A Man among Men - Mighty Moses Meek & Mild

Introduction

This morning we will continue on in our study of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. As we have discussed over the last couple weeks now, Jesus began this sermon with what is referred to as the Beatitudes.

These Beatitudes are attitudes that ought to be found in the born again believer. They are character traits for Christian application.

As we have heard already in the first message, these aren’t traits that some possess and some don’t but rather they are traits that are to be found in every child of God.

They are character traits that are to be practiced but cannot be practiced unless you have been born again because they are traits that only the Holy Spirit of God can instill within us.

And we have seen in the past two messages now, how that the first two Beatitudes have to do with the process of being born again.

The first Beatitude we looked at was...Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

First, we must come broken before the throne of grace, empty and destitute of ourselves before we can be born again and blessed with an entrance into the kingdom of heaven.

Next, we looked at how the Bible says… Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

When we come broken in spirit and recognize we are spiritually bankrupt before God with no way of saving ourselves, it brings about a Godly sorrow that worketh repentance and we weep and mourn over our sinful state in the eyes of a Holy and righteous God.

But those tears of sorrow shall soon turn to tears of triumph when we come to God, broken and bankrupt, sorry for our sins because He sends the great comforter to live within us!

That special third person of the trinity that we so often overlook and take for granted, the Holy Spirit of God, the great comforter, comes and takes up residence inside of us when we see the sad, sinful state we are in and sorrow over our sins.

Blessed are those who mourn: for they shall be comforted!

And just as we have seen over the last two weeks how that these Be-Attitudes of the born again believer build upon one another, so also today, our next beatitude will do the same.

We come today to Beatitude #3 which is found in Matthew Chapter 5 Verse 5.

For context, as we have done with the other two, we will begin our reading in Matthew 5:1 and read down through Matthew 5:12.

If you have it would you say, Amen!

Introduction # 2

This morning we are going to do things a little different than we normally do.

Over the last couple weeks, we have mainly just stuck with the actual Beatitude and broke it down but this week as I was studying, there was a passage of scripture that I came across that I want us to look at in order to help us better understand what this Beatitude actually means.

And that reading is going to come from the Book of Numbers and Chapter number 12.

So, if you don’t mind, please turn with me there real quick and we are going to look at an example of A Man among Men — then Mighty Moses Meek and Mild.

Numbers 12 starting in Verse 1 if you have it would you say, Amen.

The Meaning of Meekness — (Vs. 1-3)

A Man among Men — The story of Mighty Moses Meek and Mild.

We pick up here in the Book of Numbers with the children of Israel wondering in the wilderness. They are tired of traveling already and they are grumbling against God and against Moses and when you go back into chapter 11 you will find that Moses is already fed up with trying to please a million refugees because it seemed all they ever wanted to do was complain!

And so God has been helping Moses by providing for him and the people and we come to Chapter 12 here and once again, we see some more people complaining but this time it’s not just anyone in the camp but rather Moses own siblings that are giving him a hard time.

But as I was studying and I’m sure by now you’ve already eluded to it, the Bible says something about Moses here that stood out to me.

The Bible tells us that Miriam and Aaron were complaining about Moses because he had went and married an Ethiopian woman and they said unto themselves in essence… “Is God only using Moses to lead this great group of people? Is He not using us also?”

Basically they were saying, “Are we not as much leaders of this people as Moses is? Are we not equally as important as he is?”

They were grumbling against Moses.

And then the Bible says something that I want us to hone in on this morning in Verse 3… “Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.”

The Bible tells us here that Moses was the most Meek man upon the whole face of the earth!

What does that mean though, to be meek?

Does it mean that Moses let people just run all over him?

Does it mean that Moses was a push over?

Does it mean that Moses was weak?

The first thing I want us to look at this morning when it comes to Beatitude # 3 is just what exactly it means to be meek because I believe many folks have the true meaning of meekness misunderstood!

A. What it’s not!

First off, I want us to understand what it’s not.

You see, a lot of folks think that when the Bible says you have to be Meek that it also means you have to be weak but that simply is not the case.

I heard of this sign one time that said, “If you think that meekness is weakness, try spending a week being meek!”

The only thing “Meekness” & “Weakness” have in common is that they rhyme!

Now, I want you to think about something for a second…Did Jesus not call himself meek?

If you look in:

Matthew 11:28-30- [28] Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [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.

Now how many of you think that Jesus was weak?

I mean…

The Lord Jesus was God manifest in flesh.

He possessed in Himself, even when He was living here on earth, the inherent power to create a galaxy.

As Man, He chose to put Himself at the complete disposal of His Father and the Holy Spirit.

