Power Under Control

VIDEO - Superman

If that guy only knew how close he was to… well, facing the fists of the strongest man in the universe.

The truck driver had no idea he was messing with Superman! But instead of losing his cool, Superman walked away!

Superman had the power to absolutely destroy that guy… but he didn’t. The truck didn’t fare quite as well but the driver lived and had an interesting story to share.

This is an example of power… under control.

Now, what would an example of power NOT under control look like? Well, maybe something like this.

VIDEO - Black Adam

So… Black Adam caught the guy and decided in the moment to… dispose of him. “He didn’t make it” was an accurate description of what happened but… it was because Black Adam did not have control of the power he had.

So why tell a fictional story about a couple of superheros as we begin our message tonight? Because America loves a good movie about superheros that display amazing power.

And… Superman is a great example of what power looks like under control.

Did you know that… He was first imagined in 1933 by two high school students from Cleveland Ohio. His mission has been one of helping the helpless but never using his power for personal gain or out of retaliation.

Another one of my favorites is… a superhero that operates under the wisdom that says, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Spider-man has some pretty killer moves! Consider the fact that he takes on a super soldier and Falcon and doesn’t even flinch!

This teenager could thump just about anyone… and yet he keeps his power… UNDER CONTROL!

Now, I don’t think any of us in this room has the power to shish kebob a truck with logs or throw a guy over a mountain range… or stop a guy with a metal arm from breaking your face... but… each of you have power.

Think about this, when uncle Ben gave Peter Parker the sentence that became his tag line, Ben had no idea that Peter had super hero powers.

Power comes in all shapes and sizes. Power might look like:

Athletic ability

Creative ability

Musical ability

Communication ability

Understanding ability

Intellectual ability

We don’t have to be from another planet, or be bitten by a radioactive spider to gain power. Power often comes from within and how we use that power… is important. Before superheros were a thing and LONG before Uncle Ben was a figment of Stan Lee’s imagination… Jesus had something to say about… power.

Tonight we are going to look at the third beatitude given to us by Christ in His Sermon on the mount. Our series is helping us to build a strong foundation in Jesus… and Jesus starts off by addressing our attitude. Instead of telling us what our attitude should not be, He tells us what it should be.

Matthew 5:5 NIV

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Now wait a minute? I see no mention of power. This is talking about being… meek. What does it mean to be meek? While dictionary.com has much to say about the word my favorite definition is power under control.

While Superman and Spider-man do have impressive accomplishments and may I add, fictional accomplishments, there is one who tops all super hero’s who actually walked on this earth. His name is Jesus Christ.

Jesus truly demonstrated what it means to be meek. Jesus had all power and authority… yet He FULLY submitted to God’s plan for salvation.

Matthew 26:53 NIV

53 Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?

At ANY moment, Jesus could have called down the armies of heaven… but He didn’t. Why? Because He had the right attitude - He was about the Father’s business.

This evening I want to look deeply at what it means to be meek and examine the benefits of holding to this attitude.

We all have power that we sometimes overlook. I want us to examine where our power lies and how we can appropriately utilize it to further the Kingdom of God.

HEAR The Word

Meek Vs. Weak

The first point I want to clarify is that to be “meek” is often mistaken for being “weak”.

While on the surface, the two do have some similarities, when one examines their true meanings, they will find they are completely different.

Weakness is the inability to do something. Powerless.

Weakness is caused when we neglect to strengthen areas of our lives OR the circumstances at hand overpower our strength.

Weakness can be corrected by building or exercising specific areas of our lives or by leaning on someone with greater strength.

To be weak is not a choice; it is a status or condition.

Whether it’s a result of neglect or outside circumstances, we do not choose to be weak.

Correction: we do choose weakness IF we deny ourselves opportunity to become… stronger.

To be meek is something completely different.

It’s a choice. The power or strength resides within and it’s kept under control.

Jesus is the ultimate example of this very attitude.

Fully man AND fully God. He could have saved himself from His accusers in a number of different ways. Instead, He chose (there’s that word again!) to follow God’s plan instead of personal agenda.

