

Jesus is telling the people that He would like to give them a rest. Let’s look for a moment at The Picture, The Paradise, The Purpose and The Power in that one passage. The picture we see is Jesus Christ looking at a well-worn saint toiling to the point of exhaustion, carrying a load on his shoulders that was too heavy for him to bear. The literal word in the Greek means “to toil to the point of weariness.” I’m sure that many of us can relate to that. The same word is used in Acts 20:35 where Paul said, “I have told you all things so that laboring, you ought to support the weak." Then in 1 Corinthians 4:12 Paul said, “We labor with our own hands”. He told them that they worked until they were worn out. In Ephesians 4:28 Paul again tells us, “Let him that stole steal no more but let him labor to the point of exhaustion with his own hands”. You have here a picture of a laborer coming in from the fields at the end of the day, sweaty, tired, exhausted, dirty, physically, mentally and emotionally spent. That is the picture we have here of Jesus standing in the midst calling to those who are coming in from the fields of life weary, worn, tired and exhausted from toil.

There are several kinds of toil. I think it would be wise for wives to pay attention to this verse, because it is looking at the proper reception of someone coming home after a hard day. After a hard day’s toil, what someone is looking for is a meek and lowly spirit.

The second word in the passage is heavy-laden. It literally means to carry an unnecessary load without relief. It is a picture of someone with a migraine headache carrying a box on his head, and he just can’t handle it anymore. This is the picture and the setting for this story.

The “paradise”, on the other hand, is an oasis in the middle of this setting where Jesus, the Meek One, awaits each saint with outstretched arms for the purpose of bringing them into a haven of rest. Here is the worn out, weary believer, and here is Jesus with His arms outstretched in the middle of this oasis of life. The word rest used here is the Greek word “katapana”. It literally means to quiet down, or a cessation of labor for refreshment and restoration. In other words, here is an oasis. Jesus was saying to them, “I want to give you an oasis. In the midst of all the toil, I want you to be able to relax and rest. I want you to come to Me so that you can lie down and rest in the midst of it all.”

So the picture is of weary saints trucking to a haven of rest where a Meek One awaits them with outstretched arms. The purpose of the haven is a fitting room where the Master Carpenter comes to fit a yoke or harness for each one of us. The passage says that it is gentle, comfortable, and well-fitted. It is one that will not chafe, infect or defeat. The word “yoke” is “zugos” which means a harness that is designed to couple or control. It is the same word used in Acts 15:10 in which the Scripture is talking about coupling God and man with the Law. It won’t work; it chafes. We read,

Acts 15:10 Why do you put a yoke on your disciples that your fathers could not bear?

Galatians 5:1 Be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

The miracle is that the yoke that comes from the Meek One is easy. The word “easy” here is “kristas” and means not harsh, but pleasant, and well-fitted as opposed to one that chafes. So picture the Master Carpenter calling you into His haven to give you rest. As you are resting, you see a sign above the door that says, “Jehovah’s Custom-Made Yokes”. You realize that He is tailor-making through an impression, a yoke just for you.

This reminds me of the story of the unsuccessful dentist who on his first day of practice had a patient come to have some false teeth fitted. The dentist had an impression made and then sent it to the lab. When the dentures came back and were put into the patient’s mouth he said, “These are the most perfect teeth ever made. I can bite. I can chew. I can smile. Everything is great.” The dentist was so excited that he called the lab and told them he wanted 100 more teeth made just like them. The next 99 patients were dissatisfied. Why? There was nothing wrong with that first set of teeth. The problem was they would fit only the patient for whom they were custom made.

Jesus is not in the business of making assembly line yokes. He says, “Come to Me all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will accept you as you are. I made you, and I will design a yoke just for you.” The power that goes along with it comes from the uniqueness of design and the personal acceptance of Jesus Christ that this meekness allows. In other words, meekness doesn’t condemn, it accepts all. “Come unto Me all ye that labor and are heavy-laden." Lowliness of mind does not condescend, it reaches out to say, “Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me.” The reason it is easy is because the yoke fits. The reason it fits is because the Master Carpenter, the meek and lowly one, designed it to perfection. He can do that, because He designed you.

There is a second vital truth to this passage. A toiling and weary world is looking for meek men and women. The world is looking for people who accept them as they are in Christ. The world is looking for people who love them for what Christ is in them. They are not looking for people who are designing a mold and forcing them into that mold; and then if they break the mold, it is their fault. The world is looking for people who are not condemning them for who they are or how they are, but taking them as they are and helping to fit them for service. Meek people.

