Meekness is Gentleness
Psalm 37:11 “But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight
themselves in the abundance of peace.” (Jesus repeats this in Matthew 5:5 “Blessed
are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.”)
The New King James, The New Living
Translation, The Voice, The New International Version and the Amplified Bible
all refer to this quality as “gentleness.”
The definition of gentleness is
considerate or kindly in disposition, amiable and tender. Not harsh or severe.
Sharing a “yoke” with Jesus leads
to walking at a gentle pace, not getting overexcited, not trying to take on too
much. Instead, it’s a balanced life filled with His peace, keeping pace with
His gentle leading. I’ve read where some
ministers refer to this “yoke” as a type of “bondage,” but Jesus Himself said
that He would provide “rest” for our souls. He told us in John 8:36: “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians
3:17 “Now the Lord is the
Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
The idea of being yoked with our
gentle Savior is best described in the Message
Bible:
Matthew 11:28-30 “Are
you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and
you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me
and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I
won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll
learn to live freely and lightly.”
When we learn to live freely and lightly being
yoked with Jesus, we can then in turn show gentleness to our fellow man. I
recently read that people get all pompous concerning their religion, when they
fail to realize the “gentleness” Jesus represents.
People seem to want to use their belief as a
way to one-up other people. Yet true belief in Jesus requires us to show love
to everyone, regardless of their faith, regardless of their race, regardless of
their politics. We don’t agree with everyone. But we’re not to disrespect
anyone. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5: “4 Love
suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade
itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely,
does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;”
At the
same time, having an attitude of meekness and gentleness in our actions, does
not mean we are doormats. We’re not to lash out in anger or passively refuse to
act when a response is warranted. We must learn (I, especially, must learn) to
allow the Holy Spirit to show us when and how to respond in every situation, so
that we can show respect and kindness while being firm. Gentleness is using great strength with
self-control.
Ephesians 4:2 “Walk worthy of the Calling, with all lowliness and
gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love.”
Philippians 4:5 “Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is
at hand.”
2 Timothy 2:24 “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be
gentle to all, able to teach, patient…”
Titus 3:2 “to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing
all humility to all men.”
Humility: the quality or condition of being humble; modest
opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.
Definitions of
“Humble”
2. having a feeling of
insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc.:
3. low in rank, importance, status,
quality, etc.; lowly:
4. courteously respectful:
The definitions above are
dictionary definitions. The word “Humble” in the Biblical sense does not
include number two. We are not to think of ourselves as insignificant or
inferior. We know that we are created in God’s own image and He has given us
His Son as a sacrifice so that we are made righteous in Him. We are to make
sure that we’re not thinking of ourselves as “better” than anyone else. We possess
strength, but we’re to exercise our strength in a humble way.
1 Peter 3:15 (NIV) “But in your hearts revere Christ as
Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the
reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”
Matthew 23: 11-12, Luke 14:11 and Luke 18:14
“But he who is greatest among
you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled and he
who humbles himself will be exalted.”
1 Peter 5: 6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,
that He may exalt you in due time”
The Humility of Jesus
Isaiah 42: 1-3 “Behold! My Servant whom I
uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul
delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He
will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.
2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.3 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.”
2 He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.3 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.”
It was prophesized
seven hundred years before Jesus’ birth that He would be humble. He wouldn’t
raise His voice in the street. He would fully heal a reed that was bruised and
cause a light that was almost out to shine bright again. This is good news for
our lives. Jesus will restore whatever needs fixing in us!
We see Jesus’ humility in:
The example of His
humble birth.
Luke 2:7 “And she brought forth her
firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger (a
feed trough for animals), because there was no room for them in the inn.
The example of Him
riding into Jerusalem
Hundreds
of years before Christ was born; it was prophesized in Zechariah 9:9:
“…Behold, your King is coming to you; He is
just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a
donkey.”
Matthew 21: 4-5 and John 12:14-15 both
reiterate that Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem
The example of
washing the disciples’ feet.
John 13:2-15 “And supper being ended… (Jesus)
rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself.
After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet,
and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded…So when He had washed
their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you
know what I have done to you? You call Me teacher and Lord, and you say well,
for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also
ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you
should do as I have done to you.’”
The example of Him
coming in the likeness of men.
Philippians 2:5-8 “Let this mind be in you
which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider
it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the
form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in
appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of
death, even the death of the cross.”
We are
not good witnesses of the gentleness and goodness of our Savior when we are
prideful in our faith. Knowing our true identity in Christ, we don’t have to
continually lash out at or criticize others to prove our self-worth. Our worth
has already been established by His grace. After all, it was Jesus Himself that
suffered an agonizing and brutal death on the cross. We should be humbled by the
humble position He took to save us from our sin.
