SERMON: THE MEASURE OF A CHRISTIAN: BLESSED ARE THE MEEK

THE MEASURE OF A CHRISTIAN: BLESSED ARE THE MEEK
(The Beatitude Series)
12 June 2011

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Matthew 5

1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

He said:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.


-- when I was a kid, the circus came to town -- this wasn’t a big circus -- this wasn’t like the Ringling Brothers or Barnum and Bailey -- this was one of those tiny little circuses that made the route through the smallest communities around the country
-- I remember when it rolled into town -- it set up in an open area south of Adel -- with one large tent and a few smaller tents and the ubiquitous carnival stands with games of chance that no one ever seemed to win at
-- I was probably only about 5 or 6 years old -- and I don’t remember a great deal about the circus -- but the one thing I do remember is the elephant -- this was the first time I ever really saw an elephant in person
-- this circus just had one elephant -- and when it wasn’t in the tent doing its act, they had it tied up outside the tent for people to look at -- I was amazed at this large creature -- how powerful it was -- at the quiet strength that was hidden right below the surface -- it’s one thing to see an elephant on TV -- it’s another thing to be that close to an elephant in person
-- you just knew that this animal could break loose if it wanted -- the only thing that kept it in place was a metal stake driven into the ground and a chain that went from the stake and around the elephant’s foot -- even at my young age, I knew that that chain and stake couldn’t hold that elephant if it wanted to leave -- it was too strong -- it was only the power of the relationship between the trainer and the elephant that made it stay there enduring the gazes of little boys and girls

-- this elephant is a perfect example of the Beatitude that we are going to be discussing this morning -- today, we are continuing in our sermon series on the Beatitudes and are going to be looking at the third Beatitude -- Matthew 5:5

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

-- as you remember, we can think of these Beatitudes as rungs on the ladder of faith -- as the steps to Christian maturity as we seek to become true disciples of Christ -- a disciple isn’t just someone who follows Jesus -- a disciple is someone who takes upon themselves the very nature and character of Christ as they follow Him and learn from His example
-- the first step towards a mature faith in Christ is seen in the first Beatitude -- blessed are the poor in spirit -- we cannot begin our spiritual journey of faith until we become aware of our spiritual condition -- until we become aware of our need for a Savior
-- the second Beatitude -- blessed are they who mourn -- calls us to become aware of our sinfulness and of the depth of forgiveness that Jesus showed us from the cross -- as we discussed last week, knowing how great a sinner we are leads us to mourn over our sin and to rejoice over the fact of just how great a Savior we have
-- the next step to spiritual maturity is encompassed by today’s topic -- the third beatitude -- blessed are the meek

-- as we go through this series, the one thing I hope that you are starting to recognize is the supernatural quality of these characteristics -- by calling us to live counter to the ways of the world -- by calling us to live counter to our natural inclinations and our natural way of thinking and living -- Jesus is asking us to do something and to be something that we cannot do or be on our own
-- we cannot simply choose to become poor in spirit -- we have to respond to a call from God to do so -- we have to respond to His prevenient grace -- the grace that calls us to move from where we are to the cross of Calvary -- it is a supernatural act of God that creates in us the condition that Jesus calls “poor in spirit”
-- in the same way, we cannot simply choose to become aware of our sinful nature and mourn our condition and our sin -- it is a supernatural awakening to the fact of who we are and how we compare to a holy God
-- and, in the same sense, we cannot simply choose to become meek -- we become meek only when God gives us the power to truly submit ourselves to Him -- body, mind, and spirit -- and we respond to His call and willingly place ourselves under His lordship

II. Meekness
-- so, as we begin this discussion of the third Beatitude -- let’s start with the question, “What is meekness? -- when you hear the word, ‘meek,’ what comes to mind?”
-- in preparing for this message, I read an article where the author went out into the street with a tape recorder and asked this question to a lot of people who were passing by on the street
-- “What does the word, ‘meek,’ mean?” -- invariably, the answer came back the same -- almost to a person, each of them said that meekness was the same thing as weakness -- to be meek was to be weak -- wimpy -- cowardly -- frail -- afraid
-- that is what this word has come to mean in our day and age -- but that is not the true biblical definition of what it means to be meek -- think about the people that the Bible lifts up as being meek men
-- Numbers 12:3 - “Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.” -- is Moses someone you would call weak or cowardly or frail? -- think about what this man did -- at the age of 80, he stood in front of Pharaoh -- the most powerful leader in the world -- and pointed his finger at him and said, “Thus saith the Lord, let my people go” -- it was Moses who led the people out of Egypt and through the Red Sea with the entire Egyptian army hot on their heels -- it was Moses who brought them to the edge of the Promised Land -- who led them in the wilderness -- we served as their judge and their leader and their visionary -- who planned their battles and led them to victory against those nations who tried to destroy them
-- does this sound like a weak or cowardly man? -- no -- and yet the Bible tells us he was very meek, meeker than any other man on the face of the earth

