Meekness – Matt. 5:3-5    Wednesday Night Bible Study    EBC   1/14/04

  Hebrew word “anavah” means to humble or to look down on yourself

  Greek word “praus” means to humble. Meekness is yielding our rights to God so he can demonstrate his peace and power thru us.  Bill Gothard – “when we are meek, we will not be concerned about having the first or the last word”.  Meek has to do with the inward grace of the soul; humility has to do with our actions or behavior.

I. Significance of Meekness

  A. Matt. 11:29 – meekness is one quality that Christ used to describe himself. The more we understand about meekness, the more we develop meekness the more we take on the nature of Christ.

  B. Meekness involves the surrendering of our right to run our lives

II. Examples of Meekness

  A. William Booth (Salvation Army) “the greatest of a man’s power is the measurement of his surrender”. The more surrendered we are to God, the more power we’ll have.

    1. Phil. 2:8 – Jesus humbled himself (he made himself low)

  B. The strength of a horse, under the bridle and bit 

  C. The power of a river in it’s banks, out of banks it has no power.

  D. Matthew Henry – “the meek are those who quietly submit themselves before God, to His word, to His rod who follow His directives and comply with His design and are gentle towards men”.

III. Rewards of Meekness

  A. Understanding the Gospel (Psa. 149:4)

  B. Allows our souls to be transformed (Jas. 1:21). By meekness we make God’s word a vital part of our mind, will and emotions.

  C. Receive God’s guidance thru a pliable heart (Psa. 25:9). Doctrine of the discount ticket. We avoid paying the full price, by deciding what we are going to do and then tell God.

  D. Develop true character (1 Peter 3:3-4) hidden things of the heart- will direct how we walk

     1. Bill Gothard- “one of our most difficult tasks is our yield to make final decisions’. How many times do I have to turn some things over to God?

  E. Enjoy life to its fullest (Psa. 22:26)

IV. How does Meekness function in my Life

  Meekness is always God-ward (1 Sam. 3:18, John 18:11) and man-ward (Gal. 6:1)

  A. Produce spiritual fruit (Gal. 5:23)

  B. Restore a fellow believer (Gal. 6:1; 2 Tim. 2:25)

  C. Walk worthy of Christ (Eph. 4:1-2; Col. 3:12-13)

  D. Respect authorities in my life (Titus 3:1-2)

  E. Explain our hope (1 Peter 3:14-15)