The yoke is the word of God. It is the harness that allows us to both work and rest at the same time. Its outer perimeters are solid, steadfast and secure, but its inner collar is custom designed to meet the particular needs of your life. Meek men know that. That is why meek men are in such demand in the kingdom of heaven. That is meekness and Jesus said, “Oh what bliss, what self-contained joy for the man who is meek.”

We have seen that meekness is an oasis in the desert of life where God custom designs a yoke for each of us to wear. How does this work in the crisis of life? Let’s look then at these three circumstances:

Circumstance 1- How to be meek when your reputation is challenged. (A look at Jesus.)

Circumstance 2- How to be meek when your authority is challenged. (A look at Moses.)

Circumstance 3- How to be meek when your possessions are challenged. (A look at Abraham.)

Circumstance 1- How to be meek when your reputation is challenged. We begin with our look at Jesus. Jesus, of course, didn’t have a reputation. He gave it up in Philippians 2.

2:7 But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likenes of  men:

Romans 12:16 (NKJ) Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

In this passage we have the same basic ingredients as we had in the last lesson in the latter part of Romans 12. In fact, we have the same three basic ingredients in all of these three circumstances.

The first ingredient sees God’s man in a world that isn’t fair. I get so tired of people asking me questions like, “How is the world treating you?” You don’t really know how to answer, but an honest answer would be, “Lousy.” That is the world’s program. It is a corrupt world, and it is on a collision course with destruction. You and I, if we are believers in Jesus Christ, are trying to swim upstream. We are going the opposite direction of the world. The world itself isn’t “fair”. It never was intended to be. The exciting thing is that we have a God who is in control of the world who is fair; therefore, we can relax. But the world is not fair.

The second ingredient is that God has a plan to respond to a world that doesn’t care. We have a picture of this in 1 Peter 2:18-25. (NIV)

18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also  to the froward.

19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.

20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps:

22 Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth: reviled not again; when He suffered, He treatened not; but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously:

24 Who his own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls.

The passage is familiar to many of us. Let’s view it in the meekness of Christ and through the context of a courtroom. The cast of characters is the same as those in your life. The accuser is Satan, his staff involves anyone he chooses and God allows, the jury is the world. They will often find you guilty just to appease themselves. The judge is God the Father. He has the final power to condemn or acquit. The advocate or attorney who represents you is Jesus Christ. Your example is His own response in the same courtroom.

The charges that may be leveled at you could be one of two things, just or unjust. That is what this passage is all about. By just, it simply means that if you are driving down the highway at 80 mph in a 55 mph zone, the police has done rightly when he pulls you aside to tell you that you were speeding. You turn and say, “Sir, you are absolutely right, and I would like to pay the ticket.” The policeman replies, “Why, you will get that opportunity. We will go directly to the judge.” You say, “Yes sir, I deserve to stand before him. Whatever he metes out to me is more than fair.”

What a gracious response that would be. What a medal this person deserves. Not according to the Scriptures. According to  Scripture, this person does not deserve a medal, he deserves a ticket. The Scripture says that it is no big deal if you get pulled over for going 80 mph in a 55 mph zone and you don’t lose your cool. The  Scripture says if you do wrong and suffer for it, it is no big deal. That is my loose translation.

The Scripture goes on to talk about unjust suffering. If you are driving 45 mph in a 55 mph zone, and the policeman pulls you over and tells you that he clocked you going 65 mph, that is unjust. How do we need to respond? That is the answer to the question. The tactics may be subtle or brutal. The policeman may well revile you because of what he thinks you have done. Revile in this passage means to hurl verbal abuse at someone. He may really let you have it.

I can remember when my wife and I were out driving, and I wasn’t paying attention to my driving. I was straddling the middle line of the freeway. All of a sudden a booming voice said, “Where did you learn to drive?” It was a policeman behind me with a megaphone on top of his car. I was really embarrassed. My family reminded me of this many times. I deserved this persecution, because I was not driving correctly. This Scripture says that we may be reviled and suffer. The word suffer here means to be subjected to evil from without.

We have instructions from Peter to look at Jesus and do exactly what He did. Peter tells us that the world will think we are out of our minds. Some of us may have experienced unjust accusations even this past week when someone falsely accused us of something, and there was not a shred of truth to it. God tells us that when we are unjustly accused and our reputation is at stake, the first thing we must do is to remember that unjust accusations really only apply to one person and that is Jesus Christ. He was the only person who has ever been 100% innocent. This passage says,

Who did no sin, neither was any deceit found in His mouth.

