The Fruit of the Spirit
Part 9 – Meekness
Rev. Bruce A. Shields
First Baptist Church Tawas City Michigan
www.TawasBaptist.org
WELCOME
We are continuing our Series on The Fruits of the Holy Spirit.
INTRODUCTION
This week we are going to discuss one of the most misunderstood Spiritual Fruits that Christians are to not only acquire, but actively produce in their Christian lives.
Remember, when you claim Christianity with your mouth, you are proclaiming by your faith that you belong to Christ.
But we are told that your Faith without your actions is dead!
So your proclamation of Christianity alone is meaningless unless you are producing Christian Fruits.
There are many in the world today who claims to belong to Christ, but act like they belong to the devil.
No matter how loud their words, their actions will always speak louder.
Your fruits will ALWAYS show of which Kingdom you belong.
A tree is always known by its fruit.
And the scriptures tell us, like we read last week, that we are the vine and Christ is the branch, therefore our fruit should show that.
If we are producing any other fruit, we are not attached to the branch, who is Christ.
You can only produce Spiritual Fruit by the Spirit of God.
The Spiritual Fruit of meekness is so misunderstood, and this is partly because of our culture.
We live in a world that tells us just the opposite of what the Word of God says.
Imagine that.
When have you ever heard someone say, “If you really want to be successful in life, you should try being meek?”
Or, “If you want to rise to the top and get somewhere in life, display a lot of meekness along the way?”
Meekness is not a characteristic that we really desire.
But it is a characteristic of our Lord.
And we are to promote this Spiritual Fruit in our lives.
This world’s philosophy of success tells us that we need to;
1. Be assertive / Aggressive
2. Go for the throat / Do whatever is necessary
3. Use your power to get what you want
Society always portrays the ‘tough guy’ image as being essential and attractive.
So because of our culture and society, we tend to shy away from Jesus’ words, “Blessed are the meek…”
Meek in our minds is thought to be weak, cowardly or wimpy.
So what is true meekness?
Not as the world says, but as God says.
How do we develop that characteristic of our Lord and produce its fruit in our lives?
Meekness is not weakness; it’s a person who is controlled, gentle and forgiving.
SCRIPTURE READING
Matthew 5:5
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”
PRAYER FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT AND UNDERSTANDING
When Jesus uttered these words, they were disputed and mocked.
The time Jesus lived in was not that different from the time we live in today.
Those who ruled the world then were the Religious Rabbi’s, the Superior Intellectual Greeks, and the Brute power of the Romans who practiced what was known as ‘Pax Romana’ which means Roman peace was a forced peace during the time period of 31BC – 80AD.
Today in our time we see a mixture of religious, intellectual & brute power which strives to gain kingdoms through assertiveness & aggressiveness.
The world misunderstood Jesus’ teaching 2000 years ago, and it has trouble grasping it today.
The world’s view of meekness as the dictionary defines is “lacking spirit or backbone.”
By that definition we suppose meekness to be, ‘Nice guys finish last.”
We see meekness as weakness
The world looks at the meek and fails to see the artistry of the Master.
It fails to grasp to true strength of someone who has submitted to the Spirit of God and is led by the Spirit.
Because we live in this world, and our views have been molded from birth, we need to redefine meekness.
We need to seek what the scriptures tell us about this Spiritual Fruit and discover why it is important in our lives and relationships with each other.
The Greek word used here in Matthew 5:5 is praus which means mild or humble.
This word basically refers to our humility before God, our total dependence on Him, our submission to His will and our hope in Him alone for our Salvation.
The freest man in the world is the meek man that loves being a servant of Jesus Christ, because he realizes he is not his own master, so he yields his passions as a bond servant to the Most High.
You see, meekness is humility.
To be meek is to be humble.
Why should we care?
1 Peter 5:5
“…God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble…”
Do you really want to be in opposition to God?
Or do you want God’s grace in your life?
2 Chronicles 7:14
“if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
Those who are called by His name must FIRST humble themselves before doing anything else!
After submitting to the Lord as His servant, becoming meek, you must pray, you must seek His face and you must turn from your wicked ways, and its then, and only then, God will hear you, and forgive you, and heal your land.
You see, God has two dwelling places.
One is in heaven, and one is in the hearts of the meek and the thankful.
This is what meekness is all about, strength under control, being unoccupied with self and genuinely concerned about God and others.
A perfect example of a meek man is Moses.
Let’s look at what kind of person Moses was.
Numbers 12:3
“(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.)”
That’s a pretty amazing title there.
More humble than anyone else on the earth.
But Moses was not wimpy, weak, spineless, or any other word that the world uses to define meekness.
Moses was one of the strongest leaders who ever lived.
By his nature, his human sinful nature, he was a hot-tempered individual.
That was a fruit of his flesh, being hot-tempered.
However, in most cases, Moses was enabled by God’s characteristic of meekness, to control his passion.
He controlled his passion in the form of humility because of his compassion and concern for the people of God.
Moses was humble towards God and mild before the people.
He was not so concerned for himself or his own position – but for the glory of God and the good of God’s people.
This is meekness, strength under control.
Moses displays a type of meekness that pleases God.
When the people bad mouthed Moses and his leadership abilities, Moses didn’t call on God to destroy them.
Moses stood in the gap for the very ones that had spoke against him and his abilities.
Not weakness, but strength through meekness.
When Aaron and Miriam spoke against Moses’ wife and family, God was going to bring judgment upon them.
Miriam was sick and would die outside the camp.
Miriam’s mouth got her in trouble for speaking against God’s people.
