Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 48 – August 1980
The Ministry Of The Meek
Sermon by Rev. S. Rynsdorp, Th. Grad. On Matthew 5:5
Scripture Reading: Psalm 37:1–12
Psalter Hymnal: 311:all 3 verses; 303:1 & 6; 37:1 & 3; 306:1,2 & 4; 14:1 & 2; 14:3
Beloved congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ,
I am sure that many of us read the “Readers Digest”, from time to time. It is a very interesting magazine. It is a very popular magazine. In the “Readers Digest” you find all kinds of true life stories which make very good reading. However the most popular of these stories are the ones which deal with success; stories about people who in spite of great odds – “made it” in life. Just about everybody likes reading about success, for one thing, success fires our imagination. We picture ourself the hero of the story and taste his/her success as if it were our own. Or, if our imagination does not go that far, we still like reading such stories in order to learn how others “did it”; how others ‘made it”; how they became a success.
In one of the Readers Digests some time ago there appeared an article on this very subject, under the heading “A FOOLPROOF FORMULA FOR SUCCESS”. You may be sure that many people when they received that particular issue of the Readers Digest in the mail turned to that article first of all, before they read the rest of that issue. Why? Because SUCCESS is a magic word to just about everybody, from young to old. Of course, people have different ideas as to what success really IS. Yet, basically, all people will agree that success is to achieve what you aim for in life. As the dictionary puts it: “success is the accomplishment of the end aimed at”. So, by success you mean you reach your goal – whatever the goal may be. That goal can be in Art, in the Sciences, in Technology, in Marriage, in Family, in Education, and so on, and so forth. But it could also be – and to many people it IS – as the Oxford Dictionary says: “attainment of wealth, fame or position”. So, when we hear about somebody’s “success” in life, we automatically start dreaming our particular dream of success, for our life.
But, what has all this to do with the words of our Lord Jesus Christ in our text? Well, human nature being what it is, people in the days of Christ’s life on earth also dreamed of success. And, after all that which Christ had done and said by means of His miracles and His wonderful parables and teachings, had people looking up to Him as a living success story. And they followed our Lord, because they wanted to share in His “success”; He was surely going to have total success. And so they were listening to Jesus with the idea of success – and their share of it – in mind.
Now to some people – in Christ’s day the success they yearned for was to be liberated from the Romans. These people were nationalists. To them getting rid of the cruel Roman oppressor had absolute top priority. After that, well, then they would see again. But there were others too of course. They went a step further: getting rid of the Romans was only the first step on the ladder to their idea of success; the ladder to wealth, fame and position!
All these people were listening to our Lord Jesus Christ with eager anticipation; they were waiting for further details; they were expecting positive steps to be taken soon that would turn their dreams of success into reality. And they thought that the time had finally arrived when Jesus began to speak about “being blessed”. You see, as soon as they heard that word they identified it with their dream of “success”. To them, “being blessed” was to receive what they wanted; what they were waiting for; what they expected.
In a way, congregation, does this not apply – in some measure – to us also? Oh yes, we are genuine in our desire to be blessed by our heavenly Father. We may not even consider material blessings as the first thing. We are confessing Christians who know our need of God’s forgiving grace in Christ as our most urgent and constant need. And yet, do we not often pray for God’s blessing while we expect – in our heart of hearts – to receive that which pleases us and to go the way we want rather than God’s way? But is that not also a looking out for a worldly kind of “success” rather than a spiritual anticipation of fully becoming one with Christ in His design and purpose and in His service and love? What does our text say?
“BLESSED ARE THE MEEK”
Now, as we shall see, our Lord Jesus Christ speaks here about a ministry He expects from us; a ministry we must engage in and be involved in: the MINISTRY OF THE MEEK. And concerning this Ministry of the Meek our Lord – thru His Word speaks to us about its NATURE, its OBJECT and its BLESSING.
What is your reaction, brothers and sisters in the Lord, as soon as that word “MEEK” is mentioned in your hearing? We know what the world at large thinks about it, as soon as that word comes up there is a reaction of resentment. To the world MEEKNESS is equivalent to WEAKNESS, and weakness is synonymous with FAILURE. Because we are told when you are WEAK you are a loser in this world. And who wants to be a loser? But now, how do people come to be meek? How do they come to be “mild, gentle of temper, submissive”, as the Oxford Dictionary describes meekness? Some people are meek by disposition; it is their nature. They are naturally timid, compliant, fearful people. In general you would say that they are not enough MEN or WOMEN to stand up and be counted. On the other hand, instead of being meek by design, they act as if they are meek because it suits them. They use outward meekness to hide behind. But it is a FRONT, a COVER-UP.