-- who else? -- turn over to Matthew 11:29

Matthew 11:29 -- Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

-- the KJV translates Jesus as saying “for I am meek and lowly of heart” -- Jesus called Himself meek -- and there is no way you can call Jesus weak or cowardly or afraid
-- even before you get to the cross and the fact that Jesus willingly carried His own instrument of death to Golgotha and willingly sacrificed Himself for us, think about what Jesus did as a man
-- while others around Him fled in the presence of people who were possessed by demons, Jesus looked evil in the eye and commanded a whole legion of demons to come out of the man at Gerasenes and to leave him alone
-- Jesus went into the temple and turned over the tables of the money changers -- He made a whip out of cords and ran those merchants out of God’s house
-- He associated with the dregs of society -- with the sinners and the tax collectors and the murderers and thieves -- with those people that good society would have nothing to do with out of fear
-- He was friends with prostitutes and priests -- and He stood toe-to-toe against the Pharisees and the religious leaders, calling them out for the wrong they were doing
-- does this sound like the actions of a weak and cowardly man? -- not at all -- so meekness is not weakness -- a meek man is not wimply or girly or cowardly or afraid

-- the true definition of meekness is great power under control -- the submittal of your power and your nature and your will to another person
-- think about that elephant I told you about -- that elephant was much stronger than its trainer -- it was more powerful than that little chain that held it in the ground -- if it had wanted to, it could have ripped that stake up and took off down the street -- but it didn’t -- it was meek -- it submitted its will to another -- and its great power was under control
-- other ways to describe meekness are humbleness -- being lowly of spirit -- being gentle -- to be meek means that you are strong and you know it, but you have surrendered your strength to another

-- the true measure of meekness comes through our relationships with others -- meekness is expressed through how we treat those around us -- to be meek means that we move past the point where anger and bitterness and hatred rule our lives -- meekness is curbing the "natural" desires to rebel, fight, and have our own way -- to push ourselves forward and to demand our right and what we should be getting
-- to be meek is to be kind and considerate to others, even to those who oppose us -- to be meek is to be easily approachable, not prideful or resentful, not temperamental or harsh -- to be meek is to submit your will to the Lord so that you might act like Jesus in all situations
-- in other words, when you exhibiting meekness, you are making a choice to respond rather than to react -- you are choosing to express love and respect and grace rather than anger or harshness or pride
-- the greatest definition of meekness is the description of Jesus that we read in Philippians 2:5-8

5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature[a] God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!

-- Jesus demonstrated the attitude of meekness when He chose to lay aside His power and His glory and came to earth to be one of us -- the Creator of the universe willingly became a baby in a manger -- and during His time here on earth, He never once demanded what was rightfully His as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords -- through His life, Jesus showed us the true image of meekness -- power under control and submission to the Father’s will