She was going to die a leper, and that is one of the worst death’s one could imagine to face.
But Moses prayed for her, not against her, even though she spoke against him!
Numbers 12:13
“So Moses cried out to the LORD, "O God, please heal her!"
God heard Moses’ meekness and honored his prayer.
But God still allowed Miriam to suffer for 7 days as a lesson to all not to speak against the meek, because He will defend them.
There are many blessings and promises for those who are meek in the scriptures.
Psalm 25:9
“He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.”
When we are humble, God leads us.
We don’t try to lead ourselves.
Psalm 147:6
“The LORD sustains the humble
but casts the wicked to the ground.”
Psalm 149:4
“For the LORD takes delight in his people;
he crowns the humble with salvation.”
Meekness is necessary, but never easy.
Often times it’s easier to stand and fight than it is to walk away.
I remember when I was attending tech school back in the late 80’s.
This was before I was a Christian, and there was a young Christian man who was in the same hydro-pneumatics class as I was.
His name was David.
And he was an average looking guy with a quiet and meek personality.
Always wore a shirt and tie to class.
He carried his Bible to class everyday, and everyday he was teased by the same group of kids.
This carried on throughout the year.
I asked him one day, “Why don’t you just stop carrying your Bible to class and those guys will leave you alone?”
David said something to me that changed my entire view of him.
He said, “But this is the Word of God!”
Although I didn’t appreciate the implication of the importance of God’s word, I understood his dedication to it.
He was willing to suffer humiliation rather than not carry his Bible.
I realized at that moment, the guy I thought was a wimp, a guy with no backbone because he wouldn’t stand up to the guys teasing him, the guy I thought was a sissy, was in reality much stronger than the guy teasing him, or myself or anyone else in that classroom for that manner.
It took far more guts to carry that Bible to class everyday than to not bring it, or fight about it.
He let them humiliate him on a daily basis.
Luke 6:27 – 29
“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also.”
It takes a man with a backbone to say in the Spirit of Meekness, I don’t have to fight, yell or fuss, God has a better plan.
It is the weak who give in to the flesh and its selfish desires, yelling, screaming, having to have their way, and in some cases even resorting to swinging their fists.
The meek have nothing to prove. They know who they are in Christ, whether others know it or not.
How did Stephen do it?
Acts 7:59 – 60
“While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep.”
He submitted to God, was faithful unto death, and prayed for those who hated him.
Sometimes we have to come down from the heights we have raised ourselves to, in order for us to be used by God.
As long as we think we are something, we are useless to the Kingdom of God.
Romans 12:14 – 16
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.”
Conceit and pride will cause us to sin every time.
It will cause us to not live in harmony with each other.
It can cause clicks and factions within the body of Christ, which we are warned against having.
Pride desires the praise and rewards of men,
But the mystery of God is revealed to the meek.
The Meek grow in the church, in Sunday school, in Bible Study and in prayer.
There are many sins involved when someone elevates themselves above anyone else.
1. Lifting yourself up.
2. Putting others down.
3. Opening the door for the devil to come in many temptations.
It was Lucifer’s lifting up of himself that cost him eternity in heaven.
Proverbs 16:18
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”
As the well known saying goes, “Pride cometh before the fall.”
Pride is the opposite of meekness.
Pride comes before destruction and an arrogant spirit before a fall.
We can see examples of meekness, or humility, all through the scriptures in godly people.
David never describes his victory over Goliath in the Psalms.
John the Baptist says in John 3:30 – “He must increase, I must decrease”
Meekness is not merely the absence of pride and arrogance, but the fullness of the presence of God.
Jesus is full of the spiritual fruit of meekness.
Matthew 21:5
“…Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon a colt…”
Jesus did not ride into Jerusalem during the Passover on a steed as an earthly King proclaiming his greatness.
He came humbly to show through meekness His submission to the will of God the Father which came by the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 11:28 – 30
“28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Jesus had meekness & humility which came from the Holy Spirit.
God’s character, evident in Christ’s life.
We need to have meekness in discipline, in restoration of a brother, in forgiveness, in ministry, in teaching, in speaking, in receiving instruction, in our behavior, in our witness.
In every area of life, in our relationship with other people, we must treat them with gentleness and respect, not acting as if we are better than others.
Humbly, acknowledging that everything good in us comes from God, and that apart from Him we are nothing but unprofitable servants.
CONCLUSION
A person who is producing the Spiritual Fruit, the Characteristic of God, knows who they are and they know where they are going.
They know who they belong to, and they know there is nothing to prove.
Today, right now, in this church, we must set aside our personal agendas and our opinions; and like Jesus Christ, be SPIRIT CONTROLLED, GENTLE, FORGIVING & HUMBLE.
Submitting ourselves to complete control of the Holy Spirit.
Within our meekness, our actions will speak even louder than our words ever could.
We only need to ask ourselves 1 question each morning when we wake;
1. Will I depend on God’s ability today, or my own?
Titus 3:1 – 7
“Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.
3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”
CLOSING
If you are struggling with meekness, or being humble, it may be that there is something in your life preventing this Fruit from growing.
Whether it be bitterness, anger, un forgiveness, perhaps gossips, or slander, or maybe you have never truly submitted to the Lord, its not too late.
Perhaps you have never called on the Lord to be your savior, if the Lord has spoke to your heart today, come forward during the closing and allow us to pray for you.
The Lord wants your burdens to be placed on Him, and He wants to give you peace, and rest in your Soul.
Please answer His call in your heart. Let’s do this now.
