Pastor David B. Curtis
Pastor David B. Curtis
This sermon that Jesus preached 2,000 years ago is about how to live in the kingdom. All believers are kingdom citizens and are to live according to this standard. Christ's message is relevant for us today. In the beatitudes Christ describes the character of one who is truly righteous, and who will experience kingdom life.
Review: What is the "kingdom of heaven"? The kingdom of heaven is synonymous with the Church; it is the New Covenant; it is Mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem. The kingdom of Heaven or Kingdom of God is the rule or reign of God. It is a spiritual, not geographical kingdom. God reigns in the hearts of people! Christianity is the kingdom of God.
Over and over in the beatitudes Jesus says, "Blessed are the..." What does it mean to be "blessed"? "Blessed" means: "one who has received a gift or favor from God". Blessed is the opposite of cursed.
What does it mean to be "poor in spirit"? It means to be spiritually bankrupt. This describes the person who understands that he is absolutely incapable of improving his spiritual condition, and that he is totally dependent on God's grace.
What does it mean to "mourn"? This "mourning" springs from a sense of sin, from a tender conscience, from a broken heart. It is a godly sorrow over rebellion against God. To mourn is something that, of necessity, follows being poor in spirit.
Note the progression of thought: Matthew 5:3 speaks of "the poor in spirit." A person who is poor in spirit has the right attitude about sin, which leads to mourning (v. 4). When someone recognizes his sinfulness and mourns over it, he develops meekness (v. 5). That leads him to hunger and thirst for righteousness (v. 6). Such a hunger manifests itself in mercy (v. 7), purity of heart (v. 8), and a peaceable spirit (v. 9). A person who displays those attitudes can expect to be reviled, persecuted, and falsely accused (vv. 10-11). That's because that kind of life-style is an irritant to worldly people. But in the end, believers will be able to "rejoice, and be exceedingly glad; for great is [their] reward in heaven" (v. 12). He who lives in accordance with the Beatitudes will be "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world" (vv. 13-14).
The third beatitude Jesus spoke in the "Sermon on the Mount" is:
Matthew 5:5 (NKJV) Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
When Jesus made this statement, He certainly ran against the current mood of the religious leaders of the day. They thought that the only way to inherit the land was to overthrow the Roman government, and that certainly could never be done by being meek. They had to be aggressive and hard, not passive and soft.
Most in our day think in a similar way. Think about your work situation. Think about what your boss is trying to get you to become. Is meekness one of those characteristics? If you are in sales or marketing, is meekness high on the list of priorities in those sales seminars you attend? Is your sales manager or supervisor saying that you need to be a little bit more meek? Not on your life! He is saying that if you want to get ahead, if you want to be somebody, if you want to go somewhere, rise to the top, you have to get out there and grab them by the throat!
What does it mean to be meek? If I were to tell you I met someone this week who was a really meek person, I wonder what sort of image that would bring to your mind. Most of us these days, I think, associate the idea of meekness with someone who's weak and timid. Perhaps we think of Clark Kent, the mild mannered reporter who disappears whenever danger threatens. Perhaps we think of the school weakling who was always being picked on by the tough kids. That's a sad thing, because it totally misses the point of what Jesus is saying.
This past week on my way home from our elders meeting, I stopped at Waller's garage and was talking with the owner when a man approached the open garage door. He stopped at the door and sheepishly looked in. The owner said, "You can come in". He slowly and carefully entered the garage. The secretary asked, "What can we do for you?" He acted as if he was afraid to answer. This is not what the Bible means when it speaks of meekness. I don't believe meekness is weakness. You are not meek because you are timid. You are not meek because you are fearful. You are not meek because you are shy. You are not meek because you lack self-confidence. Meekness is not weakness.
Meekness is also not simply being nice. There are people who seem to be born nice. That is something purely biological, the kind of thing you get in animals. One dog is nicer than another, one cat is nicer than another. That is not meekness. We are all commanded to be meek, not merely nice. It is not simply being an easy-going person. You are not meek because you do not get upset easily. It might not be your nature to get angry as easily as other people do. Some people can sit through virtual wars and never even notice. Others of us are irritated over little things that seem not to bother anyone else. Meekness has nothing to do with that.
