BLESSED ARE THE MEEK. Text: Matthew 5:5

Transcription

1 Key Word: Blessed Key Thought: Blessed Are the Meek BLESSED ARE THE MEEK Text: Matthew 5:5 The order of the beatitudes are very important. We began with the poverty of spirit which was understood as our insufficiency. We then took note of the mourning which we experience over the sin of others and of our own. These things lead us to a meekness of soul. One thing we need to understand from the beginning of this message is a proper definition of the word "meek." Glancing through a number of English dictionaries give us the meaning of "submissive, easily imposed on, humble, gentle disposition, showing patience, lacking spirit or backbone, soft." Most of these definitions have lost the Biblical meaning of the word. The Bible offers us many examples of those who were meek. "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle (meek) and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." "Say to the daughter of Zion, 'See your king comes to you, gentle (meek) and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. 4. Instead it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle (meek) and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." Matthew 11:29 Matthew 21:5 Zechariah 9:9 I Peter 3:3,4 Page 1 of 9

2 "And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25. Those who oppose him he must gently (meekly) instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth. II Timothy 2:24,25 The Bible uses the word not simply in our outward behaviour or our relationship with others. Rather it is a broadened insight into the soul of people. It gazes chiefly at ones attitude toward God. We can never be meek with God until we are meek before God. It is very closely linked with the word "humility." "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing one another in love." Ephesians 4:2 It is also very closely related with self control. The final two Fruit of the Spirit bring out this relationship. "But the fruit of the Spirit is gentleness and self-control. Against such there is no law." Galatians 5:22,23 Meekness is exemplified in the life of a person who is in control of his reactions to the difficulties of life. A meek person is not a weak person. Aristotle was one who described this Greek word in clarity. His method was often to explain words by teaching on their extremes. This word was described as neither being excessive in anger nor excessive in angerless. Anger was acceptable only in proper limits. A meek person is able to control his anger at all times. "Blessed is the man who is angry at the right time and in the right way." A rule of thumb is that it is seldom right to be angry for any insult or injury done to yourself but it is often right to be angry of the injuries done to others. Selfish anger is always sinful. Page 2 of 9

3 A second important use of the word is when it described an animal that had been domesticated and trained to obey verbal commands or gestures (pulling on the reins). In other words, "Blessed is the man who has every instinct, every impulse, every passion under control. Blessed is the man who is entirely selfcontrolled or more importantly, God-controlled." With this foundation in place lets consider the first use of this word in the Bible found in Numbers 12. It s interesting to me that the twelve spies were sent out (in Numbers 13) to explore the land only after the meekness of Moses was established. It s indeed the meek who will inherit the earth. I. THE TEST OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:1-3) II. THE TRIUMPH OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:4-13) III. THE TIMING OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:14-16) I. THE TEST OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:1-3) The rebellions of the Israelites up to this point in the desert surrounded the feelings of being deprived of the riches of the land of Egypt (food & water etc). This time Miriam and Aaron were concerned about being deprived from acknowledgment as leaders. They didn't like taking the back seat to their younger brother. The test that came to Moses was as close to home as you can get. They were attacking Moses' choice of a wife as a disguise of their concern of his pre-eminent calling from God. Miriam led the way and Aaron followed. Aaron offered no more resistance than he had at the foot of Mount Sinai when he fashioned the people's earrings into a golden calf (Exodus 32). It is most likely that Zipporah (the Midianite) had died. This would have been Moses' second wife therefore. She was a Cushite which meant she was a descendant of Ham the son of Noah who had exposed the nakedness of his drunken father and was cursed because of it (Genesis 9:20-25). Anyone who has had their spouse attacked understand the anger that can quickly arise. "The size of a man is measured by size of the thing that makes him angry." "To be angry with a weak man is proof that you are not very strong yourself." "Blowing your stack adds to air pollution." Page 3 of 9

4 I. THE TEST OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:1-3) (Contd.) Moses could have easily tried to defend his action and retorted back at his sister and brother but he chose to respond with meekness. He was tested, tried and true. "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1 *** A boy once asked, "Dad, how do wars begin?" "Well, take the First World War, said his father. "That got started when Germany invaded Belgium." Immediately his wife interrupted him: "Tell the boy the truth. It began because somebody was murdered." The husband drew himself up with an air of superiority and snapped back, "Are YOU answering the question, or am I?" Turning her back on him in a huff, the wife walked out of the room and slammed the door as hard as she could. When the dishes stopped rattling in the cupboard, an uneasy silence followed, broken at length by the son when he said, "Daddy, you don't have to tell me any more. I know now!" *** Miriam also attacked her brother with these words, "Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?... Hasn't he also spoken through us?" Michael Green Illustrations for Biblical Preaching #15, p. 19 Numbers 12:2 Miriam was set apart as a prophetess (Exodus 15:20). Aaron was given the privilege as the high priest to be the only one who could use the Urim and Thummim. Page 4 of 9

5 I. THE TEST OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:1-3) (Contd.) "Also he put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastpiece, so they may be over Aaron's heart whenever he enters the presence of the LORD. Thus Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the LORD." Exodus 28:30 They tested Moses' right of leadership. Instead of retaliating he chose to let God vindicate him. No one can lead others until he has mastered himself. "Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city." II. THE TRIUMPH OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:4-13) Proverbs 16:32 God took over when Moses let go. The three were called to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. God appeared in the form of the pillar of cloud. Aaron and Miriam were called forward as God spoke. He made it very clear that Moses gained an access to God like no other person on earth had been given. God didn't speak to him in visions and dreams but rather face to face. God's anger was directed at them because of their attack against Moses. Miriam, as the instigator was dealt the severe blow of having leprosy. This struck a note of fear into the heart of Aaron. He wasn't about to continue in this sinful attitude against Moses. This is where we see that Moses indeed was very meek, more than anyone else upon the earth. He could have begun to ridicule his sister and brother. He could have taken the position of one saying, I warned you! or I told you to back off! Here we see the full force of his meekness. "So Moses cried out to the LORD, 'O God, please heal her!" Numbers 12:13 Moses did not take advantage of the situation. Here stood the man who had chosen the wilderness over the palace. Here was the one who argued with God at the burning bush, Page 5 of 9