Who then are the MEEK our Lord Jesus Christ is talking about in our text? Are they the fearful ones the natural losers of this world? Or are they perhaps the crafty ones who in their various devious ways reap success after success in this life? Well, let us look for a moment at the context of our text. In verse 3 Jesus says: “Blessed are the poor in spirit”; in verse 4: “Blessed are those that mourn”. What does our Lord mean there? Are the “poor in spirit”, he talks about there, people with limited intelligence? And when He speaks of “those that mourn” does He talk about people who weep and wail at the first opportunity? Is that what Christ calls “blessed”? But how could our Lord Jesus Christ say such a ridiculous thing? Careful exegesis will show that “poor in spirit” means poor in what the world calls wisdom; it is that so-called wisdom which rejects the truth about man and about God. And therefore those who are called “poor in spirit” by Jesus are called “blessed” by Him, because they have come to see God and man as they truly are. God’s Holy Spirit has removed their blindness and has made them to see, acknowledge and live by the wisdom of God, They accept God’s wisdom rather then the world’s wisdom.
When we then turn to verse 4 where Jesus pronounces the blessed state of those who mourn we see that they are called “blessed” not because they grieve in the first place because of what happens to them in their daily life here on earth. Their mourning goes much deeper than that. They mourn because of what they are by nature in the sight of God: SINNERS in desperate need of God’s forgiving grace. Those who say to God “Lord be merciful to me a sinner….!” those are called blessed by our Lord Jesus Christ. And THAT is the context of our text.
Now, our text (verse 5) which says: “Blessed are the Meek” has the same deeper emphasis and meaning. The meekness Jesus talks about here is the result of a spiritual condition. Scripture says that those who are meek are those who submit to God and His will for them. They humble themselves before Him and give evidence of this in their relationship with, and attitude toward their fellow man. Think of Abraham. God Himself had promised him the whole land of Canaan. Yet Abraham let his cousin Lot choose in which particular area he wanted to settle. And think of Moses. In Numbers 12:3 we read that “….the man Moses was very meek, more than all men that were on the face of the earth”. God Himself had given Moses the authority to lead Israel, and God spoke with him almost daily, face to face. Yet when Moses’ authority was challenged by Aaron his brother and Miriam his sister, he did not argue about the matter, in fact he did not speak one word in return, but left it all to God’s judgment. And think of David, who slew Goliath the giant! David was anointed by God to be king of Israel. Yet he submitted himself to king Saul as long as Saul lived, and he refused to take Saul’s life when he had every opportunity to do so. And what do you think about the Apostle Paul? Paul suffered greatly under the treatment he received from members of various congregations. Particularly bad was Paul’s treatment by the congregation of Corinth, who called him names and treated him shamefully. And yet, Paul wrote letters to them full of love for them and concern for their well-being.
WERE THESE MEN LIKE THIS BY NATURE?
No,they were not like this at all. The Bible says that true meekness is a gift – a spiritual gift from God, which first of all makes you meek over against God Himself. And how necessary that was, and is, because – as a sinner – man by nature is the very opposite of being meek and humble. But God – in His grace – changed these men. He re-made them in the likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus went before us in meekness and humility. Jesus, the very Son of God – Who with the Father created the world and shared His glory in Heaven – “humbled Himself, taking upon Him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of man..” as Philippians 2:7 says. He came down among us to fulfil all righteousness, also as far as our meekness is concerned.
Spiritual meekness is part and parcel of the Christian’s faith and life. It is one of the ‘hallmarks” of the true child of God. It won’t get you praise and esteem from the world. Nor will you get praise from those “Christians” who think as the world does, in this respect. But it will make you victorious with Christ! We read of Christ in Psalm 45:4: “…In your majesty, ride forth VICTORIOUSLY for the cause of the TRUTH, MEEKNESS and RIGHTEOUSNESS.” But HOW did our Lord ride victoriously? Matthew 21:5: “Tell the daughter of Sion: Behold your KING, coming to you, humble and mounted on an ass….!”