Meekness is not a natural quality at all. I believe meekness is a supernatural quality which cannot be produced by our own effort. It is a fruit of the Spirit. And God has called all of us, without exception, to manifest the fruit of the Spirit, which is meekness. Since He has called us all to have it, therefore, I believe it has to be a supernatural work done by God in our lives.
The word "meek" in our text is the Greek word praus. In the Greek praus was used to refer to domesticated animals. Meekness was the attribute of a horse that was well trained, obedient, disciplined. Its strength hadn't been reduced, but rather was enhanced, channeled in a useful direction as a result of discipline applied by its trainer. The word "meek" has the idea of: "strength under control".
To help us understand meekness, we have to look at Psalm 37, because it is almost certain that this beatitude is a quotation or allusion to Psalm 37:11. It says:
Psalms 37:11 (NKJV) But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
In the LXX, the Greek Old Testament, the words of Psalm 37:11 are almost identical with Matthew 5:5. It says, "The meek shall inherit the land." And the word for "land" in Greek and Hebrew is often translated: "earth."
Notice the parallel between verse 11 and verse 9:
Psalms 37:9 (NKJV) For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.
Psalms 37:11 (NKJV) But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
Verse 9 says, "...those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth." and verse 11 says, "...the meek shall inherit the earth." So I would think that meek people are those who wait on the Lord. But what does it mean to wait on the Lord? We get a picture of those who wait on the Lord, that is, the meek, if we read verses 5-8:
Psalms 37:5-8 (NKJV) Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. 6 He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, And your justice as the noonday. 7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. 8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it only causes harm.
What are these people like who, according to verse 11, are meek and, according to verse 9, wait on the Lord? Well, verse 5 says they commit their way to the Lord and trust in the Lord. Verse 7 says they rest in the Lord and do not fret over others who prosper. And verse 8 says they cease from anger and forsake wrath. So let's try to put all this together to help us understand meekness.
Meek people are those who trust God (verse 5b). They believe that He will work for them and vindicate them when others oppose them. Biblical meekness is rooted in the deep confidence that God is for you and not against you.
Next, meek people commit their way to the Lord (verse 5a). The Hebrew word translated: "commit" is galal, which literally means: "to roll." The idea here being to roll one's burden over to God, who is infinitely greater than we are, and the one in whom we trust. We are to roll it onto him, meaning we must bring our cares to him and let him solve our problems.
Meek people have discovered that God is trustworthy, and so they roll their "way" - their business, their problems, their relationships, their health, their fears, their frustrations - they roll all this onto the Lord. Our problem becomes God's problem, and he is quite able to deal with it. That is why Peter says in 1 Peter 5:7, "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."The meek admit that they are insufficient to cope with the complexities and pressures and obstacles of life, and they trust that God is able and willing to sustain them and guide them and protect them.
Next, according to verse 7a, meek people rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him. Whenever we are in difficult circumstances, we want to murmur, complain, and let corrupt words come out of our mouths. But the meek person is to rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him.
In Exodus 14, we read how God delivered his people Israel out of slavery. Afterwards, Pharaoh pursued God's people with chariots, horses, and a great army:
Exodus 14:9-10 (NKJV) So the Egyptians pursued them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army, and overtook them camping by the sea beside Pi Hahiroth, before Baal Zephon. 10 And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD.
You may be thinking, "That's good, when we're in trouble, we should cry out to the Lord". Yes, but their cry wasn't for help, they were complaining.
Exodus 14:11-12 (NKJV) Then they said to Moses, "Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? 12 "Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, 'Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?' For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness."
This was the language of murmuring, complaining, and unbelief. What would you counsel these people? Would you tell them to rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him? Isn't that what you would do in this situation? Probably not! We need to learn to not focus our attention on the circumstances, but to rest in our God.
In verse 13 Moses answered the people:
Exodus 14:13 (NKJV) And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.
When we face tough situations, what do we need to understand? We need to know that our God is Sovereign, He is Almighty, omniscient, and He loves us. We need to review our theology and fix our eyes on the Sovereign King of the universe, Jesus Christ.
Look what Isaiah said:
Isaiah 40:28-31 (NKJV) Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, 31 But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.
Wait on the Lord! If you are anxious and complaining, you are not waiting on the Lord.
