In the third week of the season of Epiphany we are considering the third of the Beatitudes found in Matthew 5. Jesus tells the crowds Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5 NIV). Other translations say blessed are the gentle (New American Standard and others) or blessed are the humble (New Living Translation and others). The Amplified Bible expands the word even further to read, Blessed [inwardly peaceful, spiritually secure, worthy of respect] are the gentle [the kind-hearted, the sweet-spirited, the self-controlled], for they will inherit the earth.
In Matthew 11:29 Jesus refers to himself as being meek. He
says, take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in
heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. Jesus also modeled meekness
in the servanthood of washing his disciples' feet. Aligning our lives with the
meekness of Jesus is a way to inherit and live into the Kingdom of God.
But what exactly is this ‘meekness’ or ‘humility’ or
‘gentleness’ that Jesus invites us to participate in? Is it the attitude of
putting others needs ahead of our own? Is it seeing the face of God in each and
every one and in all parts of creation? Is it the Golden Rule? Is it all of
these and more?
In the Letter to the Romans, we are told, by the grace
given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than
you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure
of faith God has given you. (Romans 12:3) That is the core of meekness. To
know we aren’t the most important thing in the world and to be open to God’s
leading and loving.
That is the opposite of what we are told by the world we
live in. Culture insists we should be prepared and look out for ‘number one’. As
the song in the musical South Pacific says we’ve “got to be carefully
taught…to hate all the people our relatives hate.” Meekness is the offering of
one-self to God and to others in love.
Matthew Dickerson notes, “As many have pointed out, meekness
is not the same as weakness, but it does involve humility and a willingness not
to use our power to dominate others. In that way, it is a type of
vulnerability. Paul…is more explicit about embracing weakness. But God chose
the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of
the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27). Paul’s teaching
suggests both that we not avoid or deny our weakness, and also that we not
follow the world’s so-called “wisdom” that values strength and disdains
vulnerability.”
The Good News of God tells us in Christ we, though many,
form one body, and each member belongs to all the others (Romans 12:5).
Instead of looking out for just ourselves we are to try to please everyone
in all I do. For I am not seeking my own good, but the good of many, that they
may be saved (1 Corinthians 10:33).
How can we be the counter-cultural humans we are meant to
be? Desmond Tutu is quoted as saying, “Do your little bit of good where you
are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” Henri
Nouwen offers further advice in this graphic and concludes, “I must trust that
the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world
and the life to come.”
