Blessed are The Meek

I am on vacation, fly fishing in Kentucky, through July 12. While I am away I am re-posting my Meditations on the Beatitudes.

Blessed are The Meek

“God blesses those who are humble, 

for they will inherit the whole earth.”

Matthew 5:5

We know from the Gospels that the Psalms had a great influence on Jesus as he quoted them often. While he does not quote a particular psalm in the Beatitudes, the influence is clear. His pronouncement, “God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth” is an affirmation of the old and very wise teacher who crafted Psalm 37. The essential message of the psalm is in verses 5-6: “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.” Jesus’ reference to the meek is for those who surrender control of their lives to God.  The meek are those who are willing to be an instrument of grace used by God. This is a very profound, yet simple, way to pattern your life. First, you commit your life to God. Second, you exercise faith in God by trusting Him with your life. Third, God will act.

This pattern is simple in form but very difficult to implement in our lives. We live in a culture that values strength, independence, and self-reliance. Meekness and humility? Not so much. Like Jesus’ first disciples, we would rather have a vision of a great army waiting for their King to lead them into battle. However, instead of a mighty King dressed in battle armor and riding a big horse, a humble shepherd walks to the head of the army. No armor. No weapon. And he expects his army to dismount, remove their armor, drop their weapons and follow him. I find my willingness to drop my armor and follow my humble Master increases the more I keep my eye on the prize.

The psalmist is not very specific about how God will act, but the description is rather breathtaking; “. . .  your vindication like the noonday sun.” The psalmist is trying to describe the wonder, beauty and awe associated with being in the presence of God. The reward for faithfulness to God is being in perfect peace as you rest in the presence of your Heavenly Father. Seven times the psalmist refers to the blessing of God as, “The godly will possess the land and will live there forever” (Psalm 37:29). This means the reward is eternal. This is what it means to “inherit the whole earth.”

Our culture bombards us with messages that rewards and blessings have to be tangible and received in the here and now. But God’s blessings are His presence with us, now and forever.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.