Meekness

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

Matthew 5:5

There is a tendency to want to advance ourselves. It’s in our DNA. We learn it as a child observing the culture we grow up in. We learn that the person who get’s up the earliest catches the worm. The biggest dog wins the fight. We learn that if we want to get somewhere in life we have to work harder and better than those around us. There are countless other phrases we could list if we wanted to. The issue with those American mantras is that they completely go against what Jesus teaches His followers.

It’s hard to not want to be successful and to want to see advancement of ourselves. We want it. We don’t need to deny it, it’s good and healthy to acknowledge our thoughts and feelings. Jesus shows His followers that His followers do not live as the world, and they do not have the heart of self-advancement.

The term meek in this passage is a reference to ones positioning of their heart toward the Lord. Having a heard that is meek towards and before the Lord gives us breakthrough to a life of meekness. When we realize that God is the One who gives us what we need and that it is God who has given us this new life in Christ, we no longer think as the world does. We think and move and function as people who have seen and tasted heaven.

When we observe Christian culture today, this meekness is hard to find. I’m not saying that it is absent, but it certainly is scarce. I’ve heard the phrase nice guys finish last and heard people say, “Jesus wants me to take up for myself, and He doesn’t want us to be run over.” I want to challenge you with a few thoughts. When you look at the church in Acts in times of confrontation and turmoil, how did the early church respond? In meekness or madness? They responded in meekness. Stephen while being stoned showed meekness, Paul’s imprisonments show his meekness. There are historical documents that demonstrate the meekness of these early believers. Jesus even told us to turn the other cheek.

There is a terrible tragedy that has taken place in the American Church culture. We have mixed American rights with the Kingdom inheritance and Kingdom living. The issue with that is the inheritance which Jesus promises is not the American dream. It is so much greater, purer, and holier. And His ways are higher than our corrupting self-advancing ways. Forget taking the moral high ground. Take up your cross and follow Jesus. That path is far greater and higher than the grey moral road American churches have paved.

Trust in the One who saved you. He who saved you will see you through. A heart that is possessed by the Lord is a heart that can trust in the promises of the Lord. When you are meek, He will advance you. You will receive an inheritance. Believe it. This isn’t a metaphor, it is a promise. Believe in His truth. Let your heart be meek before Him, and see Him use you and elevate you to places you never dreamed possible. This blessing is a promise.