2000 Issue 2 - Christian Meekness - Counsel of Chalcedon

8/12/2019 2000 Issue 2 - Christian Meekness - Counsel of Chalcedon

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Introduction

We read in the New Testament

that our heavenly Father highly

values a meek spirit in his children.

Contrary to the modem focus upon

asserting, vindicating, and glorify

ing the self, God calls

us

to a life

of

humble submission to him and

self

-abasement before men.

Because meekness is such an

important aspect

of

he godly

man's character, its development

must become a priority for all who

cail

upon

the name

of

Jesus Christ.

In order to ascertain the nature,

qualities, and rewards of meek

ness,

we

may turn to our

up offenses quite readily and

display fits

of

anger, bitterness, and

vindictiveness. We live for

'ourselves, are slow to help and

encourage others, are absorbed in

our own problems and needs, and

are overly sensitive to what others

think

or say about us. Yet self

absorption is the antithesis and

archenemy

of

meekness. The

meek man is one who sees himself

as a sinner, seeks to reorientation

of

his life around God and others,

and is seeking to overcome a self

centered life

by

the grace

of

the

Holy Spirit. We must face the

CHR ISTI N

Church will be victorious and

receive her inheritance in these

ways. She will be blessed with the

world only as she is broken before

God, submissive under his hand,

and gentle toward men. David

said it best. Your gentleness has

made me great. How utterly

contrary are the essential tenets

of

Christianity to the tenets

of

humanism, name it and claim it

churchism, and all forms

of

works

righteousness.

A Description of the

Meek

Man

Lord's famous statement in

Matthew 5:5: Blessed are

the meek, for they shail inherit

the earth.

Wha

t

is

meekness? Pink has

rightly said that there

is no

single term which is capable

offully expressing all that

is

MEE


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gentle dispositions, who are not

easily provoked

by

injuries, who

are not ready to take offense, bnt

are prepared to do anytiIing rather

than do the like actions to wicked

men (John Calvin,

CommentGlY

on the Hormony

o f

the Gospels

p.262).

The fundamental aspect

of

meekness in the Old Testament is

patience/endurance in bearing

adversity, esp


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himself

to whatever God brings

into his life. Like Job,

it

receives

the

bad

as well as the good (Job

2: 10).

More

relIlarkably, like the

Lord

Jesus

"he submits hiIl1selfto

the hand ofhis

Father

, and does

not hesitate to drink the cup of

suffering

the Lord may

hand to

him

(cf. Matt.

i6:39,42 .

The

meek man

does

not

grumble

against God's providences. When

God chastens

him

or brings him

into periodS

of

rials, testing, and

persecution, he gladly yields to

them.

He

does

not

complain that

God is

u fair

or

demand

that

he

deserves something better. He

knows

that however God is

pleased

to

deal with him at a

given

moment in his life, it is better than

he

deserves. Essentially, this is the

man who has

given

up the notion

of rights before God's tribunal.

He

stands before the mercy

of

God

amazed

and

rejoicing, over

whelmed

that

God

has

treated him

so bountifully. He therefore asks

God

for the grace to endure the

vicissitudes oflife with patience

and humility. n all circumstances,

he

seeks

to obey God's revealed

will,

even

though

he

is weak and

faces opposition

from

others .

Meekness is thus based upon a

filial

trust

in the goodness and

wisdom of God, and stems from a

faith in his sovereign control over

all things. Without such faith,

meekness before

God

is impos

sible. Without a biblical

view of

ourselves, we will never have

meekness. For we live

under

the

delusion that we always deserve

what

is best,

and

that whatever

evil

or

suffering

we

face is really

not our fault. Moreover, without

meekiless It ishiipossible to etijoy

a close walk

with the Lord of

glory.

For

it is the meek that God

teaches his ways and guides in

judgment(cf. Ps. 25:9). t is the

meek man who places himself

completely under the hand of the Meekness 'thus makes a man

Lord, whether in'good

or

ill, and willing to forgive all injuries and

who knows that his Godwill'cause insQlts, tiot

to

take into accounfa

all

tJifugs to work together for

good Wrobg

suffered, arid to bear with

in

the

lives

of

those who live for all things for the siikeofGod's '

him and are

calle


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Canaanites all the while displaying

meekness toward God and toward

each other. Rahab could justly lie

to the persecuting officials of

Jericho. Gideon could destroy the

altars to Baal. Jesus could purge

the temple. Knox could resist evil

Queen Mary. In these and all

similar cases, it is actually meek

ness toward God tllat produces

zeal for his canse, even at great

personal sacrifice and risk. We

cannot forget that meekness never

entails countenancing

an

enemy of

God and truth or allowing God's

Church to suffer injUly

by

OUI

neglect and indifference. t does

not allow us to refrain from giving

a rebuke when it is our responsibil

ity to

do

so.

