Daily Devotion

A couple of days ago we saw how God blesses the poor in spirit with the Kingdom of God and those who mourn with comfort. For those who have nothing to offer for their salvation (that’s all of us) and those who see their need for a savior, they hear the wonderful words of the Gospel which brings salvation and eternal life as a gift. This is a great hope, but what about here and now?

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Psalm 37 has the same message,

“In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.” – Psalm 37:10-11

Here the psalmist tells us not to worry when others do things that are wicked to try to get ahead, rather we should trust in God and delight in His ways. God has promised to provide for His people. He knows our needs here on earth and provides for them. So, we need not worry.

But what does it mean to meek?

It does not mean “milquetoast,” “Mama’s boy,” “wimp,” “doormat”, or anything else derogatory or pitiful. The meek are the powerless and oppressed. It’s a condition.

For some, we may be powerless or oppressed by other people or a government. We may be mistreated by our boss, cancelled by people in our society, or oppressed and even persecuted by our government.

For all of us, though, we are under constant attack from sin and the devil. 

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” – Ephesians 6:12

So, we are all the meek and this blessing is for all of us in Christ.

We can trust in the Lord who promises to care for us, give us the way out from temptation, and deliver us from the evil one. We also know that this powerlessness and oppression will not last forever. God will bless us to inherit the earth.

Surely there will be people who will wrong us from time to time either unintentionally or with malice. For now, we wait patiently for Him, as in Psalm 37. We don’t ignore wrongs or not seek justice, but we are willing to bear with each other, forgive one another, and allow God to bring justice either directly or through the governments He establishes.

Remember, though, Matthew 5:5 is a description of the blessings from God, not a new command. God isn’t telling you to be meek, He’s describing you as meek and telling you how He will bless you regarding this condition. God’s blessing will come in His timing. We may endure hardship for now, but Jesus has overcome our enemies and will judge the wicked and we will inherit the earth.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

Sometimes we feel helpless and hopeless in the situations we find ourselves in. We feel powerless and oppressed by people around us, by the devil and his attacks, and even by our own sinful nature. Remind us that we are not helpless or hopeless. You are our help in time of need and this situation will only last for a while. You will raise us up and we will inherit the earth as you promise.

Amen.