Part 9: Walking With Meekness

INTRODUCTION

Meekness is not a word that you hear very often in our society...

The media doesn’t highlight stories of meekness…Meekness is often associated with a lack of personality or strength.

The definition of meekness is “a submissive and teachable spirit toward God that reveals itself in genuine consideration toward others.”

Meekness is willingness to yield, but it’s never spineless.

Meekness requires that we stoop down to meet the emotional needs of others.

Vance Havner said, “God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It’s the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It’s Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever.”

Jesus Himself was meek…that’s why He came in riding a donkey instead of a horse. It was a symbol of meekness.

WHERE DOES MEEKNESS COME FROM?

Meekness is produced by the Holy Spirit...

The meek will learn of God.

Psalm 25:9 AV

9 The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.

If we have our minds made up there is no point in asking God to guide us. We will rebel when God’s will is made known: “A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.” If we are to be guided we must be submissive, or as the Psalm puts it, we must be meek.

Let me give you an illustration...

A young believer comes to a counselor for guidance as to whether she should marry. The counselor asks: “Is he a Christian?” She says: “Oh yes. He’s a wonderful Christian. He never goes to church or reads his Bible but he’s a wonderful Christian.”

The counselor says “If he’s not a born-again believer God says you should not marry him. The Bible says you are not to be unequally yoked together with an unbeliever.” But that is not what she wants to hear, so she goes off and marries the boy anyway.

This girl might be saved herself but she certainly was not submissive to the Word of God. Any guidance in her case is not only useless, it is incriminating.

So the Bible sets forth the priorities of guidance: a person must be saved by the Lord and submissive to the Word of God if he is to know anything at all of God’s leading.

God refuses to play games with us in this area, and He is much too wise ever to be conned.

The meek will be supplied by God.

Psalm 22:26 AV

26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.

Meekness is not only produced by the Holy Spirit, but:

Meekness is praised by Jesus:

Matthew 5:5 AV

5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

In order to trust Christ as Saviour, it’s going to take meekness, and one day, those who have trusted Him will reign with Him:

Isaiah 29:19 AV

19 The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

WHAT DOES MEEKNESS DO?

Meekness will allow you to listen to what God has to say…It will allow you to accept God’s will for you life…It manifests itself in a gentle spirit.

Ephesians 4:2 AV

2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

Meekness properly responds in difficulty

We can’t control the actions of others, but we can control our response to them with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Titus 3:2 AV

2 To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.

Paul tells these people that the way they treat others is a testimony in the hands of God. They are told to avoid fighting and gossiping and just treat people with gentleness and meekness. He is merely telling them to have the testimony that they are different.

The way in which we conduct ourselves around others, and the way we treat others, is as powerful a witness as any we give with our lips. Someone has said, “What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you are saying.” That is true! When we live right and treat others as Jesus would treat them, by the way:

Luke 6:31 AV

31 And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.

Living right and treating people right is a powerful witness and God can use it for His glory. Of course, when we don’t treat others right, it is a powerful witness too!

1 Timothy 6:11 AV

11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

Remember the other week? We studied the subject of gentleness - Gentleness diffuses a bad temper. Meekness is the strength to back away from a fight you could win!

There was a missionary in Jamaica that was questioning some little boys on the meaning of Matthew 5:5 and asked “Who are the meek?” One boy answered, “Those who give soft answers to rough questions.” - That right there is a great answer, and one that we should all remember.

Meekness properly responds in difficulty, but:

Meekness properly responds in the Family

Ephesians 5:21 AV

21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

In context, Paul is talking here about the harmony of husbands and wives…In Ephesians 6:1-4 he relates this to children, and then in Ephesians 6:5-9, he relates this to masters and servants.

Does this suggest that the children tell the parents what to do, or that the masters obey the servants? Of course not! Submission has nothing to do with the order of authority, but rather governs the operation of authority, how it is given and how it is received.

Meekness is the ability to disagree agreeably - this is sadly lacking in our homes, churches, workplaces, and pretty much everywhere nowadays!

Often Jesus tried to teach His disciples not to throw their weight around, or seek to become great at somebody else’s expense. Unfortunately, they failed to learn the lesson, and even at the Last Supper they were arguing over who was the greatest (Luke 22:24–27).

When Jesus washed their feet, He taught them that the greatest is the person who uses his authority to build up people.

We are to esteem others “more important than ourselves” (Rom 12:10; Phil. 2:1–4). By nature, we want to promote ourselves, but the Holy Spirit enables us to submit ourselves.

Also:

Meekness properly responds in Witnessing

Here’s the simple truth ya’ll…Christians cannot win spiritual battles in the flesh!

1 Peter 3:15–16 AV

15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: 16 Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.

If we are to maintain a good conscience, we must deal with sin in our lives and confess it immediately (1 John 1:9).

We must “keep the window clean.” We must also spend time in the Word of God and “let in the light.” A good conscience is the result of obedience based on knowledge, and a good conscience makes for a strong Christian witness to the lost. It also gives us strength in times of persecution and difficulty.

No Christian should ever suffer because of evildoing, but at the same time, no Christian should be surprised if he suffers for welldoing.

Our world is so mixed up that people “call evil good, and good evil” and “put darkness for light, and light for darkness” (Isa. 5:20). The religious leaders of Jesus’ day called Him “a malefactor,” which means “a person who does evil things” (John 18:29–30).

How wrong people can be!

WHAT IS THE RESULT OF MEEKNESS?

It Reveals Christ in Us

Matthew 11:29–30 AV

29 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. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

When we are meek, we are being like Christ, so it reveals Christ in us. The goal of our lives should be to imitate Christ!

The fruit of the Spirit points to the fact that all of these attributes we’ve been studying, including meekness, collectively make up Christlikeness.

As we abide in Christ, all of "the fruit" of the Spirit get produced.

The fruit of the Spirit as a whole is basically a character sketch of Christ. What is the Spirit doing in us? He is conforming us into the image of Jesus!

It Reflects the Word of God

James 1:21–22 AV

21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

Meekness causes us to learn the Word:

A meek person is teachable, however, a person who cannot admit to any mistakes in life will end up a lonely person!

Meekness causes us to live the Word:

Philippians 2:16 AV

16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

“Holding forth the word of life” is to be an integral part of our manner of life in this dark world where death lays its blighting hand on all. But the walk comes before the talk. When people see us living the life, they will listen to what we have to say. If our lives are as attractive as that of our Lord, people will be eager to ask what makes us so different from other people. We will soon have opportunity to confess Christ to them.

CONCLUSION

Jesus is the ultimate example of meekness. When He endured the torment of Calvary, He still had all the power of His earthly ministry.

Think about it, He was still capable of raising the dead, healing the blind, and mending the hurting. He could have come down off that cross and destroyed the very soldiers who mocked Him.

In meekness though, He remained on the cross and endured the torment and the sin of the entire world!

The meekness Christ showed was anything but weakness! It was supernatural strength!

Colossians 3:12–13 AV

12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; 13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

If we are going to show forth the spirit of Christ, we have to put on meekness by His Spirit.