"Relaunch 2015"
pt. 7 - I Will Be Meek
Galatians 5:22-23
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Introduction: I want to welcome you this morning to part 5 of a new sermon series based on the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5. This series is all about life change and what God wants to do in our lives if we will let Him. Make no mistake my friends; the goal of God in salvation is Christlikeness. God wants to change us into the image (icon -- exact replica) of His Son in character, conduct and personality.
Let me also remind you that we can translate the first few words of verse 22, "The fruit of the Spirit..." to read "...the fruit that the Spirit produces..." This morning I want to you to ask yourself this question as we begin; "If I was a better person and displayed more goodness in my life and testimony would it make a difference in my life?" Would it make a difference in my family life? Would it make a difference in my Christian testimony? The answer to all of these is yes it would!
When I started this series I had no idea of the significant effect these messages would have on my own life. The most important lesson that I have learned is that after preaching each of these messages there can be no doubt in my heart or mind about what God expects from his servants. The development of Christlike character and personality in each of us is His ultimate purpose in and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Many people have the mistaken belief that after salvation that an individual never has problems with sin in their lives anymore when quite the opposite is true. Sin is still a problem in the life of every Christian and will continue to be as long as we are in the flesh. Let's begin with what meekness means.
What does the word meekness mean in our text? The Greek word for meekness literally means "strength under control." Meekness describes a wild stallion who was tamed and taught to be ridden. That stallion still has all the strength it had when it was wild but now it is strength under control. It is strength bottled up for the master's use. In our day and time; the word meekness is often used to indicate a certain whimpish or even cowardly type of personality and that just goes to show how much the usage of some of these English words has changed. The Bible definition of this term is radically different. Meekness in Galatians 5 means patience in the reception of injuries. It means bearing up when there are those around us who are bringing hurt into our lives. It means resisting the inclination to strike out in response to the hurt. It's the opposite of anger, malice and striking out in revenge when we've been wronged. Isn't it amazing how often these same things have surfaced since we have been studying the fruits of the Spirit? I think we are coming to see what it really means to be a Christian. It's not who carries the biggest Bible or who has the most bumper stickers or who can talk in religious tones. The real question for us is, "How much am I like Jesus?" That's the bottom line. Am I like Him? Are my responses to the issues of life like His? Meekness then is the opposite of anger, malice, and a desire for revenge.
To start this message I would like us to look at:
I. The Explanation of Meekness
Let's begin by contrasting with what meekness is not:
a. It is not compromise
CLARENCE THOMAS, THE BRILLIANT SUPREME COURT JUSTICE WRITES: "AS CHRISTIANS WE NEED TO KNOW THAT BEING A NEIGHBOR IS IN EVERY WAY AN EXERCISE IN MEEKNESS. ON THE ONE HAND WE ARE TO SERVE OUR NEIGHBOR; ALWAYS WILLING TO TOLERATE HIS WEAKNESSES AND IDIOSYNCRASIES. WE MUST EXERCISE THIS TO THE FULLEST, WILLING TO SACRIFICE, EVEN SUFFER IN THAT CAUSE. HOWEVER, WHEN OUR NEIGHBOR IS UNJUST AND THREATENS OFFENSE AGAINST OTHERS, WE CAN'T REMAIN SILENT. AGAIN IN MEEKNESS, WE MUST OPPOSE THEM AND LEAD THEM TO REPENTANCE. WHERE GOD'S HONOR AND COMMAND IS INVOLVED, WE CANNOT NEGLECT JUSTICE, BECAUSE JUSTICE MUST ALWAYS BE SERVED ON THE PLATE OF MERCY, AND WE MUST NEVER FIND SATISFACTION IN THE PENALTY. RATHER, WE MUST GRIEVE WITH THOSE WHO ARE PUNISHED BECAUSE, AS OUR LORD GRIEVES OVER SIN, THIS IS ALSO THE SIGN OF A LOVING CHRISTIAN HEART--POSSESSED ALWAYS OF A SWORD AND A TEAR."
Truth and right cannot, must not be disregarded. That would not be meekness. We are to "...speak the truth in love..." for sure but we are still supposed to speak the truth! There are those who would silence Christians today but where truth is concerned there can be no retreat. Let me give you a couple of situations where this principle is on display. First, in the life of Jesus;
John 18:19 The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.
20 Jesus answered him, "I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret.
21 Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them; they know what I said."
22 When he had said these things, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
23 Jesus answered him, "If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong; but if what I said is right, why do you strike me?" ESV
There is another situation in the life of Paul:
Acts 16:35 And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go.
36 And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace.
37 But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out.
38 And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans.
39 And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city. KJV
Notice that in both cases there was misconduct or injustice and both Jesus and Paul called attention to what had happened.
b. It is not cowardice
Meekness should never be confused with cowardice or fearfulness. It takes a strong individual to suffer at the hands of another and not hold a grudge or seek vengeance or getting bitter. Meekness is for the strong not the weak. Someone wrote that, "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear not absence of fear." This is true of meekness. It is not the absence of fear but it is when this fear is under control, controlled by the Holy Spirit that we have the spiritual fruit of meekness. Think of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as he is about be arrested by a force of perhaps over 400 heavily armed men led by his betrayer Judas. The Lord is perfectly calm and composed as he meets this large group in the darkness.
