The Importance of a Gentle Spirit
Matthew 5:5
INTRODUCTION
Aristotle was a great Greek thinker and philosopher of the fourth century B. C. For him, the virtues of life were always defined as the mean between an excess and a lack of that virtue. He saw courage as the mean between cowardliness and foolish actions. He saw generosity as the mean between stinginess and waste. And he saw meekness or gentleness as the mean between excessive anger and the inability to show any anger at all. For him, the person who was meek was one “who is angry on the right occasion and with the right people and at the right moment and for the right length of time.”
This verse takes us a step further on the ladder of happiness by considering the idea of gentleness or meekness. Christ has told us already that we need poverty of spirit. We need to recognize our need for him. Second, we are to mourn. We are to mourn over sin in our world and in our individual lives. We must have a sound social conscience.
To the above ideas we now add the idea of gentleness. Again, as before, what Jesus teaches is foreign to our normal way of thinking. He says if we are to be happy we must have a gentle spirit. Such an attitude in not prevalent in our day nor has it been in past history. The prevailing attitude among most people now and in the past is pride not gentleness. We need to look out for our interests and ourselves not that of others. We should not let others treat us unfairly without getting justice or revenge.
Those of Jesus’ day were no different. They were a proud people who were looking for a conquering Messiah who would deliver them from their enemies and restore what they assumed was their rightful place in the world. Messiah would deal with the Romans, who oppressed them at the present time. The Jews despised such oppression and looked forward to deliverance from this bondage.
Though they were God’s chosen people for a period of time, they came to believe that only they were the people of God. This is why the early missionaries had so much trouble convincing the Jews that God was now accepting the Gentiles. The Jews thought the Messiah would be theirs alone. The pride of some of the religious leaders rose to such a degree that they did not like to even admit that they had ever been in bondage to anyone.
All of the religious sects of Jesus’ day looked for the Messiah, but they all had different views of him. The Pharisees looked for a Messiah who would dramatically appear and deliver the Jews from the bondage of Rome. The Sadducees looked for a Messiah who would arrange a political compromise with the Romans. The Essenes withdrew from society into their own little groups. And the Zealots violently opposed the Roman bondage and looked for a Messiah who was a military leader.
With this in mind, we can better understand why they did not expect a Messiah who was gentle in spirit as Jesus was. They were not looking for humility and therefore did not accept or understand Jesus. They did not identify the Messiah with the Suffering Servant the prophet Isaiah spoke of. They did not look for a Messiah who would allow his rights to be violated and who would die on a cross.
As Jesus tells us of the importance of having a gentle spirit, he is only asking us to follow his example.
WE MUST BE MEEK
As we look at what meekness means, we will better understand that it is not a natural characteristic of humanity but is a supernatural working of God’s Spirit in our lives that results in this trait. The word gentle or meek means to be mild or soft. It carries the idea of soothing medicine or a soft breeze that is gently blowing. When it is applied to humanity it means that we are to be gentle of spirit, submissive, quiet or tenderhearted.
Jesus displayed such a spirit when he made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It was evident by the type of animal he chose to ride. He chose a donkey not a white horse. He was not coming to conquer Rome or be a military leader. He was not coming to stand up for his rights but to lay down his life for others.
Meekness, however, doe not mean to be cowardly, weak, indolent or spiritless. Jesus certainly was not any of those. It actually means to have high spirits, courage and great strength. One scholar translates the Beatitude as follows: “Blessed is the man who is always angry at the right time, and never angry at the wrong time. Selfish anger is always a sin; selfless anger can be one of the great moral dynamics of the world.” So it is never right for us to be angry when we have been insulted or injured. Jesus wasn’t. But it is always right for us to be angry when others have been insulted or injured.
Meekness also carries the idea of behaving. It was a word used of animals that had been domesticated. Animals that have been trained or domesticated learn to accept the control of their masters and are properly behaved. If we have been to the circus, we have witnessed this. It was also used of people who belonged to the upper class of society because they were usually polite, balanced and well mannered. As Christians we too are to be polite, balanced and well mannered.
A final idea behind the meaning of meekness is to have a subservient and trusting attitude toward God. This is probably the primary meaning that Jesus referred to. It means to realize that we are sinners who are unworthy of God’s grace and mercy. When we realize this, we turn our eyes to God and see how holy and righteous he is. It means having a proper vertical view. When we realize our unrighteousness, we will desire to be clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
Jesus came to proclaim a kingdom characterized by meekness. Though many would not and have not accepted this style of living, it has been the way of God from the beginning. Eliphaz, in speaking to Job, said, “He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety.” (Job 5:11) It was said of Moses, the man God chose to lead his people out of Egyptian slavery and through the wilderness to the Promised Land, that he was humble and that this pleased God. The psalmist said, “The humble He guides in justice, And the humble He teaches His way.” (Psalm 25:9)
So meekness is about power under control. The meek person will be free of violence and vengeance. They will have died to selfish desires. They will be interested in looking out for others more so than for themselves. Serving others will bring them joy. Even when they are insulted or injured by others in some way, they will love rather than retaliate. Though the meek person has the power to insult and abuse for wrongs committed against them, they will control that power. Not only is this power under control but it is surrendered to God.
One wrote; “I used to think that God’s gifts were on shelves one above another and the taller we grow the easier we can reach them. Now I find that God’s gifts are on shelves one beneath another and the lower we stoop the more we get.”
SEE THE NECESSITY FOR MEEKNESS
Meekness is not a trait that we can take or leave and then expect to live a fulfilled Christian life. It is a necessity. It is necessary for salvation. Until people humble themselves before God and admit their helplessness apart from him, they cannot be saved.
Meekness is necessary in our witnessing. Pride will always stand in our way of sharing the love of Jesus. People have this picture in their minds of what Jesus was like, and meekness usually characterizes that picture. Why then would they listen to us if we who claim to be his followers are not like him?
Meekness is necessary if our lives are to bring glory to God. God is never pleased with pride and his Word warns against it over and over again. When we are proud we are edifying ourselves and not him.
THE RESULT OF A GENTLE SPIRIT
Jesus says those who are meek will inherit the earth. This does not mean that Christians will necessarily own oil wells, live the lifestyle of the rich and famous or own blocks of downtown Manhattan. The promise pertains to the future.
But in a sense we do inherit the earth now, for the meek individual is the one who is content and satisfied with what God has given them. Since the God we worship really owns the world and everything in it, and since Christians have been made partakers with Christ, we in a sense own all things even now. With this in mind, we need to take care of what is ours and thank all those who help us do that.
Of course, Jesus’ primary reference is to the future. Paul tells us that the saints will judge the world. We may have to endure sorrow and suffering now, but when Christ returns we will rule and reign with him while we enjoy a new heaven and a new earth.
We know from reading the first book in the Bible that God originally gave humanity the responsibility of having dominion over his creation, but we quickly distorted our ability to do that properly by our rebellion against him. But in the future, when Christ returns, we will once again have the ability to do what God initially commanded of us.
By the summer of 1848, San Francisco was almost a ghost town. Two thirds of the adult males of Oregon had left for the gold fields. After President Polk confirmed the “extraordinary character” of the strike in his message of December 1848, there was no containing those who were seeking gold. During 1849, some 25,000 Americans made their way from the East by ship. More than 55,000 made the trek across the continent. Some 8,000 Mexicans, 5,000 South Americans and Europeans joined in the search for gold.
But in the end all of this world’s inheritance will belong to those who belong to God.
CONCLUSION
How important that we see the need of a meek spirit and that we have a meek spirit so that we can truly inherit all that God has in store for us.