This amazing meekness and humility we see right through our Lord’s life on earth. Think of His youth; He submitted Himself to His parents’ authority and wishes. Remember His teachings: the words that He spoke, He said, were not of Himself but of His Father in Heaven. And of course, among other examples, there is that very graphic illustration of Christ’s meekness and humility when He washed His disciples’ feet. True: it was to teach them to be meek and humble. But did He not do so by showing this humility and meekness Himself first? And think of His suffering and death in submission to His Father’s will. Did Jesus not say – time and again – that to do the will of His heavenly Father was His food and drink? And when Peter – in the garden of Gethsemane – drew a sword to save our Lord from being captured, Jesus left no doubt as to what should be done. Remember what He said: “…..Put your sword back in its place…. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and He will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way….?”
Congregation, it should be clear by now that true spiritual meekness is first of all – a state of surrender – full surrender to the will of God. “Not my will, but yours be done….!” Jesus prayed to God the Father. To Christ prayer came naturally although He was tempted, time and again. But to the born-again Christian, true biblical meekness is one of the given fruits of the Holy Spirit; as the apostle Paul writes to the Galatians.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, have you ever asked yourself why we often find it so hard to live in this meekness over against God as well as over against our fellow man? This is because the influence of the world upon our lives still seeks to play its part. The world says: “Do you believe that to be meek is to be blessed? You must be joking? Being blessed is having success in life. It is what you MAKE of it. And you can only do this YOURSELF. No one else will do it for you…!” This is what the world says. But do you see what is at the basis of this? It is PRIDE, which is the root of all sin. To the world, Meekness is Weakness. And Weakness brings DEFEAT and is therefore FOLLY! You must be strong – we are told you must be clever. You must throw your weight around. You must elbow to the top. Otherwise the other guy gets the better of you! But what does the Lord Jesus Christ say? “BLESSED ARE THE MEEK”. Which means: “Blessed are all those who commit their life to God, to His rule and to His will….!”
Now you might say: “I don’t elbow my way thru life; I don’t throw my weight around.” Well, that is good to hear of course. Praise God you don’t. But are there not other ways in which you can show the opposite of meekness, when the chips are really down for you? When you do not get YOUR way; that way which to you still has a religious flavour to it? It is rather easy to say: “Yes, to be meek is to do God’s will…!” But when God leads the circumstances in your life contrary to your ideas and will, are you then still so very sure that the commandment to be meek still stands for you? Well, let us observe what is the OBJECT of the Christian’s meekness.
The object of the meekness which God requires of His people is that God be glorified. But God can only be glorified in us, and through us and by us, if we live in the right relationship with Him. Abraham, Moses, David, Paul were all God’s friends. Their meekness was based on reverence for God’s will, as well as on a deep awareness of their personal unworthiness before God. When we struggle to be meek in the sense the Lord demands of us, we should always remember that we are nothing – and deserve nothing – in ourselves. That should make and keep us very humble. And because of that – at the same time – make and keep us very meek. Spiritual meekness is an outward expression of an inward attitude toward God. As we remarked before, we see this best of all displayed in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Himself…! As the apostle Peter says about Him in 1st Peter two verse 23: “When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.” Jesus in His meekness showed that He knew God the Father to be all-wise, in spite of what He – the Son – had to go through. And that God – in His wisdom – directed His way to the honour and glory of His holy name and the salvation of sinners. That was Jesus’ testimony.
If then we are united with Christ by faith, we must also be united with Him in His meekness. Otherwise there is something wrong with our faith! When Christ commands us to be meek, He commands us to SURRENDER ourselves. This surrender is not to enemies but to our heavenly Father. Our surrender to God is not only when it suits us, but it is at all times and in all circumstances. Only then may we expect God’s richest blessings. For only then shall we experience full fellowship with Him. And so, God’s will must become – more and more – our will, that our meekness may become a mirror of God’s love for sinners, reflecting God’s patience and compassion for all to see. O, that it may help to draw our unbelieving friend or neighbour to Christ; that it may help me bring our erring fellow-believer to repentance and back in the fold! May God be pleased to strengthen us in that meekness, day by day. For how we need that strengthening! For example, we are so easily inclined to be harsh and dogmatic about other people’s sins and shortcomings, especially about those of a fellow-believer. We think we have God on our side when we tell others the error of their ways in no uncertain terms. If we are not careful we can easily fall into the trap of feelings of spiritual superiority. Pride follows in its wake and our meekness becomes a caricature. Somehow many of us have experienced this in our life, at one time or another. Both on the giving as well as on the receiving end. I am sure you will agree: it was not very helpful.