So first of all, the meek discover that God can be trusted. Then, second, they commit their way to him. And then, third, they wait patiently for the work of God in their lives.
The meek have a kind of steady calm that comes from knowing that God is omnipotent, that he has their affairs under his control, and that he is gracious and will work things out for the best. Meek people have a quiet steadiness about their lives in the midst of upheaval.
And so the fourth thing about them (in verse 7b) is that they don't fret themselves over the wicked who prosper in their way. Three times in the first 8 verses he says, "Do not fret" (verses 1, 7, and 8). What does this word "fret" mean? It is the Hebrew word charah, which means: "to glow or grow warm". It means to be heated up or worked up. It is like the engine of a car which heats up because there is no oil and/or coolant. What happens to such a car? It is damaged, and some people, by their fretting, can also be damaged. Verse 8 puts it this way: "cease from anger".
The meek understand that their family and work and life are in God's sovereign hands; they trust him; they wait patiently and quietly to see how his power and goodness will work things out; and so the setbacks and obstacles and opponents of life do not produce the kind of bitterness and anger and fretfulness that is so common among men.
So the picture we have of meekness so far, based on the closest Biblical parallel (in Psalm 37:11) to the third beatitude, is that it begins by trusting God. Then it commits its way to the Lord in the confidence that he will use his power and mercy to do good for us. Then it waits patiently and quietly for the outcome. And, finally, it does not give way to anger and fretfulness when faced with opposition and set backs.
So, what we see from Psalm 37 is that meekness consists in a peaceful freedom from fretful anger and is based on trusting God and rolling all our ways onto God and waiting patiently for God.
The Bible gives us several examples of people who demonstrated meekness. First, there is Moses. The twelfth chapter of Numbers tells us something about the life of Moses. He had married Zipporah, his first wife, while he lived in Midian, as we read in Exodus 2. It seems that Zipporah died, and Moses married a Cushite woman, meaning: "a black woman from Ethiopia". Moses' sister, Miriam, did not like this. Becoming very upset, she rebelled against Moses and treated him with contempt:
Numbers 12:1-4 (NKJV) Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman. 2 So they said, "Has the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?" And the LORD heard it. 3 (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.) 4 Suddenly the LORD said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, "Come out, you three, to the tabernacle of meeting!" So the three came out.
The word "humble" in verse 3 is the Hebrew word 'anav, which is the same word used in Psalm 37:11 for "meek". Now what is the point of calling Moses meek right here in this context - right between bitter opposition from Miriam and Moses and God's vindication? I think the point is that meekness means committing your cause to God and not needing to defend yourself. Just where we would expect the text to tell us what Moses said to justify himself against the charge of Miriam and Aaron, the text says he was the meekest man on the earth. Moses doesn't say a word. Instead he waits patiently for the Lord. He doesn't fret over these critical words. And God comes to his defense. What happens in the following verses is that the Lord rebukes Miriam and Aaron and vindicates his servant Moses:
Numbers 12:5-14 (NKJV) Then the LORD came down in the pillar of cloud and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam. And they both went forward. 6 Then He said, "Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. 7 Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. 8 I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid To speak against My servant Moses?" 9 So the anger of the LORD was aroused against them, and He departed. 10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper. 11 So Aaron said to Moses, "Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. 12 "Please do not let her be as one dead, whose flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother's womb!"
What would you do here? Here again Moses' meekness is demonstrated. When the leprosy broke out in Miriam, Aaron asked Moses to pray for her. Moses did not condemn them for judging him earlier. He didn't say, "See what happens when you mess with a man of God." He did not defend his own honor, he wasn't angry. Look at what Moses does next:
Numbers 12:13-14 (NKJV) So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, "Please heal her, O God, I pray!" 14 Then the LORD said to Moses, "If her father had but spit in her face, would she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp seven days, and afterward she may be received again."
This is a demonstration of meekness. What New Testament verse does this remind you of? In this text Moses fleshes out his meekness:
Matthew 5:44 (NKJV) "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
In Exodus 15, we read that the people murmured against Moses, provoking him. Every time this happened, Moses fell face down and began to pray. That is a sign of meekness. Moses wanted God to deal with the situation, and he did.