He displayed extraordinary power. He had the power to turn water into wine, to multiply loaves and fish, to still the storm, to cleanse the leper, to command the demon hoards, and raise the dead.

When Pilate threatened Him, He looked him in the face and said, "Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above" (John 19:11).

When the Sanhedrin sent its minions to arrest Him, all He had to say was, "I AM," and "they went backward, and fell to the ground" (John 18:5-6).

He did all of this to demonstrate the truth of His declaration: "Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father" (John 10:17-18).

And it is in this context, that we must understand the meekness of Jesus and what He meant when He said “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.”

It was the submissiveness of One who possessed unlimited power to all that happened to Him in accordance with "the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God" (Acts 2:23).

John Phillips — Out of great strength, Jesus submitted patiently to the terrible mockings and injuries inflicted on Him at His trials and crucifixion.

Dear friend, it wasn’t “Weakness” that caused him to be nailed to the cross but rather his “Meekness” that allowed him to be nailed to the cross!

And that brings us to the actual meaning of “Meekness”!

B. What is Meekness?

So, if meekness is not weakness, what exactly does it mean?

The Greek word for Meekness is “Prautes” and means Gentleness, mildness, humility & submissiveness.

It was used by the Greeks to describe a horse that had been broken.

Meekness does not mean Weakness but rather power under control!

One day this fellow noticed his neighbor training his pulling team, and asked if he could watch. He said, “Do you mind if I watch you break your horses?” – With a scowl on the man’s face, the neighbor replied, “You can watch, but I ain’t breaking ‘em, I am meeking ‘em.”

Not quite sure on what the man meant, the fellow sat on the fence post as his neighbor went through the steps of teaching the horse who was the boss. He taught them what the difference of the reigns pulling tight and the sound of the whip meant. He taught them by the sound of his voice to stand still. He taught them that when the work was done, there was a meal, cool water, and a brush down waiting for them.

When the late afternoon sun had started to signal that it was close to supper time, this fellow was waiting by the fence to talk to the man with a puzzled inquiring look on his face. He said “Mister? How come you said you were meekin’ your horses?”

The man smiled and said, “Boy, I guess you’ve heard the song at Christmas time about ‘Jesus, Meek and Mild,’ ain’t ya?”

“Well,” the old man continued, “Meek don’t mean weak.”

“Ya see, if I break that horse’s spirit, he may be timid, shy, or not wanna do anything but eat oats and hay but a work horse is supposed to work!

Meek really means that they still got all that same power, all that same spirit, all that same strength, but all of that is controlled through the touch of the master.”

Tony Evans- A MEEK person bows low before God so that they can stand tall among men. It is a willingness to bow. The biggest players on a football team are the offensive linemen. They are the biggest, they are the strongest, but they're also the ones who go the lowest when it's time to run a play. The biggest and strongest get down and go the lowest because that's where they get their leverage to perform. The bigger you are, the more meek you should be, because the bigger you are or the bigger you think you are, the more out of control you might tend to be.

Meekness is not being weak, bowing or spineless but rather it is a person who is strong, very strong, yet humble and tender.

It is a person with all the emotions and ability to take and conquer, but able to control themselves.

It is discipline — a man/woman/boy or girl who is disciplined because they are God-controlled.

The opposite of meekness is arrogance or pride. In too many people there is an aire of sufficiency and superiority but a meek person knows that they have needs and do not have all the answers.

If we are going to be able to be used by God, we must be willing to set aside our thoughts, our desires, our wants and seek the will of God!

Which leads us to our next point here…The Moral of Meekness

The Moral of Meekness — (Vs. 4-8)

Now that we’ve looked at The Meaning of Meekness, I want us to look at The Moral of Meekness.

Look what happens next here in Verses 4-8.

What God tells Aaron and Miriam here is, “Listen, Moses is my man!

He’s the one I called unto from the burning bush. Not you!

He’s the one I called to lead my people out of Egypt. Not you!

He’s the one I called upon Mt. Sinai to give the 10 commandments to. Not you!

He’s the one I called to part the Red Sea. Not you!

If I wanted a prophet I would have set one up but in this moment, at this very time, I needed more than a prophet! I needed A Man among Men! I needed a leader! I needed someone with a kindred spirit! I needed Moses. Not you!

Therefore I do not communicate with Moses as I do with prophets. I give prophets dreams and visions but this man, MY MAN, A MAN AMONG MEN, MIGHTY MOSES MEEK AND MILD, I speak to mouth to mouth! I appear to Moses and my image shall he behold!”

You want to talk about putting a person in their place!

