Why Meekness and A Humble Heart Is Not Weakness
Christian character defines what you are, while reputation reflects what others think of you. True character is known by God and your spouse. When you die, you leave behind all that you have and all that you have done, but you take with you all that you are. Because character is so crucial, it is more important to seek blessedness than mere happiness.
The Meaning of Blessedness (Makarios)
The term translated as “Blessed” in the Beatitudes originates from the Greek word Makarios. This term was used as the name for the island of Crete, because the island was considered self-contained, possessing everything necessary to sustain life, including enough food, water, and vegetation, and even enough left over to export.
Blessedness means having everything that you need spiritually. It means more than just being happy. While most people chase happiness, those who seek it the most often find it the least. Happiness is not something found through searching; rather, it is something you stumble upon when you are seeking blessedness. If you get right with God, blessedness will find you.
The Beatitudes are not platitudes, but rather attitudes that ought to be, dealing directly with Christian character. The Lord Jesus Christ presented these attitudes, starting with “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” and “Blessed are they that mourn”.
The Mighty Meek: Defining Meekness
The world often rejects meekness, considering it weakness. Worldly wisdom suggests “Blessed are the mighty men. Blessed are the muscle men. Blessed are the mental men. Blessed are the money men. Blessed are any kind of men except the meek men”. However, the Bible states, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth”.
It is essential to understand that meekness is not weakness. It is not cowardice or a “milk toast type of character”.
Jesus Christ, who said, “I am meek and lowly in heart,” was not weak. He fasted for forty days and nights in the wilderness among wild beasts, and He drove the money changers out of the temple using a whip. Similarly, the Bible calls Moses, who led the Children of Israel out of Egypt, the meekest man on earth in his day.
The literal meaning of the word “meek” is yielded. Meekness is defined as strength under control.
The Analogy of the Broken Horse
Meekness is likened to a wild stallion being broken. In that era, when an animal, such as a horse or oxen, was trained so it could be ridden or pull a plow, it was referred to as being “meeked”. The animal retains the same strength, fire, drives, and instincts, but it now yields to the rider or the yoke. It has a bridle, a bit, and a saddle, signifying control.
Three Ways to Handle Inner Drives
When dealing with the inner drives, instincts, and ambitions God placed within human nature (which are not inherently evil), there are three main approaches:
1. Self-Assertion (Letting the Horse Run Wild)
This approach involves no restraint, asserting that whatever is natural is beautiful and right. This philosophy, promoted by figures like Nietzsche, advises simply doing “your thing” without putting any restraint on oneself (e.g., getting drunk, fornicating, fighting). A student of Nietzsche, Adolf Hitler, applied this idea, seeking to purge Christianity and assert the strong “superman,” which resulted in the Holocaust and gas ovens.
2. Self-Restraint (Crippling the Horse)
This is the opposite approach, seeking to cripple the horse by hobbling it so it cannot run at all. This philosophy, seen in systems like Buddhism, suggests that since desires lead to frustration when unmet, one should negate those desires until they come to a state of Nirvana, where they desire nothing and are never disappointed. This is not Bible Christianity; holiness is not found by simply retreating to a monastery.
3. Yielded Control (Meekness)
Jesus advocates for neither letting the horse run wild nor crippling it. Meekness means taking the same strength, the same members (hands, eyes, tongue), and yielding them from serving uncleanness and iniquity to serving righteousness and holiness. The same ambition is now focused on serving the Lord Jesus Christ; the same fighting spirit is now directed toward fighting the Devil.
The Development of Meekness
Meekness follows a sequence starting with the first two Beatitudes:
- Poor in Spirit: Seeing oneself as spiritually bankrupt (our condition).
- Mourn: Being brokenhearted and contrite over that condition (our contrition). A horse must be broken before it is meeked.
- Meekness: Placing oneself under control (our control).
To develop this meekness, three steps are necessary:
1. Be Submitted to the Son of God
This requires a decision, as Jesus will not force Himself upon anyone. Jesus invites those who labor and are heavy laden to “Come unto me… Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly of heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls”. Taking the yoke means pulling alongside Jesus, who is the lead Oxen. The yoke is described as “easy” because it fits right. While there is work to do, the way of the transgressor is hard, but Jesus’ yoke is easy.
2. Be Responsive to the Word of God
Meekness is submission to a higher power. The Word of God must become your control, your bridle, and your bit. James 1:21 instructs us to “receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your souls”.
- Receive (Dechomai): The appropriate Greek word used here is Dechomai, meaning to welcome with humility. This means studying the Bible prepared to do everything it says, welcoming the Word.
- Do Not Grasp (Lambano): The alternative Greek word, Lambano, means self-prompted taking or snatching. People who try to Lambano the Bible may learn facts, chronology, or names of kings, perhaps for pride, but they have not truly received God’s Word with a broken spirit. The Bible is meant to be disturbing, not merely interesting.
3. Be Filled with the Spirit of God
The Holy Spirit produces meekness; it is listed as a “fruit of the Spirit”. You bear this fruit, but the Spirit produces it in you. When one puts on Jesus’ yoke and receives the Word with meekness, the Holy Spirit works within them to produce meekness in their heart and life.