6 II. THE TRIUMPH OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:4-13) (Contd.) "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt." Exodus 3:10 Indeed Moses was taught the truth of the Psalmist, "He guides the humble (meek) in what is right and teaches them his way." Psalm 25:9 Jesus triumphed over the test of His day by riding into Jerusalem upon a donkey instead of a white horse (Matthew 21:5). Paul the apostle taught the early church the triumph of meekness. "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." III. THE TIMING OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:14-16) Galatians 6:1 There are several things which must be addressed concerning God's timing. One thing is for sure that God does not work according to OUR timing. We can neither speed Him up nor slow Him down. Miriam found out the hard way that God has a timing when dealing with meekness. We don't become meek overnight. We often have to go through a series of events which tend to humble us before we acquire Biblical meekness. Miriam had to face the same embarrassment as one who had her father spit in her face. She was secluded from the rest of the people outside of the camp for seven days. Seven is the number of completeness in the Bible. God completed a work in her life during those seven days. Never again did she make this mistake. During this time the children of Israel stayed in their location. This would make everyone aware of her sin. In other words, she was completely exposed before her people. God did not do things under the rug. Our God is an open God. There are times He will bring certain things to light in order to develop in us a greater measure of meekness. God will test our nature to see how we will respond in certain situations. Page 6 of 9

7 III. THE TIMING OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:14-16) (Contd.) The people stayed at "Hazeroth" (courts or villages) until the issue of meekness was resolved. In other words, they could not inherit the vast land of promise until they dealt with their inner strife. Once Miriam was dealt with they could on. The Bible says they continued onto the "Desert of Paran" (ornamental). It was here that God wanted to adorn them with beauty and riches. It was here that they sent out the 12 spies to search out the land. It was here that they should have gone on to inherit the land. Yet they again missed the blessing of God because they would not walk in a spirit of meekness. They became so angry that they were ready to kill Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb. "But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the Tent of Meeting to all the Israelites." Numbers 14:10 God came to His limit for their improper attitude toward His chosen leadership. In fact, God would have destroyed the people if Moses in his meekness had not intervened. Moses reminded God of His nature. "The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished... Numbers 14:18 God went on to make it very clear that none of the unbelieving and those who would not act in a spirit of meekness would inherit the land of promise. God made the children spend forty years in the wilderness for their sin. The timing was not something vague that God pulled out of the air. "For forty years - one year for each of the forty days you explored the land - you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you." Numbers 14:34 Page 7 of 9

8 III. THE TIMING OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:14-16) (Contd.) God follows a planned timing for everything He does. The day is soon approaching for our text to be fulfilled. God is about to give us the ultimate land to inherit. Only the meek will receive it. Those who will not humble themselves before God will not inherit the kingdom of God. Just as the children died in the wilderness so will all those die outside of the promised land who refuse to walk in meekness. "O THE BLISS OF THE MAN WHO IS ALWAYS ANGRY AT THE RIGHT TIME AND NEVER ANGRY AT THE WRONG TIME, WHO HAS EVERY INSTINCT, AND IMPULSE, AND PASSION UNDER CONTROL BECAUSE HE HIMSELF IS GOD-CONTROLLED, WHO HAS THE HUMILITY TO REALIZE HIS OWN IGNORANCE AND HIS OWN WEAKNESS, FOR SUCH A MAN IS KING AMONG MEN!" William Barclay The Gospel of Matthew p. 98 Can I also say that we should not get our eyes simply on our eternal reward and forget about the present benefits of walking in spirit of meekness. "He that rules his spirit is better than he who takes a city." Proverbs 16:32 C:\My Documents\WPWin(X7)\Sermons.2015\Beatitude\Matthew 5_5.wpd Date: Nov 8/15 Place: FCA Time: 10:30 Am Song: Lord Be Glorified - D, C Page 8 of 9

9 Key Word: Blessed Key Thought: Blessed Are the Meek BLESSED ARE THE MEEK Text: Matthew 5:5 The order of the beatitudes are very important. We began with the poverty of spirit which was understood as our insufficiency. We then took note of the mourning which we experience over the sin of others and of our own. These things lead us to a meekness of soul. One thing we need to understand from the beginning of this message is a proper definition the word "meek." Glancing through a number of English dictionaries give us the meaning of "submissive, easily imposed on, humble, gentle disposition, showing patience, lacking spirit or backbone, soft." Most of these definitions have lost the Biblical meaning of the word. The Bible offers us many examples of those who were meek. Matthew 11:29; Matthew 21:5 (Zechariah 9:9); I Peter 3:3,4 II Timothy 2:24,25; Ephesians 4:2; Galatians 5:22,23 I. THE TEST OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:1-3) - Exodus 32; Genesis 9:20-25; Proverbs 15:1; Numbers 12:2; Exodus 15:20; Exodus 28:30; Proverbs 16:32 II. THE TRIUMPH OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:4-13) - Numbers 12:13; Exodus 3:10; Psalm 25:9; Matthew 21:5; Galatians 6:1 III. THE TIMING OF MEEKNESS (Numbers 12:14-16) - Numbers 14:10; Numbers 14:18; Numbers 14:34; Proverbs 16:32