t

would not forbid us

from engaging

in

lawful resistance

to unlawful or abusive authority,

when the proper occasion and .

conditions supported by Scripture

arise. It does, however, produce

within us great forbearauce,

patience, and lowliness

when

dealing with our brothers aod

sisters in Christ. t leads us to

place love above the enjoyment of

our own personal liberties in

Christ. t demands that we not

take into account a wrong suf

fered, entertain evil or malicious

thoughts against someone who has

wronged us, or hold grudges. t

forbids all malice, sinful anger,

hatred, envy, desire for revenge,

and excessive passion. In short, it

calls for and produces a radical

change

in

how

we

interact with

the family

of

God. Our goal is the

lowliness and meelmess

of

David,

Joseph, and preeminently, the Lord

Jesus Christ.

Meekness

and Standing

for the

Truth

Meekness in the body of Christ

requires that we seek the glory

of

God and endeavor to live by his

word in all circumstances. Sub-

mission to God is the fruit

of

spiritual poverty and brokenness

over sin. Accordingly,

we

will find

it necessary at times to confront a

member of the body who has

sinned and resist the truth against

error. Faithfulness in these

confrontational duties is not

forbidden by meekness,

but

meekness must

be

exercised when

engaged in them. Paul teaches

this in 2 Tim. 2:25 when he says:

in meekness correcting those who

are in opposition, ifGod perhaps

will grant them repentance, so tl,at

they may know the truth. Again,

in Galatians 6:

1,

he commands:

Brothers,

if

a man is overtaken in

any trespass,

you

who 'are spiritUal

restore such a one in a spirit

of

gentleness, considering yourself

lest you also he tempted.

In

both

verses, meekness describes the

manner

or

the attitude with which

the Christian stands for the truth or

confronts a sinning brother. We

cannot

be

harsh, unloving, meao

spirited, aogry, or hostile. When

defending God's truth,

we

must

display godly character. Yes,

some brothers commit terrible sins

and even refuse to deal

with

them.

Some elTors against the faith are

so pernicious tl,at they require an

immediate, strong, and uncompro

mising censure from the Church.

However,

we

must always re

member that the wrath of

man

does accomplish the rigllteousness

of God (James I :20). It is

possible to have sinful zeal. t is

possible to

be

unwise

in our

defense

of

truth and to exhibit

such a harsh spirit that men reject

our pleas because onr demeanor is

so unChristian. Accordingly, we

must establish it as a settled

principle in our healts to demon

strate mee mess in standing for the

truth. We must be swift to hear

the other side. We must not be

quick to believe evil, even of 0 l I

enemies. We

must remember that

the goal

of

our debates and

confrontations is not the vindica

tion

of

ourselves but

of

God

and

his trqth. Accordingly, he will use

our sweetness, lowliness, alld

gentleness to gain his victory far

more thall om- wrath, hotlleaded

ness, and desire to squash an

opponent in debate. Here I am

reminded

of

tl,e patience of the

martyrs of all ages.

They

resisted

evil. They spoke against errOr.

They refused to embrace

here

s

y

pluralism, and humanism. They

appealed to

the

courts. They

called npon their persecutors to

repent. Yet,

when

all these

channels were exhausted, they

humbly submitted

to

a higher court,

God 's heavenly tribunal, and

meekly endured tlle malice of

men. This is love aod meekness

that will overcome the world.

Beloved, this is the fruit of meek

ness. t makes one zealous and

loving,

bold and

patient. t is the

fruit

of

wholehCalted consecration

to God, faith in his presence, plans,

and providence, and

submissionto

his will.

Meekness

as

a

Command

in Scripture

Jesus

description

of

the

Christian as meek is a command

ment in other portions

of

Scripture.

Not

only does the Spirit ofholiness

produce meekness in the hearts

of

God's people by the power

of

their

union with the living Clllist, but

they also are commanded to seek

meekness. Zephaniah, a prophet

in the soutl,em kingdom ofJUdall

during the reign

of

godly Josiah,

c lmnands

us

to

seek meekness

as an integral part of our seeking

of

tl,e Lord. We really cannot

seek the Lord and his glory in

our

lives unless we are also seeking a

teachable spilit before his throne

(cf. Zeph. 2:3). The context in

February/March, 2000 -THE COUNSEL ofChaIcedon-7


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which

Zephaniah prophesied, being

one of

approaching

judgment

, ,

against Judah for her apostasy,

enforces the seriousness of this

command.'

The

only

way

to avoid

impending judgmentfrom the most

high

is to

have

a broken spirit

and

teachable heart before him, We

must

repent

of

all forwardness

and

self-dol)linated living. We rimst '

repent

of

humanism. The ,

churches

in our

day are similariy

under the

judgment of the Lord

because

of

our

haughty 'arrogance

toward God

and

one another.

