August 16 - Blessed are the meek

Part 4 - Blessed are the Meek

Don’t you know who I am? 

I used to always say that to my kids when talking about how I would deal with people. I constantly told them that I would just walk into a place and say, “Hey, I’m pastor Michael. . .” As if that merited some sort of response from people. Or I would tell my kids that if they were ever in a jam, just tell people, “well I’m pastor Michael’s kid.” 

Now trust me, I said that jokingly. If anything, if they were at our church at the time, and they said, “I’m pastor Michael’s kid,” people would have gotten excited and said, “You are Pastor Michael Escamilla’s kid?” As they admired all over them. . . . 

But in all truth, I would be lying if I said I never had that thought in a real way. There were times when I thought to myself, “Don’t they know who I am?” 

We all carry a small sense of pride with us. 

And it comes naturally. God designed us to want best for ourselves. So we in turn know and believe that we deserve best. The problem comes when we believe we deserve best, over someone else. It’s so easy to think that we deserve best without realizing that it usually comes with a price that other people have to carry. 

Jesus, just 3 stanzas into this sermon, has laid out a masterful approach to putting ourselves in a right place. Start by being poor in spirit. Realize that you need a savior. And as you move on from this first step, mourn over the person that keeps you from God’s best. And once you get those two things down, it becomes no big deal to be meek. Meekness comes from our understanding of what we actually deserve, and the grief our sin causes us in the scheme of God’s holiness. 

What is meekness? 

Its the humble realization that I’m actually not better than everyone else. It’s the reality check that puts me in the place of the rest of humanity and needs the loving mercy of almighty God, coupled with the grace of Father God’s goodness. Here its he fun thing about being meek - it takes us to an automatic place of loving others and advocating for them. Because in our meekness, we see that all people are trying their best to just make life good. 

When we can step back from ourselves and see through the disposition that we have failure written into our story the same as everyone else, it causes us to respond differently. The grace give us by Jesus extends out toward the people around us who need grace in their lives too. 

When was the last time you looked at someone grumpy, angry, or grouchy, and just said to yourself, “I feel for them, they must be walking through something difficult.” 

See, meekness is slow to anger. Meekness allows us to put the needs of others first, even if they re a complete jerk to us. It’s only through meekness, that we are able to love the unloveable. In fact, I think it is meekness that opens the door for the spiritual gift of love. Paul talks of this gift in 1 Corinthians 13. Let me remind you what this love looks like. 

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered. It keeps no records of wrong. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

First off, this is a spiritual gift. We cannot have this type of gift without the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. But in addition, you will not be empowered by the Holy Spirit to have this type of love without Meekness. 

Why? 

A lack of meekness is in opposition to this type of spiritual gift. 

Now here is the best part. Jesus said that if you can find the meekness to think of others in a proper, healthy, light, and in turn, remember your own weaknesses and your own failures, that meekness will cause you to inherit the earth. 

What does that mean? 

It is only when you are meek, that you will be content with the world. You cannot be satisfied if you are not meek. You will always want more, believe you deserve more, causing you to fight for more. But if you can change your disposition and become meek, you will inherit the earth. You will find satisfaction in the people and things around you, instead of wanting more because you feel like you deserve it. 

So here is the practice for today. 

Practice meekness. 

You are probably asking HOW

Simple, think of others first. Find ways to put others needs above your own. Go into school today and think of how you can be a blessing. I pray over my girls as they go to work each day and pray aloud for them to hear. And one of the things I always pray is that their coworkers, boss, and customers are blessed because my daughters are working today. Not because of their greatness, but because of their ability to see the greatness in others, and treat them with the respect due to them. Think of someone in you life, that you can go and honor, by doing the most unexciting thing for them that you can imagine. Not unexciting to them, but to you. Maybe it’s taking out the garbage for them, or cleaning up a mess they made without feeling like they need to know you are cleaning it or that you are angry they left it. Buy them coffee for the sake of kindness. Do something that shows your are practicing the art of putting others above yourself. And as you do, it will help you learn meekness. 

And, as you learn meekness, I pray it will help you know what you believe, and why you believe it to be true. 

But for now, I love you, and as you go and put others first, may you inherit the earth, and may God bless you!