In other words, it says that Jesus never once sinned. He never deserved any accusation of wrongdoing. He was also 100% pure in His heart, and He never even wanted to do wrong. He always wanted to do the will of the Father. He never wished in His heart that He could sin.

Now you and I don’t even fall into this category. You may say, “I was only going 45 mph in a 65 mph zone.” Well, let me ask if you have ever gone 65 mph in a 45 mph zone and not been caught? The point is that you and I are never 100% innocent. Secondly, we are certainly not 100% innocent in our hearts. This Scripture tells us that there was no guile or deceit found in Jesus’ heart. Even those of you who go the speed limit, oftentimes in your heart are wishing you didn’t have to. Remember that this makes His example that much more profound.

The next thing we need to do is not clamor for justification or self-defense. The Scripture indicates that the more innocent we are the more pleased God is. If we get called on the carpet for something we didn’t do at work, the more innocent we are in the light of that, the more God is pleased. It says that God is well-pleased, and this is proof of His grace. The  Scripture goes on to say,

1 Peter 2:20 For what glory is it, if when you be buffeted for your faults you take it patiently? but if, when you do well, and suffer for it, you take it patiently, this is acceptable (well-pleasing to)

with God.

The third thing we need to do is not put on our martyr’s cloak. This is part of our calling. How many times have we tried to get pity by looking like a martyr? We may have said, “This policeman pulled me over for going 65 mph in a 55 mph zone, and I was only going 45 mph. I want you to know that I just smiled at him and shared a tract with him. I was gracious and humble and meek. Aren’t I great?” But the Scripture says that this is part of our calling. We have no room to brag. If our job at work is to pick up waste baskets, every time we pick up one do we run to the boss and tell him what we have done? Big deal. That is what we are being paid to do. Scripture says that part of our calling is to be unjustly accused and take it patiently. When we do that it is acceptable to God, and it is part of our calling. Don’t be a martyr.

The last thing we are to do is to look to Jesus for our example. He was reviled, and He did not retaliate. He was threatened, but He committed Himself to the judge. He said, “Father, you are impartial. You are love. You are in charge.” Scripture emphasizes that Jesus took it patiently. The Greek word is “hoopomeno” which means to remain in place when others have gone.

So you go out of the courtroom with an eye of success. You say, “Here I stood up in court. There were false witnesses called against me. I was abused, but God is my judge and whatever happens I will praise Him for it.” You then walk out of the courtroom, and the one who wrongly accused you, the false witness, starts to cross the street in front of you and is about to be hit by a car that he doesn’t see. What do you do? It says,

When He was reviled, He reviled not again, when He suffered, He threatened not. He committed Himself to Him that judges righteously. His own self bears our sin in the body on the tree that we being dead to sin should live under righteousness. For we were like sheep who have gone astray.

We are the ones responsible, and He died for us. What do we do for that false witness walking in front of the car? We should go out and try to save him. It is part of our calling. That is what the Scripture says. That is what it means to be meek.

Let’s look further at what it means to be meek in practice. Peter tells us the principle, and then he tells us how to practice it by showing us the life of Jesus.

First of all, meekness is not self-exalting. John 12:12-16 shows us this. Here is Jesus’ one day of glory on earth. He knew those who were cheering would soon be jeering. If Jesus had our mind-set, He would not have been riding a donkey. He would have been in a convertible with a flashing light and a bumper sticker that said, “Vote for Jesus for a better way of life.” Meekness is not self-exalting.

Secondly, meekness is not retaliatory. In John 18:10-11 we read that Jesus was in the garden praying. The soldiers came for the wrong guy for the wrong crime. They were about to take Him away when Peter said, “Lord, what is one ear for eternity?” He reaches over and takes a slice. Jesus answered, “What is one ear for eternity?” Everything. “Vengeance is Mine thus saith the Lord. Those that go by the sword will perish by the sword.” He then reaches down and puts the ear back. By man’s standard, the whole future of the nation was at stake, and Jesus knew this was not time to retaliate. The kind of pettiness it takes for us to retaliate is shameful. A parking spot. A dollar item in a store. An abusive clerk. A misunderstanding at home. Jesus’ life was on the line, and He told Peter that this was not a time to retaliate, if he were meek.

