Meek...

Awhile ago, my friend Sean was thinking about the meek inheriting the earth and what that really means. His thought was contagious, and now I too have been thinking about it.
When I look around at the world, I don't see too much meek inheritence going on...

Here are some of the synonoms for the word meek:

acquiescent, compliant, deferential, docile, forbearing,
gentle, humble, lenient, long-suffering, longanimous, lowly,
manageable, mild, milquetoast, modest, nothing, orderly,
pablum, passive, patient, peaceful,
plain, resigned, schnook, serene, soft, spineless, spiritless,
subdued, submissive, tame, timid, tolerant, unassuming,
unpretentious, unresisting, weak,
weak-kneed, wishy-washy, yielding, zero

(I highlighted some of the particulary horrific words!)

Yikes! I'm pretty sure, that Jesus wasn't telling people to be spineless, spiritless and weak!

Here is what the greek translation of the word Jesus used for "meek" means:
"the wild horse that has become obedient to the bit and bridle"

That doesn't sound anything like a timid, compliant nothing. It is a powerful beast that has purpose! However, the purpose does not belong to the wild horse anymore, its held in the reins of the rider.

So....the powerful, strong people full of energy and zeal who've given their will over to God will inherit the earth? This makes a little more sense to me. Living out the purpose and plans for your life under the guiding hand of Someone who knows what They are doing, is bound to have great results in terms of success, inheriting what the earth has to offer etc. Its good sense.

But I think there is still more to it than that. I think its more than about getting stuff and material possessions. There are people who have lots of stuff but still aren't meek.

Maybe handing over your reins, purpose, zeal, energy and will gives you more than stuff. Maybe gaining the earth means gaining contentment and peace. Maybe there is peace and rest in letting go of the striving. I've heard that untamed horses use lots of energy just running in circles and making a lot of noise. That sounds very inefficient, and I'm nothing if not efficient.

Maybe a contended spirit is able to enjoy what the earth has to offer, not just nature and beauty but what we already have, and maybe that's what it means to really inherit what is ours.

What are your thoughts Pastor Sean?