Thereby we

demonstrate

our

'

selves to

know

little experientially

of

the gospel of Christ, the glories

of

God

's mercy, and

the

depthS,

of

our own

sins.

Panllikewise

commands us to "put

on

meek

ness"

(cf. Col. 3: 12 . We

must

'

seek

meekness "as the elect of

God, holy and

beloved," Without

meekness, a

man

cannot live as

one

of God's elect. He cannot be

holy.

He

shows himself devoid of

any

sense of the love of

God in

'

Jesus Christ. Verses such as '

these emphasize the seriousness

of

meekness.

t

is

not

optional:

Those

without

it

cannot

be

one

6['

musician Sting wrote in a popular

ballad, one

in which he

treats this

verse

with

cynicism,

"What

good

is a used up world and

how

could

it be

worth having?" (from

The

Soul Cages, "All This Time;"

A&M

Records, 1991). '

In

arriving at a biblical under

standing of this promise,

we

will do

well to remember that the prpmise '

of a land in whichtri serve God is

a central aspect' of

God's

covenant

dealings with his people. God

promised Abraham and his seed a

land ofpromise:

his

promise was

not exhausted in Palestirie.

Abra-

ham

understood Palestine to be

a

downpayment for

the

entire earth

(cf. Rom. 4:13). What

God

did

in

a limited fashion

in

Israel,

he

promised to do throughout the

earth

in

the days

of

he Messiah

(c f

. Deut. 4:5,6). Moreover,

nothing in Jesus' teaching would

lead us away from the biblical

emphasis on the physical earth.

t

belongs to

the

faithful people of

God. Those

who

serve

him

faithfully and give up everything to

serve

him

will receive lands

and

farms

in this lifo

(cf.

Mark

10:29,30).

Accordingly,

I

t ink

we

God's

elect. should interpret Jesus' promise to

mean that

Christians

will be

I The Promise to the Meek

rewarded with their promisoo

Jesus attaches a glorious inheritance of

the

earth as

the

promise to

meekness. Though t lawful descendants of Abraham,

will undoubtedly appear irortic t6 heirs ofllll his promises (c f. Gal.

many

believers and laughable to ,_ 3:27-29), and coheirs with

him

.

the

world, those; who put God first This promise begins to be fulfilled

and

themselves' last, whO are ' ' in this life, as the gospel goes out

broken of

their self-centeredness, with success, and the nations are

will

inherit

the

earth. They are

the

discipled to Jesus Christ. Therein

ones

whom God

will bless

with

'a

we

see

God

's people blessed

glorious inheritance.

How

shall physically with prosperity

and

.

we take Jesus' words? poes he peace. Christiaos enjoyed this sort

mean that

the

meek

will 'one day of covenant possession

of

the land'

inherit the earth? Does hemean in this country for

the

first two

that they

already possess the centuries of

our

national existence.

world spiritually? Is he speaJruig Over the course of world history,

allegorically?

Why

woUld anyone

as the

kingdom of

God

grows as a

want the earth? As .the popular' II ustard Seed, I believe

we

will see

8-TBECOUNSELofChalcedon:FehruarylMarch,tQOO '

Christians and the Church

of

Christ more and more blessed, not

only spiritually but also with great

tnaterial prosperity, As me

e

k

broken; nd teachable sons of

'God, they will

be

able to handle

this victoiy, They will not, as their

Old Testament counterparts did,

forget God

and

focus

on

the

blessings

of

he covenant rather

than the

God of

the 'covenant.

They

will

enjoy his blessings

lawfully, using them as incentives

and gifts with which they will

zealously pursue the

work

of

Christ's kingdom, thereby bringing

in thefulness of

he Gentiles into

the Church

of

Christ. At the same

lime, th,e complete enjoyment of

this earth and all good things in it

awaits the consummation

of

the

, .new heavens and

new

earth at the

Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

For as

fully as future generations

may

enjoy the inheritance of the

earth,

it

will always pale in com

parison to the fullness ofblessing

that will

be

ours when sin is

eradicated and righteousness rules

perfectly over all.

What

a tremendous promise

our

LOrd attached to meekness

How shall Christians finally

win in

h i s ~ o r y

How

shall

we

see

Christendom rallied and extended

over the force of the entire earth?

.

How

shall

we

enjoy the'peace,

security, and prosperity essential to

the happiness of any people?

Through meekness

and

self-denial.

Thro\Jgh brokenness over our sins

that leads to teachableness before

God and humili ty before man.