-- don’t miss how radical a concept this was to everyone in first century Palestine
-- the Jews were very proud of their heritage and their race -- they were proud of their position as God’s chosen people -- and this was instilled in them at birth
-- think about the Romans -- they took great pride in their power -- they were the greatest empire in that time -- they ruled the known world
-- we’re not that different from them today, are we? -- as American Christians, we are proud of our country -- proud of our heritage -- we rejoice in the fact that we are the world’s last remaining superpower -- we have a swagger in our step
-- and even in our personal lives, we are told that the way to get ahead is to promote yourself -- to become a self-made man -- to become strong -- to rise to the top -- to go for the gold
-- this is what we are taught -- this is what we strive for -- this is what the people we admire look like
-- but, Jesus comes and says, “let me show you a different way” -- blessed are the meek
-- blessed are those who don’t express their strength -- blessed are those who aren’t prideful -- who don’t demand their own way -- who don’t fight for their rights -- blessed are those who submit to the will of God -- blessed are the meek
-- it goes against logic -- it goes against everything that we know and everything that we have been taught -- it basically comes down to this
-- we accept Jesus as our Savior when we come to the cross -- when we ask Him to forgive our sins and to give us eternal life -- no one has a problem with Jesus as Savior
-- but, when Jesus calls us to be meek -- when He calls us to lay aside our strength and our power in order to allow God’s will to be done -- He is calling us to make Him Lord -- He is telling us to choose whether we are going to be the god of our lives or if we are going to let Him be God -- He is calling for us to let Him make all the decisions -- He is calling for us to say, “not my will, but yours be done” -- and that is hard
-- but, to be a Christian -- to be a mature Christian -- a true disciple of Christ who not only follows Jesus but takes up the character and nature of Jesus -- then this is the next step -- we have to submit our will to His and allow Jesus to not only be Savior but to be Lord
-- and the reward for this, Jesus tells us, is that we will inherit the earth

III. Inherit the Earth
-- what does it mean to inherit the earth? -- it is simple a recognition of the state of mind that accompanies the Godly characteristic of meekness
-- a meek person is satisfied -- content -- joyful in their position with the Lord despite their position on earth
-- in Philippians 4:11-12, Paul wrote, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. -- I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. -- I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” -- and that secret? -- Paul tells us in verse 13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me”
-- when you walk through this life without having the burden of chasing after the American dream -- without running to the end of each rainbow looking for the pot of gold -- without striving for everything that the world tells us makes a person full and complete -- then you have truly arrived
-- you can enjoy life -- while the world is running around, you can sit and rest in the presence of God because you know that you have all things in Him -- that every need is being met -- and that He is with you and His presence fills you
-- to inherit the earth means that you get the best out of life -- right here -- right now

-- there is also a future component to this promise from Jesus -- while a meek person goes through this life satisfied and contented, this is also a promise for eternity -- for the future inheritance that we will receive when Jesus comes again and His Kingdom is established
-- the Bible tells us that when Jesus returns, there will be a new earth -- an earth established, not on the principles that drive it now -- not on pride and wealth and power -- but on the Kingdom principles of love and grace and mercy
-- the glimpse of peace and contentment that a meek person realizes now will be truly expressed in the new earth as we enjoy God’s presence forever

IV. Closing
-- so, how do we become meek?
-- the answer is easy, but not easy to do -- the simple answer is...we surrender
-- we surrender ourselves -- our hearts -- our minds -- our will -- our strength -- to God
-- as John the Baptist put it -- we decrease so that Christ might increase

-- this is not an easy thing to do -- this is really not even possible for us as humans -- this is only supernaturally possible -- so this means that we depend on the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit within us to make it happen

-- it begins with the first choice to surrender -- to lay aside our wants and our wishes and to submit our will to God -- to become meek, we have to first choose to let Jesus be the Lord of our life -- and we have to choose to go against our nature and our flesh and say, “not my will, but yours be done”

-- secondly, you cultivate a relationship of faith and trust with God -- as you walk with God on a daily basis -- as you become more mature in your faith, you will naturally begin to trust Him more and more as you see how He has been with you and worked on your behalf in the past
-- look for the fingerprints of God in your life -- keep track of the ways that God has moved and has made a difference -- and then choose to let Him do so again and again and again instead of always demanding your way and your will be done

-- finally, we measure ourselves in our relationships with others -- before you react to another person, take a moment to think about that old cliché -- What Would Jesus Do?
-- when someone says something against you -- when someone hurts you -- think, “how would Jesus react?” -- would He react with anger -- with harsh words -- with cutting comments -- or would He respond with love and kindness and grace?
-- and then you respond in the way you think Jesus would
-- as R.K. Hughes wrote, the ultimate "test as to whether we are truly meek is not whether we can say we are poor sinners, but rather what we do when someone else calls us vile sinners.” -- your response displays the level of meekness and humbleness in your heart

-- if we are to be disciples of Christ -- if we are to become mature in our faith -- then we must seek to have the same mind and attitude that He displayed on earth -- Jesus modeled meekness for us with His life -- and we must strive to do the same with ours
-- let us pray