"O what courage in implied in the name "Christian". Church history tells us that every apostle except John died as martyrs for the cause of Christ. Thousands died at the hands of Nero rather than deny the faith. Well it has been said, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church." Kenneth Trent
II. The Examples of Meekness
a. The servant
Henry Ward Beecher wrote:
"Meekness is not a mere contemplative virtue; it is maintaining peace and patience in the midst of pelting provocations."
The first example of meekness that comes to mind is Moses. I'm going to read a passage to illustrate what I mean.
Numbers 12:1 And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
2 And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it.
3 (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
4 And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out.
5 And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.
6 And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.
7 My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.
8 With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?
9 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them; and he departed.
10 And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.
11 And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned.
12 Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he cometh out of his mother's womb.
13 And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee.
Two things stand out in this narrative. First; that the Lord is the one who says that Moses is the "meekest" man in all the earth and that this is the man who faced down Pharaoh ten times and led over a million people out of Egypt and led them in the desert for 40 years is call a meek man so it is obvious that meek is not weak! Second; notice that it is Moses who prays for his sister to be healed in verse 13. He doesn't seek vengeance or retribution but forgiveness and healing. Only a man of great strength could do what Moses did.
b. The Savior
The next example is Jesus. In Matthew 11:28-30 we read:
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
THE GENTLE GAIN
"In our rough-and-rugged individualism, we think of gentleness as weakness, being soft, and virtually spineless. Not so! ... Gentleness includes such enviable qualities as having strength under control, being calm and peaceful when surrounded by a heated atmosphere, emitting a soothing effect on those who may be angry or otherwise beside themselves, and possessing tact and gracious courtesy that causes others to retain their self-esteem and dignity.... Instead of losing, the gentle gain. Instead of being ripped off and taken advantage of, they come out ahead!"
SOURCE: Charles R. Swindoll.
III. The Effects of Meekness
"Jesus calls us to His rest, and meekness is his method. The meek man cares not at all who is greater than he, for he has long ago decided that the esteem of the world is not worth the effort. The rest Christ offers is the rest of meekness, the blessed relief which comes when we accept ourselves for what we are and cease to pretend. It will take some courage at first, but the needed grace will come as we learn that we are sharing in this new and easy yoke with the strong Son of God Himself."
AW Tozer, The Pursuit of God
a. Meekness in our manner
Someone has said that he that is constantly ruffled is at the mercy of every mortal who chooses to upset him or disturb him. He is like the troubled sea who waters cast up mire and dirt. Meekness does not stir conflict it settles it. It does not ignore the issue or enflame the issue with rhetoric, it responds with grace and courage. Listen to what Paul writes (a man who was not stranger to conflict himself):
Romans 12:17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Blessed Are The Meek
As you study the character traits described in the Beatitudes, you can't help but realize one thing; these qualities are by no means natural to the human spirit. They are very foreign. Poverty of spirit, true mourning over personal sins against God and meekness does not come to us naturally.
The greatest preacher of all time, Jesus Christ, proclaimed "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." (Matt. 5:5)
The Greek word for "meek" means to be gentle; to be strong, very strong, yet be humble and tender. It is a man with all the emotions and ability to take and conquer, but he is able control himself in all ways. It is a state of being disciplined -- a man who is disciplined because he is God-controlled.
b. Meekness in our marriage
George Müller told of a wealthy German whose wife was a devout believer. This man was a heavy drinker, spending late nights in the tavern. She would send the servants to bed, stay up till he returned, receive him kindly, and never scold him or complain. At times she would even have to undress him and put him to bed.
One night in the tavern he said to his cronies, "I bet if we go to my house, my wife will be sitting up, waiting for me. She'll come to the door, give us a royal welcome, and even make supper for us, if I ask her."
They were skeptical at first, but decided to go along and see. Sure enough, she came to the door, received them courteously, and willingly agreed to make supper for them without the slightest trace of resentment. After serving them, she went off to her room. As soon as she had left, one of the men began to condemn the husband. "What kind of a man are you to treat such a good woman so miserably?" The accuser got up without finishing his supper and left the house. Another did the same and another till they had all departed without eating the meal.
Within a half hour, the husband became deeply convicted of his wickedness and especially of his heartless treatment of his wife. He went to his wife's room, asked her to pray for him, repented of his sins, and surrendered to Christ. From that time on, he became a devoted disciple of the Lord Jesus. Won without a word!
George Müller advised:
Don't be discouraged if you have to suffer from unconverted relatives. Perhaps very shortly the Lord may give you the desire of your heart, and answer your prayer for them. But in the meantime, seek to commend the truth, not by reproaching them on account of their behavior toward you, but by manifesting toward them the meekness, gentleness and kindness of the Lord Jesus Christ.
(George Müller, in a periodical called The Word, edited by Richard Burson, date unknown, pp. 33--35.)
c. Meekness in disciple making
Meekness is a great tool in disciple making! This is especially true when you have an unsaved spouse!
1 Peter 3:1 Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
2 While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
3 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;
4 But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
Conclusion: In meekness we literally show the lost what Christ is like. But the truth is that many who profess to know Jesus are not meek at all. Many who claim to be Christians are unforgiving, contentious, unyielding, easily offended and grudge bearing. The fruit that the Holy Spirit produces is meekness. Many of you when asked if you are meek will say, but, and then you will start justifying your behavior. Do you need to develop more meekness in your life? If the answer is yes then yield to the Holy Spirit this morning. If you want to change your relationships; if you want to have more peace in your life; if you want a better marriage; if you want to resolve conflict in your life, then get meekness. Remember, meekness is not weakness, it is strength under control!