We do well to remember the apostle Paul’s warning to the Galatians (Galatians 6:1); “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself or you also may be tempted”. All right, but what if that gentleness is rejected? What if a person refuses to be reconciled? Well, we have Christ’s rule laid down for us in Matthew 18:15 through 17: “If your brother sins against you, do and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.” Congregation, this is what Jesus – the meek and mild and loving Jesus – teaches us. This shows us that our Lord does not demand of us a meekness that seeks after peace at any price. When the interest of God’s Kingdom is at stake, that which is wrong has to be opposed. Our Lord Himself was anything but meek when He told the Jewish leaders to their face: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.” And, congregation, remember for instance how our Lord cleared the temple courts, of men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. He made a whip out of cords and drove all from the temple area, because He said – they were turning God’s house into a market. How terrible was His anger, because zeal for His Father’s house consumed Him. (We read about this in John 2:13 to 18). Being united with Christ, also in His meekness, we must be united with Him also in His zeal for God’s kingdom and the honour of God’s name. O, how we need to learn from our Lord and His Word how to live a life of Christian service – in meekness – and so be blessed, as God promises.
Because a life lived in Christian meekness is a blessed life, says our Lord. The world says: MEEK is WEAK. Yes, says Scripture, but that weakness is the secret of POWER! “My power is fulfilled in weakness” says the Lord Jesus Christ. “When I am WEAK, then I am strong,” says the apostle Paul. To the world this makes no sense. It is so much NONSENSE to them. But the Christian knows: this weakness is trusting in God. And therefore it is the secret of STRENGTH, in Him! And the result is: wonderful PEACE. For when you exercise this Christian meekness, then God will use that to pour His love into our hearts; love which hears and obeys the promptings of the Spirit of Christ; Christ who says in Matthew 11:29 & 30, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for y your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
MEEKNESS is the easy yoke of Christ. It enables you, who are weary and heavy laden, to bear whatever yoke God lays upon you, without rebelling; without complaining. For when we bow before God’s will – in whatever circumstances – then we DO find rest in our souls. Through meekness by grace – you are then master, rather than slave, of your natural inclinations. And so, meekness makes you a spiritual victor, with Christ. This is what the Bible calls the victorious life with Christ. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”, Jesus teaches us in the Sermon on the Mount. To the unbeliever that is a laugh! Yet our Lord repeats – over and over again – that to those who follow Him – that is, to those so-called powerless and often persecuted ones – He will give the WHOLE EARTH! It will be theirs, and they will rule it, with Him. But the scoffers, who seek to take and rule the world by VIOLENCE, will loose it! As we read in Psalm 37: “For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land….!”
At the moment – while we are still waiting for our Lord’s RETURN – this is still in a spiritual sense only and therefore not visible to mortal eyes. But ONE DAY this will be true also in literal sense and for all eyes to see. Then – when our Lord Jesus Christ RETURNS on the clouds of heaven – all true children of God shall rule with Him VISIBLY and completely. They will forever be delivered from all sin and its consequences, from all sorrow, from all pain, from all death. But for now – while we are still called upon to serve God in this present sin-sick world – God wants us to fulfil His plan by serving Him in MEEKNESS. Now don’t say: “That’s not for me. I can never be meek”. Indeed you can’t. You cannot in your own strength. But our Lord Jesus Christ can make you meek in that demanded spiritual sense. He can make you meek by the wonderful working of His Holy Spirit. But He wants to be asked! “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened.” Turn them to Him, trust Him and obey Him. And BELIEVE that He grants His Spirit – and the fruits of His Spirit – to all who ask Him in faith and with a repentant heart.
And so, bearing one another’s burdens, fulfil the law of Christ. Overcome evil with good and win hearts for Jesus, with gentleness and love. Isn’t that one of the fundamental reasons for our being here on this earth? That God – in Christ – be glorified, that His kingdom be built and sinners come to repentance and salvation? That they also may be among the number of those who will inherit the earth?
But, congregation, pay heed then also to the WARNING attached to our text for today; indeed attached to all our Lord’s beatitudes in His Sermon on the Mount. And that warning is: “…..I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). The righteousness of these Jewish leaders was a righteousness they had worked themselves. We have seen a little earlier what our Lord Jesus Christ had to say about that. How terrible was His condemnation! May that be a warning to us. If we confess anything less than our complete dependence upon Jesus for everything including our salvation, our meekness is a make-believe meekness. This false meekness may fool our friends and neighbours for a while, but it won’t get you anywhere with Christ!
Therefore, as the apostle James also urges us: “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.” (Jas.3:13). “For,” says our Lord Jesus Christ, “Blessed are you when you serve me in MEEKNESS, for you shall inherit the earth.”
Amen.