Blessed are the Meek
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
What is Meek?
What is Meek?
Gentleness and humility
Humility and Meekness are synonymous
Strength - often perceived as weakness.
How Can I Be Blessed? (Chapter Four: Blessed Are the Meek) Sproul
Obviously, then, to be meek is not to be weak; in fact, to be meek in the biblical sense necessitates a certain kind of inner strength that is exceedingly rare.
Moses....
3 (Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.)
Clearly Moses wasn’t the weakest person to have lived…but He was humble
Matthew Henry explains meekness this way
The meek are those who quietly submit to God; who can bear insult; are silent, or return a soft answer; who, in their patience, keep possession of their own souls, when they can scarcely keep possession of anything else.
So, Matthew Henry ties in what we have been talking about in relation to submission to God...
Remember, the previous verses....
poor in spirit..come before God with nothing to offer Him
mourn our sin...
Also, as we talked about last week, these are connected. We can’t really isolate them from each other...
There is a picture of meekness that I was reading in Weber’s commentary...
Matthew (A. The Heart of a Kingdom Citizen (5:1–12)) Weber
The “gentle” or meek are those who are powerful, but who have the maturity and grace to use their power for constructive rather than destructive purposes. The term Matthew used here is much misunderstood. Meekness is not weakness. Quite the opposite; it is “strength under control.” Southern horse breeders used to have a phrase—”the meekest horse wins the race.” The meek horse is the one who has most responded to his training. All his obvious and inherent strength is harnessed and brought under focused control. Moses was referred to as “more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth” (Num. 12:3). This is hardly a description of weakness when you consider the incredible personal strength required to lead over a million people on a camping trip through the wilderness for forty years.
So, we have this idea of meekness in relation to horses...
A horse is strong…particularly a race horse, but it is also disciplined...
It knows the intent of what it’s trainer has for it....
A horse steps up and does what it is supposed to when it is asked
People often view meekness as weakness and constraining...
Yet, meekness is actually freeing...
We are all slave to something...
So those who live freely in sin and say that they are free to do whatever are actually slave to, and bound by sin...
When we are meek and humble ourselves before God, He frees us from our sin...
Also, when we come before God as someone who is poor in Spirit and mourn our sin, He tells us who we truly are...
We are the ones who are created by and for Him...
He defines who we are..
Everything else that we think we are falls short of what we are created to be..
This idea of meekness and humility is freeing...
Any Spirit fans in here? - most of my life is explained in children’s movies....
Spirit is a wild stallion that was captured by the US military to be used as a war horse....they did everything that they could to try and break him..
But, they couldn’t…he was finally rescued by the help of an indian who was also captured by the US military...
You see....Spirit was considered a “free horse” roaming and doing whatever he wanted...
Then he met this indian who saved his life…He chose to build a relationship with this indian and found out what it meant to have true relationship...
It was clear in the progression of the movie that his true freedom wasn’t being able to do what he wanted, but in relationship with his new “owner.”
Similarly, is our relationship with God....we can think that we can do “whatever we want” and we will be free…but, as I stated we are still slave to something..
and true freedom is found when we humble ourselves before God and live in what He has called us to...
You see, some people think that being a christian is constraining…we have this old book full of things that we can’t do...
When really, it is more of the opposite…what God commands is freedom in Him, to be the person He created us to be and to do what He has created us to do.
When we are meek and humble.... this world becomes a better place...
We talked about some obstacles a couple weeks ago, so I won’t dive too much into them today...
Pride/Arrogance - thinking we don’t need anyone or anything else..
Self-righteousness - thinking we set the standard of judgement
When we lay down our pride and our arrogance, we can truly come humble before God!
Benefits of being meek?
Benefits of being meek?
1. Exalted
1. Exalted
Jesus lays this out in Matthew 23 where he is talking to the crowd and His disciples about the parisees
1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
4 They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. 5 “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues;
7 they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others. 8 “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.
10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Upsidedown kingdom -
2. Openness to the Lord
2. Openness to the Lord
When we come before Him humbly, we come with an open mind to what He has for us...
3. Inherit the Earth
3. Inherit the Earth
Matthew (A. The Heart of a Kingdom Citizen (5:1–12)) Weber
Note the progression thus far. Jesus’ kingdom servants are those who: (1) recognize they are spiritually bankrupt; (2) are deeply sorrowful for it; and (3) have begun to respond humbly to their trainer.
Matthew (2. Paradigmatic Preaching: The Sermon on the Mount (5:1–7:29)) Blomberg
Christian hope does not look forward to inhabiting a particular country but to ruling with Christ over all the globe and ultimately to enjoying an entirely re-created earth and heavens
To inherit the earth means to be with God in His kingdom to come when He creates a new earth.... or renews this earth....
Just as before, this is linked to being with Him!
We are sons and daughters of our father in heaven!
We are co-heirs with Christ!
Worship Team
As we wrap up this morning I want you to consider some things...
What is standing in your way of meekness?
pride/self-righteousness?
2. What do you need to submit to Him?
3. Do you need freedom this morning? Not to do what you want to do, but to be who He created you to be and to do what He created you to do?