The Beatitudes (3)

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” Matthew 5:5
The word ‘meekness’ is often misunderstood. Meekness is not weakness. If we are meek, it doesn’t mean we are a pushover. The Greek word, praus, refers to power being brought under control, like an ox or stallion being tamed so as to become useful to its master.
This is the next progression in the series of attitudes that develop in our hearts. We recognise our sin and come to salvation; we mourn and receive comfort; this leads to us submitting our lives to God in meekness, instead of serving ourselves as we did before. Jesus is the ultimate example of this. Here is God Himself, the Son submitting Himself to the will of the Father, coming in human likeness and choosing not to exercise His Divine power, but enduring the scorn and suffering piled upon Him, and the humiliation of death on the cross. All this, because it was the Father’s will, so that many might be saved through Him.
The blessing for those who are meek, is that they will inherit the earth. Submitting our lives to God will involve a cost. We are to let Him fight our battles, instead of getting angry at people and retaliating. “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for My sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life” (Matt. 19:29). We will receive blessings in this life, as we submit ourselves to God and start to produce fruit for Him. And in the age to come, we will inherit the earth as we rule and reign with Christ.