Monday, April 7, 2014

Power Under Control

12:01 PM | Posted by | | Edit Post

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Matthew 5:5
 
Meek or Weak?

       Like the first two Beatitudes, Jesus’ words in verse 5 are clearly designed to challenge conventional wisdom. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5). If you are like me, when you read this text your first thought is, “What in the world is He talking about here? Since when is a meek person blessed?” Isn’t it the meek kid who gets pushed around at school? Isn’t it the meek woman who finds herself sitting alone at parties? Isn’t it the meek man who gets stuck with all the worst assignments at the office? This is a prime example of where the translation of Jesus’ words from Greek to English leaves us at a great disadvantage. In order to fully understand the depth of what Jesus is saying in this text, we have to recapture the original meaning of the word meek. Certainly, in our culture today, this word does not have a positive connotation. According to Pastor Ray Pritchard, “It suggests many things, none of which are very appealing. If you tell someone you think they are meek, they probably won’t take it as a compliment. In fact, they’ll probably assume you are saying something negative about their character.”[1]
         I believe he is absolutely correct in his assessment. All you have to do is open a thesaurus and look up the word meek, and you will see why we hold it in such low esteem. If you do, you’ll see words like humble, timid, submissive, gentle, docile, modest, compliant, and mild. Not exactly a blockbuster list of power words. And this illustrates our problem in trying to grasp Jesus’ meaning. Try rewording this Beatitude, using some of those words as a substitute for meek. “Blessed are the timid, for they will inherit the earth.” It doesn’t sound right, does it? How about, “Blessed are the docile”? Nothing about this statement points one in the direction of blessings.
 I think if we are honest, most of us read this text and confuse the word meek with the word weak. And if that’s the case, it’s no wonder we don’t want to be called meek. However, because Jesus said that meekness would be a characteristic found in His followers, we need to take the time to understand what He meant.
         Author Philip Keller gives us some helpful insight through his childhood experience of growing up on a ranch in eastern Africa. One of his favorite times of year was when his dad would buy the oxen that were necessary for large-scale farming, before tractors were available. These large animals, called Brahma bulls, would arrive as wild animals, fighting and kicking and struggling against the powerful restraints that were used to harness their great strength. Only after weeks of continual training, where the animals fought and kicked and struggled to the point of exhaustion, were these brute beasts finally tamed and ready to be trained for farming. But once they stopped fighting and began submitting themselves to the work they were bred to perform, the result was nothing short of miraculous. By harnessing the power of these large animals to pull plows, to rip out stumps, and to move large rocks, the farmers of East Africa were able to turn once barren and useless ground into productive and profitable farmland. Over the years, vast expanses of land were reclaimed, providing food to feed many thousands of hungry people. When left to their own wild nature, the power these oxen possessed made them dangerous and unpredictable. But once that power was under control and put to good use, their owners could feed and care for the oxen without any fear of personal harm.[2]
This story is a great illustration of what Jesus was describing when He used the word meek in Matthew 5:5. It is not by possessing immense strength and power that we achieve great things for God’s Kingdom. It’s only when our strength and power is brought under the control of our Heavenly Father that we become useful vessels for the work to which God has called us. In the original Greek, the word translated as meek carries the idea of power that could be harnessed for good. If you owned a meek horse, it was not a weak horse, but a powerful horse you were able to control. This has led many Bible scholars to define meekness as “power under control.”
 
Jesus’ Example
       A perfect illustration of this principle is found in Jesus’ behavior on the night in which He was betrayed. As He faced the horror of death by crucifixion and the unspeakable pain of separation from His Heavenly Father, Jesus declared, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Jesus understood that the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan was the very purpose for which He came to earth. This meant that His short-term prospect of pain, as terrible as it was going to be, would lead to immeasurable eternal glory, both for himself and for His Heavenly Father. Jesus’ meekness in the face of Roman crucifixion was the single most powerful act a human has ever accomplished. There is nothing weak about the godly characteristic of meekness.
This is why Jesus was able to accurately describe himself as meek in the Gospel of Matthew, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matt. 11:28–30 KJV; italics mine). After demonstrating the power of meekness to overcome fear and doubt, Jesus now invites us to share in His victory as we surrender control of our lives to Him. The picture of taking up His yoke is that of two oxen pulling together to plow a field. In this illustration, Jesus promises that if we will place our lives in His yoke, trusting Him to pick the direction we need to go, He will do the majority of the pulling along the way.


Supernatural
      This reminds us that the Christian life is supernatural in nature. You and I can never achieve meekness on our own. Jesus makes this clear when he says, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you” (John 16:7 NKJV). He is reminding us that one of the primary roles of the Holy Spirit is to take up residence in the heart of believers, providing the supernatural power we need to live a new life. When you and I finally reach this point in our Christian journey, the point where we willingly surrender control to our Lord, we exchange the shackles of self-control and the weight of failed expectations for the joy of the Holy Spirit’s guidance and direction. What a deal! This is the beauty of meekness! When understood in this context, it is no wonder that Jesus describes the person who lives this way as blessed.

 For a more in-depth treatment of this topic, see my book entitled "The Cure-prescription for life",  available on my website: www.stevebyrens.com  - Also available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles websites


[1] Ray Pritchard, in his sermon “The Right Stuff”, January 1996, http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/1996-01-21-The-Right-Stuff/.
[2] Keller, Salt, 40–42.
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)