Moses fleshes out what we saw in Psalm 37, "...Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret..." Moses trusted God, and committed his way to God, and he waited patiently for God. So he refrained from anger, revenge, and defensiveness. Meekness loves to give place to wrath and leave its vindication with God. Meekness is the power to absorb adversity and criticism without lashing back.
We must also note that although Moses was meek before God, he was not weak, he was mighty before Pharaoh. Notice what he says to the most powerful man on earth at that time:
Exodus 10:3 (NKJV) So Moses and Aaron came in to Pharaoh and said to him, "Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.
Now I know that you understand that Moses was a man, and because he was a man, his meekness fluctuated. There were times when he was not meek. Moses, who was the meekest of all men, was not allowed to enter the promised land of Canaan. Can you guess why? It was because he lacked meekness. Moses did not sanctify the Lord. In a weak moment, Moses was not weak.
Numbers 20:7-12 (NKJV) Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 8 "Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rockbefore their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals." 9 So Moses took the rod from before the LORD as He commanded him. 10 And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, "Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?" 11 Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod;and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank. 12 Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them."
In his weak moment he railed upon the congregation of the Lord. Moses said, "Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock?"
I bring up the fact of Moses' laps of meekness so you will understand that we all have our lapses. As I said, these beatitudes talk about the characteristics of all Christians. But these characteristics are only manifested when we are walking in fellowship with the Lord.
Another man who demonstrated meekness was Abraham:
Genesis 13:8-9 (NKJV) So Abram said to Lot, "Please let there be no strife between you and me, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen; for we are brethren. 9 "Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left."
The Lord had sent Abraham to inherit the land of Canaan. The Lord had given him the promises. Lot had just gone along. When the contentions arose, Abraham placed Lot before himself. Abraham gave Lot the choice of land; Abraham preferred Lot ahead of himself. This is a demonstration of meekness. Abraham was not self-centered when he gave Lot the choice of land.
David was also meek before God, as we read in 2 Samuel 16. As David fled Jerusalem during the insurrection of his son, Absalom, a Benjamite man named Shimei came out from Bahurim and began to curse David, the anointed king, and pelt him with stones. But here we see a demonstration of David's meekness. He refused to have Shimei killed. Why? Because he was meek. Did David have the power to have Shimei killed? Yes, but his power was under control. He saw God as sovereign and humbly accepted this humiliation from him. Abishai asked David if he could kill Shimei for his actions. But David replied:
2 Samuel 16:10 (NKJV) But the king said, "What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? So let him curse, because the LORD has said to him, 'Curse David.' Who then shall say, 'Why have you done so?'"
And in verse 12 he adds:
2 Samuel 16:12 (NKJV) "It may be that the LORD will look on my affliction, and that the LORD will repay me with good for his cursing this day."
As David suffered, he also trusted in God and submitted to God's sovereign will.
David's meekness also fluctuated. David sent his servants to Nabal to ask for supplies. When Nabal refused to help them, David got angry:
1 Samuel 25:22 (NKJV) "May God do so, and more also, to the enemies of David, if I leave one male of all who belong to him by morning light."
David's meekness was not evident here. They had offended David, and he defended his own name and honor. We must all fight the spirit of anger and of self-centeredness. We must pray for the spirit of meekness.
Of course the ultimate example of meekness is Christ:
Matthew 11:28-30 (NKJV) "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle [praios] and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
The meekest person in all the world was not Moses but Jesus Christ himself. The more God-conscious one is, the more meek one becomes. Jesus was the most God-conscious person who ever lived on the face of the earth; thus he was the meekest person who ever lived.
In Matthew 21:5 we read a quotation from Zechariah that tells us that Jesus Christ is a meek King:
Matthew 21:5 (NKJV) "Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.'"
Peter spoke about the meekness of Christ in:
1 Peter 2:23 (NKJV) who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;
The meek man will not retaliate. He refuses to defend himself but trusts in God just as the meek Jesus submitted to God's righteous judgment.
Jesus' meekness is shown in the matter of Judas. When Judas came to betray Him, what did Jesus say?
Matthew 26:47-50 (NKJV) And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him." 49 Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed Him. 50 But Jesus said to him, "Friend, why have you come?" Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him.
The Lord Jesus knew that Judas had come to betray Him with a kiss. Yet He calls him "friend". If you were in Christ's sandals, what would you have said to Judas? Would your response have been meek?