TI)rough lifewide and lifelong

obedience to God despite the

Sacrifice it entails pr

the

persecu

ipn it

brings. How contrary are

Jesus' promise and its reward to

the

modem

priorities and expecta

tions' of many Christians. The

future belongs to the faithfnl

people ofGod, thoul\h

not

through


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the methods usually endorsed by

church growth leaders today. The

emth will

not

be obtained tlu'ough

creative new progrmns or alterna

tive worship styles but through the

Spirit ofJesus Christ producing

meekness in the people of God.

Then and only then will we know

the true blessings

of

God. May

God pour out his Spiritupon us and

work in us the meekness which his

Word demands and his gospel

produces

Some Additional Incentives to

Meekness in the Christian Life

(I) Meekness

is

of great value

in the eyes of God (I Pet. 3:4).

God highly values holiness in his

people, and meekness

is

pmticu

larJy held up to us as an aspect of

Christian character that he highly

values. Fear and love

of

the Lord

will stir his people to seek meek

ness in all their relationships and

activities.

(2) Meekness will enable us to

bear up under trials and hardships

without complaining. Because

meekness entails an ability to

suhmitto all God's dealings with

us, good and bad, it will enable us

to

bear patiently with adversity,

endure hardships, and sUlTender

ourselves to God's will. The meek

heart knows and believes that all

things work together for good

(Rom. 8:28), and therefore calmly

waits on the Lord without glUm

bling and complaining.

(3) Meelmess is necessary to

curb

an

angry, bitter spirit toward

God and mml. James contrasts

meekness to anger (James

1:20,21), and many other passages

wmn against an angry counte

nance mId attitude. The only way

to overcome anger is through

snbmission to God's will. Toward

men, anger is tbe exact antithesis

of meekness. We becoine angry

when we expect that others should

act toward us in such a way, and

we become frustrated .and bitter

when they do not. Meekness

teaches us to give all our expecta

tions to God and to love even our

enemies.

(4) Meekness diffuses strife

among brothers.

A

soft answer

turns away wrath" (Prov. 15:1).

We

m e prone, however, to answer

in like kind. The ability to malce

and enjoy peace requires meek

ness toward others, in that we do

not reproach, abuse, or slander

those who treat us badl

y.

t

w ll

enable us to overcome evil with

good in all our personal relation-

ships (Rom. 12:21). .

(5) Meelmess enables us to

enjoy a close wal\c with God (Ps.

25:9). Close communion with God

demands our submission to his

word and will. t is the meek man

whom God teaches his way. Only

the meek man will experience the

joyS ofwalking with the Lord, for

only he has the necessary heart to

love, obey, and submit

to

God in all

things. Rememher, God resists the

proud.

(6) Meekness is evidence

of

the Spirit's life-giving presence and

thereby gives assurmlce of salva

tion. Every believer desires

greater assurance of salvation.

Meekness according to Paul is one

aspect of the COOstian fruit that

God works in all his people (Gal.

5 :22). Its presence gives us

reason to rejoice in God's work in

us and gives us confidence that we

are indeed the sons of God.

The

Development

of

Meek

ness in the Christian Life

A God-centered life is essential

to meekness. We will never

progress in meekness unless we

are taught by God's Spirit to look

at life from God's perspective .

That is,

we

must remember that

God does all things for his own

glory, not our convenience, ease,

and comfort. Knowing, moreover,

that we are sinners, we learn to

accept all trials and trib\llations as

loving chastisement from his

hand

without becoming bitter and

profane as Esau (Heb. 12:3-17).

We

gladly yield ourselves

to

him

to

work in, through, by, with, and for

us whatsoever his holy will has

determined reveals his glory and

brings good to his people.

We must not lose sight ofour

brokenand sinful condition before

God. Only broken and contrite

men will have meekness. Ifwe

ever begin to see something of our

sinfulness before God, we will

never question the wisdom or

justice ofhis dealings with us, nor

will

we

expect others to serve us

and meet all

om

expectations. t is

the man who has been emptied of

himself, or as Calvin said, who is

tamed by God, whose life will be

marked by true humility and

meekness.

. Meekness requires the sincere

display ofCOOstian love to those

around us, There is no greater

way

to

display and encourage

meekness than by demonstrating

biblical love to all men. Service

must characterize our lives. The

human heart must be trained to

live in a hnmble, submissive

maDller toward all. This cml be

eucouraged by cheerfully serving

odlers through hospitality, prayer,

and encouragement.

The exmnple ofCOOst must

be

continually before us. The great

est display

ofmeekne

,ss is the life

ofChrist. We mns leam ofhim.

Cluistiml1l1eekness is esseiltially

Clnist-like submission to the

Father and Cluist-like love and

patience toward men.

FebruarylMarch,2000 -THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon - 9

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2000 Issue 2 - Christian Meekness - Counsel of Chalcedon