Daily Devotions
Matthew
Entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven
Text: Matthew 5 : 1 - 12
How does a person enter into the Kingdom of Heaven? Surely one enters therein with a bowed and grateful head. Only the poor in spirit would recognize his sinfulness and plead the grace and mercies of God to gain entrance. He who stands weeping in sorrow over his sins at the gate of heaven would find it swing wide open. The heavy garment of mourning and sorrow would be replaced with a garment of praise and righteousness! The believer-disciple has every reason to rejoice for he has entered into the Kingdom of Heaven by the grace and love of God poured into his life.
WALKING WORTHY
What a great privilege to be ushered into the Kingdom of Heaven by none other than the King Himself. How easily it is to be filled with foolish pride. Swiftly, Jesus pronounced another Beatitude.
“Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.”
Matthew 5:5
How should citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven conduct themselves on this earth? This third Beatitude would be something most challenging to cultivate. Much depends on what we mean by the word “meek”.
The word “meek” (pra-us) is defined in the lexicon as, “gentle, humble, considerate”. The individual is “not overly impressed by a sense of self-importance” (A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature [3rd edition. Ed. Frederick W. Danker]).
AN IMPORTANT OLD TESTAMENT BACKGROUND
In order to understand Jesus better, it would be necessary to look at the background of this Beatitude. It is directly taken from the Book of Psalms.
1. The Context of Psalm 37
The psalmist David wrote this psalm in the context of his observation the presence of wicked people on earth. He noted the activities and behaviour of the wicked.
“Do not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.Do not fret because of him who prospers in the way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.”
Psalm 37: 1, 7
How tempting it is to be just like the world! The wicked thinks nothing of doing evil. He will do anything as long as he can get away with it, and as long as he can prosper.
2. The Challenge to be Meek
In direct contrast to the way of the wicked, the psalmist David urged believers to consider the following alternative.
“Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land and feed on His
faithfulness.Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.For evildoers shall be cut off;
But those who wait on the Lord,
They shall inherit the earth.
For yet a little while and the wicked
shall be no more…But the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the
abundance of peace.”
Psalm 37: 3, 5, 9-11
a) The meek are also those who trust in the Lord.
b) The meek continue to feed on God’s faithfulness and they do good deeds.
c) The meek wait upon the Lord. They would never take the law into their own hands.
d) The meek will outlast the wicked who will be dealt with by God in due time.
e) The meek will inherit the earth. The Lord will protect and preserve them from the wicked.
“BLESSED ARE THE MEEK”
Jesus Himself was the epitome of the concept of “meekness”. He wielded such power! Even the demons had to obey Him! Yet, at no time, did Jesus use His power and authority wrongly.
The Disciples must learn how the Master wanted them to behave as His followers. They must reflect this quality in their life. Meekness will not come easily. Only when the Disciple learns to pray and to trust God will he see some progress in the development of this virtue. He must learn to fight evil carefully. The best approach is to cultivate a life characterized by meekness.