Sermon on the Mountainside The Inheritance of the Meek

Sermon on the Mountainside

The Inheritance of the Meek

 

Don’t let evil push you to evil

Be self-controlled for your meekness,

Your humble trust in the Lord will gain you the earth

The earth has been fought over from the fall of man

Boarders have changed

Nations have come and gone

But the earth still stands

The Lord rules over it

The earth is not something to be taken, it is to be inherited 

Your meekness will be honored by the Lord

God is able to give you a portion of your inheritance now

And in the new earth the fullness of your inheritance

So don’t give up on humility

Lead with humility for

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

Don’t underestimate the power of Meekness

The Inheritance of the Meek

Struggle for power.

The struggle to lead, rule, dominate.

People with political power,

financial power, status power.

There has and always been and will

be those trying to control the earth.

It happens on the school playgrounds,

in communities, in nations where ever

there are people, there are power struggles.

If you watch the national news you will see

these power struggles played out with words…

Arrogance, hatred, lies.

Not everyone in leadership

is arrogant and proud.

 But getting to the top of the ladder

can bring out the worst in people

Evil things happen.

  

In Jesus’ time, there were leaders

who were proud and arrogant.

There was evil in the Roman government,

 the religious Sadducees and Pharisees.

We have a saying…

 “Fight fire with fire”

But we need to be careful that we

do not become arrogant and proud.

Jesus said…

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

David in Psalms 37 seems to

capture what Jesus is saying…

Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;

 for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.

Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:

 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,

the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

do not fret when men succeed in their ways,

when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret — it leads only to evil.

For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

 A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them,

 they will not be found.

But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace.

Psalms 37:1-11

When evil people take rule and oppress

others, it can make your blood boil.

It can cause you and I

to react rather than pro act.

 

Jesus in Matthew 5 and David

 in Psalms 37 are warning us…

Don’t let the arrogant and

proud provoke you to evil.

 

Remember who the earth belongs to…

The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it

Psalms 24:1

People live and die…

 But the earth and the Lord endure.

Jesus is encouraging us to keep our humility.

Not to worry and get caught

up in fighting evil with evil.

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another;

be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing,

because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

1 Peter 3:8-9

Jesus was hated, ridiculed, mocked, and

all manner of evil was said against Him.

But He never lost His humility.

Paul when attacked by people in the

Church at Corinth, he said…

By the meekness and gentleness of Christ,

I appeal to you

2 Corinthians 10:1

Don’t let evil push you to evil.

Be self-controlled for your meekness,

your humble trust in the Lord

will gain you the earth.

The earth has been fought

over from the fall of man…

Boarders have changed.

Nations have come and gone.

But the earth still stands.

The Lord rules over it.

The earth is not something

to be taken, it is to be inherited.

 

Your meekness will

be honored by the Lord.

God is able to give you a

portion of your inheritance now.

And in the new earth the

fullness of your inheritance.

So don’t give up on humility.

Lead with humility for…

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

Don’t underestimate the power of Meekness.

Scripture Reading

Matthew 5:5 NIV

5 Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.