You see, the problem was Aaron and Miriam had fostered in themselves and attitude of pride and arrogancy instead of meekness and humility and this sense of pride was now about to spill over onto God’s man and He said I don’t think so!

Can I tell you this morning Church that there are two ways you can live your life…You can live it with pride in your heart, thinking you are better than the person next to you and you will never be more than “YOU” are or you can live it with meekness & humility in your heart and you will be all that God wants you to be!

And we see that plain and clear here in the story before us! Aaron and Miriam thought they were as good as Moses and they deserved everything that he had and that pride ended up leading to their pity!

On the other hand, Moses, the meekest man on the face of the earth, was found faithful, the Bible says here, in all the house of God!

The most faithful man in a group of a million was the meekest of all men!

Listen Church, the Moral of Meekness is that there is no room for Pride in the Christian’s heart! The Bible says in:

Micah 6:8- He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

God’s word shows us what God wants to see in us! He wants us to walk humbly with him! Not with Pride in our hearts but with Meekness and Humility!

And sometimes, just as He had to do here, God has to put us in our place in order that we might understand His grace, Amen!

I heard a story one time about Muhammad Ali. It was during his prime years when he was at the very top of his boxing career. He hopped on this airplane one time and plopped down in the seat. The stewardess came by and said “Sir, if you don’t mind please put your seat belt on.” He said, “Superman don’t need no seat belt? In split second, without a moments hesitation, that stewardess responded, “Superman don’t need no airplane either!”

Listen, it’s a funny little story but the reality we need to take away is that God hates pride! The Bible says in:

Proverbs 16:18-19- [18] Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. [19] Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.

1 Peter 5:5-7- [5] Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. [6] Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: [7] Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Listen Church, “A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit”(Proverbs 29:23). “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up” (James 4:10). “And Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted” (Galatians 6:1). “[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” (Colossians 3:12-13). “Show meekness unto all men” (Titus 3:2b)!

D.L. Moody — A man can counterfeit love, he can counterfeit faith, he can counterfeit hope and all the other graces, but it is very difficult to counterfeit humility.

The Moral of Meekness is that people who are humble don’t tell you their humble but rather show their humility through their actions!

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth!

And until we are willing to become meek, we will never be able to be mighty!

When we submit to the authority of God, we’re not being weak but rather gaining more strength because then our strength lies in him!

Which leads us to our next point here…The Might of the Meek.

The Might of the Meek — (Vs. 9-15)

Look what happens to those who oppose the Mighty Moses Meek and Mild in Verses 9-15.

The might of the meek relies upon might of the Master!

Remember what meekness means? Humility, self control, submissiveness, gentleness.

You see Church, being meek simply means that we rely not on our power but in the power from on high!

We rely not on our strength but in the strength of God!

Philippians 4:13- I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

2 Corinthians 12:10- Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

And not only do we rely in the provision of God’s strength but we also we rely on God’s protection from our enemies!

You see friend, if you’re a child of God you’re not fighting your battles alone!

Joshua told the children of Israel in:

Joshua 23:8–11 KJV 1900

8 But cleave unto the Lord your God, as ye have done unto this day. 9 For the Lord hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. 10 One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the Lord your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you. 11 Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the Lord your God.

As God stood up for Moses, as God stood up for Joshua and the children of Israel, He will also stand up for all those who put their faith and trust in Him for He it is that fights for us!

That’s why Paul told the Romans in...

Romans 12:19 KJV 1900

19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

The Might of the Meek lies with the Master and in Him we can trust that all will be made right!

We have now looked at The Meaning of Meekness, The Moral of Meekness and The Might of the Meek. As we come to a close this morning, I want to finish it out by looking at The Motive of the Meek.

The Motive of the Meek

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth!

As we come to a close here this morning, I want to give you 7 reasons behind why we should let the fruit of Meekness be a driving force in our lives!

1. The Meek will be Preserved

Psalm 76:9- When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth. Selah.

2. The Meek will be Exalted

Psalm 147:6- The Lord lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.

3. The Meek will receive Salvation

Psalm 149:4- For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation. (filthy rags)

And because we’ve received salvation…

4. The Meek will increase in their Joy

Isaiah 29:19- The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

Not only will we be happy but we will learn from Him and His ways!

5. The Meek will be Guided & Taught

Psalm 25:9- The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way.

6. The Meek will be filled

Psalm 22:26- The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live forever.

7. The Meek will Inherit the Earth

Psalm 37:11- But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

Listen friend, one of these days when all of life as we know it over, there will be a new heaven and a new earth and only those who have chosen to live their lives without pride, those who have chosen rather to adopt an attitude of meekness will inherit the new heaven on earth!