To see another feature of the portrait of meekness, let's turn to the book of James:
James 1:19-21 (NKJV) So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
The feature of meekness that James brings out is teachability. To receive the word with meekness means that we don't have a resistant, hostile spirit when we are being taught. Meekness is being quick to listen and slow to criticize and condemn.
Let's look at one other feature of meekness found in Galatians:
Galatians 6:1-2 (NKJV) Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
The word "gentleness" here is the Greek word praiotes, which is meekness. When meekness must speak words of correction, as we have here in Galatians 6:1-2, it speaks with the deep awareness that it is fallible. More specifically, when meekness reaches out to bring back a person overtaken in sin, it first takes the log out of its own eye and then admits that apart form grace - free and undeserved - it would fall to the very sin it is now trying to correct - "...considering yourself lest you also be tempted."
Now let's look at the whole picture of meekness. Meekness begins when we put our trust in God. Then, because we trust him, we commit our way to him. We roll onto him our anxieties, our frustrations, our plans, our relationships, our jobs, our health. And then we wait patiently for the Lord. We trust his timing and his power and his grace to work things out in the best way for his glory and for our good.
The result of trusting God and rolling of our anxieties onto God and waiting patiently for God is that we don't give way to quick and fretful anger. But instead, like Moses, we give place to wrath and hand our cause over to God and let him vindicate us if he chooses. And then, as James says, in this quiet confidence we are slow to speak and quick to listen. We become reasonable and open to correction. Meekness loves to learn. And it counts the blows of a friend as precious. And when it must say a critical word to a person caught in sin or error, it speaks from the deep conviction of its own fallibility and its own susceptibility to sin, and its utter dependence on the grace of God.
Meekness is a characteristic necessary for every Christian. We must put on meekness:
Colossians 3:12 (NKJV) Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;
There are only eleven places in the New Testament where the word "meekness" is used; each one of them gives us an area of life in which we should "yield our rights for the benefit of others."
Now let's consider the second half of the beatitude:
"FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH."
Is this a promise of inheriting the physical planet? If it is, this beatitude is the only one that appears to speak of a physical reward. Could Jesus have meant the new earth (new covenant) with its eternal blessings that was to come at the fall of Jerusalem? Is the earth in Matthew 5:5 the same in content and meaning as the new heaven and new earth of Revelation 21? I believe so. Jesus could just as easily have said in Matthew 5:5 "shall inherit the new heaven and earth," meaning its blessings.
The first Beatitude reads: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"(Mt. 5:3). The last one reads: "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Mt. 5:10). To begin and end with the same expression is a stylistic device called an "inclusion." This means that everything bracketed between the two can really be included under the one theme. This suggests that the intervening Beatitudes are kingdom blessings as well.
It is not - if you mourn than you just get comfort; and if you are meek, you just get to inherit the earth. These beatitudes speak of the righteous character of a kingdom citizen. This is not a smorgasbord where you pick and choose. The kingdom citizen has all of these characteristics. The manifestation of them will depend on each believer's fellowship with the Lord. I believe that the more we manifest these, the more we are temporally blessed.
On a scale of 1-10, how is meekness revealed in your life? Ask yourself:" Do I have a trust in God that enables me to commit my way to him? Do I roll onto him my anxieties, or frustrations, my plans, my relationships, job, and health? Do I wait patiently for the Lord trusting His timing and power and grace to work things out in the best way for his glory and for my good? Do I not give way to quick and fretful anger? But instead, like Moses, give place to wrath and hand my cause over to God and let him vindicate me if He chooses?" Are you reasonable and open to correction? When you must say a critical word to a person caught in sin, do you speak from the deep conviction of your own fallibility and susceptibility to sin?
As citizens of the Kingdom, we are all called to manifest meekness. The only way this is possible is if we are walking in fellowship with the Lord. So, if you are not manifesting meekness, work on your fellowship. Draw near to God!
Whenever the world sees a person who is truly meek, God receives glory, and the aim of Jesus in the "Sermon on the Mount" is fulfilled. Jesus said:
Matthew 5:16 (NKJV) "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
Jesus preached the "Sermon on the Mount" so that his Father would get the glory for the way the disciples lived. His aim was to create a lifestyle in his disciples that would make people think about the value of God. Do people see God in you?
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