Blessed are the meek

09 July 2023 Reflection

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble of heart.” - Matthew 11:29

The phrase ‘meek as a lamb’ often denotes the gentle nature of Jesus and His willful obedience to His sacrifice on the cross. Isaiah 53:7 gives prophecy about Jesus ‘like a silent sheep being led to a slaughterhouse.’

Meekness is often misconstrued with being weak and shy and prone to be stepped on or, in modern terms, be bullied. But this is not how Jesus wants us to see meekness. He wants us to view this virtue in God’s heavenly perspective.

Meekness is the means by which God trains the soul so that a person can tame his temper, subdue his passions, control his impulses, and bring about order to the chaos of his being.

While we are being invited to become meek as sheep, Jesus invites us to have a different kind of meekness.

He invites us to become meek like a tamed horse.

How can a horse become meek? Meeking a wild horse does not mean stripping the horse of its power and strength, but rather harnessing its power from a state of wild independence to that of loyalty so that the horse can be used as the master intended.

So we can therefore surmise that aside from Jesus having the gentleness of a sheep, He also has the meekness of the horse. Jesus was gentle, but not weak; He was always submissive, not to men, but to the will of the Father.

When Jesus calmed the storm at the sea, He demonstrated His power and authority over nature and weather, yet He still submitted to the Father’s will.

When He forgave the sins of the woman who committed adultery, He showed great compassion and mercy, while submitting Himself to the will of the Father.

He had the opportunity to show His strength and might when He was arrested and condemned to be crucified, yet He chose His inner strength and humbly submitted Himself on the cross, fully obeying the will of the Father.

What about me? Am I submitting my desires, my strengths, my talents, even my weaknesses and failures to my heavenly Father? Do I have control over my impulses and my emotions that exemplify my faithfulness to God? In moments when I become too emotional, or in instances when I become too prideful of my capabilities, may I always be reminded of Jesus’ meekness, so that my focus will be redirected back to humbly submitting myself to God. I may still need a lot of work, but I will take off my control now and allow Jesus to take over and guide me to where I need to be.

Dear Papa,

I praise and thank You for the humility of Your Son, Jesus. He had every power, every authority, every strength to prove that He is God, yet He chose to be humiliated, mocked, persecuted, crucified. Thank You for His sacrifice on the cross.

I pray for humility and the desire for it, so that I will be able to see others more than myself. I pray for meekness and the desire for it, so that I will stay firm and resilient in abiding to Your will no matter what season I may be in. I pray for obedience and the desire for it, so that in every suffering and struggle I will fully submit to Your plans and will constantly respond with a yes.

Lord Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto Thine.

Amen.

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