Thirdly, meekness is not defensive. We can look at Jesus in John 19:1-12. Jesus is before Pilate. He is the strongest man in the universe, because He had the strength to be quiet when He was accused. As the song says, “He could have called ten thousand angels to destroy the world and set Him free, but He died alone for you and me.” That would have been a massive show of power, but He remained silent. That was the greatest show of power the world has ever known. How many times have you wished when you have been falsely accused or your reputation has been at stake that you have had the power to keep your mouth shut?

Fourthly, meekness is not bitter. In Luke 23:34, Jesus hung on the cross, looked down and said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Forgive who? Forgive the ones who had wrongly accused Him, spit in His face, put a crown of thorns on His head and crucified Him. That’s who. Jesus said, “As the Father has sent Me, so send I you.” We had three statements in the last lesson that would help us not be bitter: 1) “Lord, did you see that?” 2) “Lord, you take over.” and 3) “I’ll pray”. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Lastly, meekness is not grudging. We see Peter being restored in John 21:16-17. He was the one who had cursed and denied he had ever known Jesus at a time when Jesus needed his encouragement and strength. Here is one, who even before he did so, Jesus said, “I’m going to spend this time praying for you.” While Jesus was being spit upon, made fun of, and hung on a cross, He was praying for Peter. After the resurrection, Jesus comes to Peter, loves Peter, forgives Peter, and commissions Peter anew to a place of service and ministry. Jesus gives him responsibility in the kingdom. He went right on loving, right on moving towards His goal as though the offense had never taken place. That is what it means to be meek.

Circumstance 2- How to be meek when your authority is challenged. What is authority? Authority is a position of leadership which includes the command over and the responsibility for those who follow.

That is where most of us misunderstand the concept of authority. We go to seminars and listen to teaching at church about authority. We get excited about the concept of being in authority. However, sometimes as one being in authority, we overlook the fact that being in authority carries with it not only the command over but the responsibility for those who follow. That is where husbands get mixed up. We get very excited over the authority we have in the home, but we don’t stop to realize that with that authority goes the total responsibility for all that goes on within the home. That puts a whole different cast to it. We don’t realize as bosses that although we have the authority over the employees that work for us; we also have the responsibility for their welfare as far as their job is concerned. Even pastors have the responsibility not only of authority over their congregation, but also the responsibility of what happens to their flock. Politicians miss this on occasions. They not only have the authority to represent the people, but they have the responsibility to meet the needs of the people. That is what authority is.

We see Moses in Numbers 12:1-13. God gives the testimony that Moses was the meekest man that ever lived at that time. Let’s look at the passage. Miriam and Aaron had spoken against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman he had married.

Numbers 12:1 And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

2 And they said, "Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? Hath He not spoken also by us?" And the Lord heard it.

3 (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)

4 And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, "Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation." And they three came out.

5 And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.

6 And He said, "Hear now My words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make Myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.

7 "My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all Mine house.

8 "With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?"

9 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them; and He departed.

10 And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.

11 And Aaron said unto Moses, "Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned.

12 Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother's womb."

13 And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, "Heal her now, O God, I beseech Thee."

In verse 11 Aaron recognizes Moses’ authority all of a sudden and admits their sin and foolishness. God told Moses that even if Miriam’s father had spit in her face that she would be set out of the camp for seven days. That is what they did, and then she was restored whole after seven days.

Here we see Moses as a real leader. He was a real man of God. In this passage, God says of Moses that he was the meekest man on the face of the earth. There are a few basic principles of meekness that we can glean from this passage.

1- God never misses a trick. His ear is not so heavy that He cannot hear. You may think that God may have missed that little bit of abuse we took, a little bit of that circumstance or situation. Maybe you are a husband and your wife has not responded to what you have considered to be your authority, God understands that, and He wants to work it together for your good. You can rest in the fact that “the Lord has heard it.”

2- God’s scales of justice never leave His hands. He not only hears what happens to us, but He understands what needs to be done.

3- God is partial to humble leaders. God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. He loved this man Moses.

4- When the meek are oppressed, God always defends them every time.

Let’s look at what Moses had to do. It was the same plan, but a different man and a different problem. First, don’t retaliate. Moses just said, “God, did you see that?” God said, “Yes, Moses, I saw that.” “God, they don’t like my wife,” Moses declared. “I understand,” replied God, “just relax.” “You just want me to relax? Okay, God, it is your move,” Moses said.