There won’t be any more pain, sorrow, agony or pride but rather peace, love, joy and happiness!

But the only way to get there, the only way to inherit this spirit of meekness is through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Jesus said in:

Matthew 11:28-30- [28] Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [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.

You see, Jesus was a carpenter and He new all to well what it was to make yokes for oxen. And I highly doubt that Jesus ever made one that didn’t fit just right.

Listen friend, when an ox is in a yoke it means he has been made meek and then that ox, that big strong beast of an animal, can be led and can accomplish the task that the master has for him.

But before he had been broken, before he had been made meek, he still had all that power, but it did no one any good because he didn’t know how to use it!

Close — Get Song

There was a man whose name was Henry Morehouse. He was a great evangelist, but he never held big, great meetings. He was always in little churches. He had but one text that he used all the time. It was John 3:16. And, almost everywhere he preached, he preached John 3:16: "For God so loved the world."

He was in a little Welsh mining town one time, and there was a man in that town who hated God, who hated Christ, hated the Bible, hated churches, and hated evangelists, most of all.

His name was Ike Miller. And, Ike Miller sent out word. He said, "You go tell Henry Morehouse that, if he preaches tonight, I'm going to come to the service, and I am personally going to pistol whip him out of town."

The people came to Henry Morehouse, and they said, "Preacher, let's don't have the meeting tonight. Let's just skip a night, or let's get someone else to preach." He said, "No, I prayed about it, and I really believe that God wants me to preach. I'll trust Him. It'll be all right. You come."

That night, that little church in that mining town was filled with people, and Henry Morehouse stood up to preach. About that time, the back doors burst open, and in came this big, burly man named Ike Miller. He plopped himself down in a seat, and folded those muscular arms, as if to say, "All right, Preacher, you do your stuff, and then I'll do mine."

Mr. Morehouse opened his Bible to John 3:16, and he preached, when God loved, He loved the world, and when God gave, He gave His Son. And, he preached the love of God with such passion and purpose that the Spirit of God fell on that place. And then, he said, "I'm going to invite those who want to receive the Lord Jesus to come forward."

Ike Miller was the first on his feet. People wondered, "Could he possibly be getting saved? Or, is he coming down there to start the fight? What's going to happen?"

But, he didn't come forward at all. He just turned around, wheeled around, went out the back door, and slammed it behind him. And, he walked down the main street of that little mining town.

There were his buddies in the saloon, saying, "Hey, Ike. Come on in, and get a drink." But, he just kept walking. Some of the wicked women from the upper stories of that little town windows said, "Hey, Ike. Come up. Let's have a big time, a good time." He just kept walking.

He walked right on through that town, until he got down to a little lane that turned right—a little dusty lane, and a little dirt road. And, he went down that road till he came to a rickety fence, and a sagging gate, and a little weather-boarded shack, unpainted.

He pushed that gate back, went up those splintered steps, and, with his fists, he knocked the door open. And, in that house—that little one- room house where the bed and the kitchen were all in one room—was a faded wife, and little children.

When they saw their drunkard daddy come home, those little children, like mice, scurried under the bed, afraid of what he might do. And, this wife, who had been beaten and abused so many times, she just stepped back, and spread her skirt, as if to hide the children from their father.

He looked at her, and said, "Woman, you don't have to be afraid. It's all right." He said, "Get the kids out from under the bed." He said, "We're going to pray." She said, "What did you say?" He said, "I said, 'Get the kids. We're going to pray.'" She said, "Well, all right."

The little kids scurried out from under the bed like little mice with big eyes, wondering about what was going to happen. He said, "Now, kneel. You kneel, and you kneel, and you kneel."

Then, he knelt down, this big hulk of a man, and he tried to pray. He said, "O God." He didn't know how to pray. He knew how to curse; he didn't know how to pray.

He said, "Dear Lord." But, no other words would come. And then, he remembered a prayer that his mother had taught him when he was a little boy, and this is what he prayed: "Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, look upon a little child. Forgive my simplicity, and suffer me to come to Thee." And there, on his knees, Ike Miller was born again, and wept his way into the arms of Jesus.

Now, you may be here, today, and you're not wicked, mean, and cruel, like Ike Miller; but, I'll tell you, dear friend, if you get saved, you'll get saved the same way.

As Adrian Rogers said many times… “There's no one here so bad he cannot be saved, no one so good he need not be saved.”

Dear friend, if you'll just come to Jesus, and take His yoke upon you, I assure you, you'll find rest to your soul.