Just as Jesus was submissive to God and to his Will, we too should be submissive and humble to God.

And in this submissiveness, our weakness becomes a place for God’s power to shine!

2 Corinthians 12:9–10 NIV

9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

In our weakness, the power of Christ becomes our strength!!!

Who better than to trust with our lives than the ultimate power in this and any other universe?

You keep speaking of power under control. What kind of power do we posses that needs to be kept under control? Simple. The power of attitude!

Our attitudes have great influence over all we say and do. In fact, I suggest our attitude can produce two different results.

Power to tear down or to build up.

Our attitude is greatly communicated by our words and our actions. Both have the ability to either tear down or build up.

Your attitude is… a powerful thing! With this in mind, let’s look at how we can...

LIVE the Word.

The power of attitude… under control.

Our words, for instance, can be words of encouragement or of sound advice. They can also be words of complacency or words of destruction.

One of the largest lies ever stated by a child is “sticks and stones may break my bones but your words will never hurt me.” HA! This could not be further from the truth.

Words are strong and powerful. They can do a great deal of damage emotionally when used for destruction. The attitude BEHIND the words makes all the difference.

Within our bodies God created a little but very powerful muscle called the tongue. While the tongue itself may appear harmless, it requires a great deal of attention and control.

James 3:6–8 NIV

6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

If not kept under control, the tongue can do a lot of damage very quickly.

Bottom line: either you are in control of your tongue or your tongue is in control of you.

How do we bring our tongue into submission? By storing up good things in our hearts.

Luke 6:45 NIV

45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

Our words reveal what we have stored up in our heart. They truly have the ability to rip people to shreds if allowed. But we are called to keep this power under control. Store up within your heart the teachings and the love of Christ and speak nothing but kindness and encouragement with your tongue.

Okay, we’ve got the tongue covered but what about our actions?

James 1:22–25 NIV

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Be listeners AND doers of the Word.

Take to heart commands like love your neighbor as yourself, or in all your ways acknowledge Him, or do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Our actions reveal who we listen to. Listen intently to the Word of God. It directs us and teaches us how to interact with others in this world. My prayer is that God can be seen in all I say and do. I choose to keep control of my attitude by filling my heart with Godly things and listening intently to and doing what His Word commands.

Check Point: When meekness turns into weakness.

When we loose control we are not gaining in strength. In fact, the exact opposite is at hand.

Signs of weakness in my life include the inability to keep my attitude in control.

It’s at that moment I realize “Uh oh… my spiritual strength meter is getting a bit low. I need to spend some time in the Word and on my face.”

Be very watchful for signs that indicate weakness on the rise

Times of concern:

When we are weary.

When we are in the heat of a moment

When we decide to take control instead of giving God control.

When you begin to feel weak… when you begin to lose strength… instead of losing control of your attitude, call on the name of Jesus. Remember: HIS POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN OUR WEAKNESS

Conclusion

The result of being meek is inheritance of the earth.

Hmmm… That’s an interesting concept. Typically we think of aggressive forces who would try to conquer and rule the world, but the Bible states the meek will ultimately inherit the earth.

When we are meek before the Lord we lay down our personal agendas and pride. We realize that God is our true source of power and strength. We are humble and submissive. We give praise and honor to the one who is worthy.

Through Him we receive forgiveness of sin. Through Him we receive eternal life. Through Him we will see the new heavens and new earth. Through Him we will see the enemy cast into the lake of fire forever.

Jesus truly is the way, the truth and the life. We are more than conquerors in Him.

Prayer.

Salvation

The ultimate expression of meekness. It takes a great deal of strength to admit that you need a Savior.

Attitude check

You may be here today and you would admit that from time to time you have a difficult time controlling your tongue or your actions.

I challenge you this evening to pray for control of such things.

It may be related to a specific circumstance.

It may be related to all of life in general.

Let’s take a moment this evening to ask God to help us remain in control of our attitudes.