Sunday Recap: Blessed Are The Meek

Last week, Pete began discussing the Beatitudes in Matthew, Chapter 5.  If you missed it, you can read about it here.

This week, he went on and talked about Matthew 5:5 - Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  What do you think of when you hear the word meek?  What kind of person?  Doormat… geek… weak?

Pete defines meek for us as strength under control.  Someone who is meek will always be angry at the right time and never be angry at the wrong time.  They know who they are.  The meek don’t always have to win or have their way.  They are inconceivable strong!

Okay, now that we understand what Jesus meant by meek, let’s talk about what he means by ‘inherit the earth’.  Basically, that just means who will ‘win in life’.  Who will have all the stuff?  All the nice clothes, the big house, the awesome job… You see, they were worried about that back then, just as we are now.  Sad, isn’t it? 

Another place where the meek were spoken about was in Psalm 37:1-11:
¹Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; ²for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. ³Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. ⁴Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. ⁵Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this; ⁶He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. ⁷Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. ⁸Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret – it leads only to evil. ⁹For those who are evil will be destroyed, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. ¹⁰A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found. ¹¹But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity.

There are a couple of things you can take away from these verses.

1. Do not fret – He says it 3 times.  I have to assume he says it 3 times because he really wants it to sink in.  He does not want us to worry about anything!  Don’t worry about the people that are doing wrong things and still coming out ahead.  Because…
2. The meek will inherit the earth.  All the people that are able to keep their anger in check and not concern themselves with the people who are doing wrong.  They will enjoy peace and prosperity!
3. Also, just as a side note, the people Jesus was speaking to here had just had their land taken from them by the Babylonians, so this was just what they needed to hear at the time.

Again, in Matthew 5:38-42, having control over your emotions, or meek, is talked about:
³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’   ³⁹ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person.  If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. ⁴⁰ And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. ⁴¹ If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.  ⁴² Give to the one who asks you, and do turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."

Why should I give them my coat?  Why should I walk 2 miles instead of one?  Because you would be exhibiting strength under control.  You know that you don’t always have to win.

Some might say, “But wait, what if they do win?”  That’s okay, because Jesus says, ‘Blesses are the meek.’ 

We try to overcompensate when we don’t think we are getting what we deserve in life, because we think the disciplined, organized, put together people will inherit the earth.  The ones with the nice cars, nice house and nice job.  The most important thing to remember is that God orders the world differently than people order the world.  The people we think will win in life aren’t necessarily the one that will win.

The one major thing I got out of this service was to always try to keep my anger in check and not worry about what others are ‘getting’ in life.

Go here if you would like to hear the entire message.

If you have a Sunday Recap post, leave on Mister Linky below!