Read Matthew 5:5

5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth. (NIV)

We don’t use the word “meekness” much nowadays. When it is used, it is often describing some insipid or timid person who doesn’t think much of themselves. When the Bible uses the word it is rather different. After all, Moses was described as the meekest man on the face of the earth and he was no pushover.

This blessing of Jesus can be paraphrased something like this: “God favours those who don’t throw their weight around and demand high status for themselves, for God himself will grant them high status in his eyes.” Understood like this, Jesus’ words are radical in our time when it seems only natural to look after “number one” because no one else will. It is perhaps another way of saying the first shall be last and the last shall be first. It is, like many of Jesus’ sayings, a challenge to the normal way of thinking and acting.

Meekness is a bit like humility. That is it doesn’t mean we think we are worthless. We don’t put ourselves down. Rather, we recognise our true place in the overall scheme of things. We matter, but we aren’t the only ones that matter. Meekness is not weakness. It is a quality for those who know their value but also know their place.

Blessings
David

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