THE BEATITUDES (8)

TOPIC: THE BEATITUDES (8)
TEXT: MATTHEW 5:1-12
MEMORY VERSE: “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” – Matthew 5:5

“BLESSED ARE THE MEEK (GENTLE): FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH.” Moses was a man the Bible described as very humble, more than any man. He was the meekest man alive, but was he weak? Could a weak man have led two to three million people out of Egypt? He had yielded his spirit to God’s spirit, and that affected how he treated others. He was not gentle or meek when it came to opposing disobedience to God, but he was still characterized by humility. In the New Testament, we find the greatest example of gentleness/meekness anywhere, anytime: Jesus Christ. In 2 Corinthians 10:1, Paul referred to “the meekness and gentleness of Christ.” Jesus Himself said, “I am gentle and humble in heart” (Matthew 11:29). Why was Jesus described as “gentle” or “meek”? He had totally yielded His will to that of the Father (John 6:38; Matthew 26:39). He had emptied Himself of divine rights and privileges and had become a servant to God and mankind (Philippians 2:5–8). Jesus was strong, but His strength was controlled. It was tempered by reverence for God and love for people.

Does the promise mean that those who are gentle and meek will inherit the earth in a legal sense? If anyone think that this literal earth is what Jesus had in mind, then the meekest man who ever lived failed to receive the promise. Moses wandered with no home for forty years hoping to inherit the promised land, but he only got to look at it [Deuteronomy 34:1–5]. The Bible tells us also that Jesus was a meek man and yet far from inheriting the earth literally. [Jesus] said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the son of man hath not where to lay his head” [Luke 9:58].

The promise has a twofold fulfilment: partial fulfilment in this life and complete fulfilment in the life to come. All worthwhile things of this world are the possession of the meek. They may not legally own a square inch of land, but they recognize that the entire earth is God’s and that all its beauty and grandeur is theirs to enjoy. It is not the abundance of possessions that makes us happy, but our attitude toward life. Don Humphrey noted that the “real enjoyment of blessings is for those who hold earthly things lightly, who rank them inferior to spiritual blessings.” He noted that a meek person is not burdened by his possessions and is not consumed by the fear of losing those possessions.

Do you want to “inherit” the earth—to enjoy the best of what this earth has to offer and look forward to the “new earth”? Then you must be gentle and meek. If you are not a child of God, or if you are an unfaithful child, show your humility by coming to the Lord today in order to possess your benefits here on earth and reign with Him in the Kingdom.

“It is not the abundance of possessions that makes us happy, but our attitude toward life.”

Central Truth