9
give up something dear for reasons He alone
can see. Do not rebel. Humbly surrender the
offering to God, and may He see in your heart
the godly devotion that He delights to reward.
We should never be proud of the sacrifices we
make for God, or how He uses them. After all,
God made the greatest sacrifice for us. Like
the boy who gave his lunch, God saw a throng
of needy people. Like Abraham, He gave His
only son. In this was manifested the love of
God toward us, because God sent His only
begotten son into the world (1 John 4:9). Only
because God first loved us, do we have
anything to offer (1 John 14:19). Are we
willing to make the sacrifices it takes to teach
our children the way of truth? The Lord will
always bless our contribution. May we always
receive God’s gift of sacrificial love and inspire
our brethren and sisters with love for the truth
as well.
“The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth”
| Bro David & Sis Jacklyne Wanjala (Chwele, Kenya)
I
n the sermon on the mount, Jesus said:
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall
inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). Meek is a
small word but one which, in the light of
what Jesus was saying, is of great signifi-
cance, for it portrays an aspect of human
character that is pleasing to God. It was a
trait that Jesus saw was lacking in the Jewish
leaders of his day.
The English word covers the word in the
Greek text which means humble and lowly.
These descriptions represent the very oppo-
site of arrogance, a characteristic which was
so often exhibited by the Jewish rulers - the
Pharisees, who tried to trap Jesus in the
things he taught and did. Jesus would have
been very aware of the lack of meekness in
the Roman occupying powers who were over-
bearing and did not spare the Christian
believers.
Jesus himself was the very essence of meek-
ness as the prophet Isaiah so eloquently
revealed a long time before Jesus was born.
“He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet
he opened not his mouth. He was led as a
lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before
its shearer is silent, so he opened not his
mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). As the prophet
Zechariah writes, “Rejoice greatly, O
daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of
Jerusalem! Behold your king is coming to
you: he is just and having salvation, lowly
and riding on a donkey and a colt, the foal
of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9).
In today’s
world of high
pressure
commercial
business,
self-assertion and a confident manner are
basic requirements for success. There would
seem to be no place here for meekness and
gentleness.Of course, there are Christian
believers in business as in public life who are
both humble and gentle, but competitive
society generally lies in the opposite direc-
tion. Quite clearly, the teaching of Christ and
his apostles is that the believer should not
become a party to unbridled ambition. Jesus
encouraged all who received his message of
salvation with humility and meekness to put
their trust and hope in him. He always dealt
gently with these who came to him, his own
humbleness of heart standing out in sharp
contrast to the dictatorial oppressive atti-
tude of the Pharisees and other Jewish
leaders who sought continuously to oppose
what he taught about God and himself, the
son of God and true Messiah.
Only Jesus was able to offer real consolation
to all over-burdened and exploited people
that he saw about him as he soothed their
feelings using lovely words which must have
been like a balm to those who heard him.
“Come to me, all you who labour and are
heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my
yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am
gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find
rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).