Secondly, wait on God to deliver the justice. “You take over, Lord, I won’t take matters into my own hands.” How many times have we taken matters into our own hands this past month?

Thirdly, don’t rejoice when our enemy gets what he deserves. How many times have others accused us or maligned us, and we tell the Lord we are going to give it up to Him and leave the justice to Him? Then we sit back and think, “Okay, now get them Lord, get them.” I’m serious. That is not what this passage tells us to do. Moses was the meekest man on this earth, but he was grieved that justice had to be dealt to Miriam and Aaron.

Fourthly, instead of rejoicing when our enemies get their due, we are supposed to pray for them. Now Moses, the offended one, intercedes for the offender. He lifts up his voice to God and says, “Father, forgive her. Heal her. Take this reproach away from her.” We need to pray for our enemies, for those who despitefully use us and persecute us and say all manner of evil against us. That is what we talked about in the last lesson. We used the example of  driving down the freeway and then someone cuts in front of us and almost drives us off the road. Do we shake our fist, or do we add one person to our prayer list? Pray for them. We may not know them, but we can pray for them. They may have a need in their life, and God wants us to intercede for them at precisely that moment on their behalf.

Finally, we need to patiently wait for God to restore them. I think it is interesting here, that the whole congregation camped in one place to wait for Miriam to get well. I don’t know about you, but I would be inclined to say, “Miriam, it is your problem. You caused this. You catch up. We will be down the road seven days.” Moses said, “Let’s sit a spell and wait for Miriam. She is our sister in the Lord.” They prayed for her, and they waited for her. It is what is called meekness.

Circumstance 3- How to be meek when your possessions are challenged. The word possessions literally means temporal things over which God maintains title but which are placed in our care and custody for the purpose of producing maximum spiritual benefit. We can see in Genesis 13:1-8 problems that arise between Abraham and Lot, his nephew. As far as we can see in Scripture, Abraham was not supposed to take Lot along. We read that the conflict arose because of possessions.

Genesis 13:1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.

2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.

3 And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai;

4 Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the Lord.

5 And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.

6 And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.

7 And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.

8 And Abram said unto Lot, "Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren."

They got out into the desert, and we see in verse 2 that Abraham was very rich. The word for rich means heavy. In other words, they were weighed down with their resources. They had so many resources that they were getting in each other’s way. The herdsman couldn’t get along because of the size of the herds of cattle. 1 Timothy 6:9 says, “ But they that will to be rich fall into temptations and snares.” The problem in this passage was that they had too much, and the workmen were arguing about the problem of getting along with so many cattle and all of the possessions. In verse 7 we can also see that their enemies were watching what was going on.

Abrahams’ response in verse 8 was a sign of meekness. He said, “Lot, I don’t want any strife.” You may have a problem with a purchase in a store. You may have a problem with a friend or a bank regarding a loan. You may have a conflict with a customer in your store. You may have a conflict over a law suit. We can look at Abraham and see good principles.

Principle 1- Abraham says, “Let there be no strife.”

Principle 2- Abraham was the one who was unjustly accused. It was all his in the first place, but he makes the first move toward a solution.

Principle 3- Abraham reminds Lot that they are brothers. He comes up with a creative alternative. He gently implores Lot that they ought to part company. He thought the problem could be solved by one man going one way and the other man going the other way. It was all Abraham’s in the first place, but he gives half to Lot in order to make peace. We may think that was paying too big of a price, but God blessed Abraham’s peacekeeping. He goes one step further and let’s Lot choose which half he wants. Lot takes the land that looks the best to him. He moved toward Sodom. He took what was temporally best and spiritually worse. That left for Abraham that which was temporally worse and spiritually best. Abraham next builds an altar to worship the Lord. The Lord tells Abraham that he shall inherit a greater possession because of his meekness.

We need to develop meekness when our temporal possessions are challenged. We have Abraham to look to as an example. We need to remember that meekness is quiet gentleness with neither hostility nor retaliation. It quietly refuses to defend itself or fight back when wrongly accused. It softly lets God be the judge when its authority is questioned. It graciously gives up what never was really his to those whose claim is even less, so that God who owns it all can give back whatever He chooses. Meekness is simply trusting its reputation, its authority and its possessions to the sovereignty of God. A meek man will discover that while he moves quietly on his way, tucked within his pocket is an envelope with an inheritance. He opens up the envelope and humbly recognizes that he has inherited the earth.

 

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Sermon By: Russell Kelfer