The third Beatitude

To be “meek” doesn’t mean to be a doormat or to be indecisive, timid, fearful, or spineless. It does not mean to act like a loser or a cowardly wimp. Meekness is “power under control.” The Bible says Moses was the meekest man on the face of the earth in his day (see Numbers 12:3). Yet he was willing to go toe-to-toe with Pharaoh, to lead a grumbling people across a wilderness, and to climb a smoking, shaking mountain to meet personally with almighty God. Jesus described Himself as “gentle and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29 NKJV). Yet He was the most courageous man who ever lived. What made Moses and Jesus meek? They manifested supreme power under control. Proverbs 16:32 (NKJV) describes this kind of power: “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.” Proverbs 25:28 (NAS) tells us the flip side of meekness: “Like a city that is broken into and without walls, so is a person who has no self-control over his spirit.” The meek are those who have the power to hurt but choose not to. They have knowledge to destroy someone’s reputation, but they don’t use it. They have reason to hate but refuse to act on it. Such people exhibit meekness, which is simply strength harnessed and used to do good. And those who exercise meekness walk in God’s blessing. The meek persevere until good overcomes evil, answers are found, remedies are generated, and reconciliation overcomes estrangement. And the meek sleep well at night, because their trust is in the Lord!