“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” – Matthew 5:5
Weak and meek are not the same the same thing. Jesus was anything but weak. He had power of demons, diseases, and death. He demonstrated his power over nature by simple use of His voice and when he spoke the people that heard him recognized an authority in it. Jesus is the Son of God but yet He was meek and here He calls us to have the same attitude. We are called to live in the power and freedom of grace but not at the cost of another’s own walk with Christ.
It is probably best for us to get a better understanding of what it means to be meek. The Greek word used here can be translated with other words such as humble, gentle, considerate, and courteous. Perhaps a better understanding of meekness requires us to take each of those words into mind when we read this verse rather one or another. Together the word indicates an inward virtue exercised toward others. For example, when the meek are wronged or abused, they show no resentment and do not threaten or avenge themselves.
Psalm 37 provides the background for this verse because it seems Jesus was quoting it, “But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace” (37:11). If you would take the time to read this entire Psalm by David you would be sure to quickly realize the calm assurance he gives as we lean on God’s power, wisdom and timing in dealing with those that would take advantage of us. Earlier in this study we seen how the first set of beatitudes we vertical, meaning they focused on our relationship with God as citizens’ of the heavenly kingdom. This verse seems to emphasis the fact that while we may have power and authority to avenge ourselves and deal with our enemies, we still don’t. Rather than taking vengeance into our own hands we allow God to be God. We rely on God dealing with our enemies, natural and supernatural.
We are tempted to take full advantage of all our rights in order to take care of ourself but the meek choose not to. Why? It is because we are not of this worldly system. Notice the blessing of the meek, “for they shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5). This world is not our home. We are only passing through it on our way to the promised land. The blessing though is like Abraham, who was promised a certain land but is also told that everywhere he sees and steps will also be part of his blessing from God. The same is with the meek child of God. We do not use the systems of the world to better ourselves because we are of Heaven and not of Earth. But one day we shall inherit the earth when it is made new.
When shall that be? In the context of Psalm 37 we notice that it the time frame is when the wicked have been dealt justice by God. At the return of the Lord we will find ourselves the recipients of the message, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Matt. 25:23). When evil and the ones that perpetuate evil are removed then shall all things be made new and the righteously meek will inherit the earth.
So, the big question for us is whether we are willing to live meek in a cutthroat world? Where people are constantly looking to take advantage of others and various systems in order to constantly get ahead we are cautioned against such actions that show us to be more earthly minded than heavenly. During our times of devotion we must look not only towards pride, desires to have revenge, and to take advantage of others but also to examine our actions to see if we have behaved in such a way that is contrary to being meek.
Jeremy Kamer Ministries 