Today we are still in Chapter 5, second paragraph, The Beatitudes. Today's beatitude is:
4 Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the
earth.
Again we find that we are blessed if we are meek. What does it mean to be meek? The dictionary describes meek as being humbly patient or submissive, as under provocation from others. So, I am blessed if I am patient or submissive, and I will possess the earth. These are the words of Christ, which are truth. If I am to believe the Bible and its meanings, to get some understandings, that means that I must believe the words of Christ because he speaks the truth. God does not lie. God cannot tell a lie but only speaks the truth. God is the father of all truth, just as Satan is the father of all lies. So how does this truth apply to me??
How does having possession of the earth help me?? Can I take my ownership and cash it in for the wealth of the world?? Will selling a portion of my possession buy me a new house or a new car or put money in the bank. If I possess the earth, own it, what benefit is it to me?? One can look at the opposite meaning, what does it mean for the earth to possess me as opposed to my possessing the earth.
In our time, we are taught that to be successful, we must be aggressive. We must go for what we know and what we want in life. We must not give up but be positive about our goals and assert ourselves in what we do. Our goals and desires drive our behavior, and our desires are fed by what we see on TV, read in magazines, and hear from the society in which we live. There are all sorts of things out there that will make us happy, if we only had them. A new car, sharp clothes, and money to burn, will bring us popularity with our friends and success with the opposite sex. This drives us to possess what we think will make us happy. And our drive is being reinforced by what is being fed to us by the commercialism of this day. Are we possessed by the earth?? Does the earth and what abounds in it have control over us, telling us who we are, how we feel, what value we place upon ourselves. Are our emotions compelled by our passions??
We feel anger by what does not meet our expectations. We know sadness by what we have been hurt. We are let down by the obstacles that we face in attempting to reach our goals that would make us happy. Our anger boils within us stealthily seeking a way to escape upon any opportunity that presents itself. We grow up thinking that we are wild and our emotions should express that sense of wildness. So we end up doing things that express this sense of wildness, far beyond the norms that are part of what we have been given by our parents. We experiment with relationships that we know are unproductive. We allow ourselves to experience behaviors that are detrimental to our health and well being, using drugs and drinking, having sex for the sake of pleasure, stealing, and using foul language to express the anger and frustration that is within us. The earth has possessed us, it has taken hold of us, as opposed to our having possession of it.
Meekiness is defined in biblical terms as, the virtue that moderates the passion of anger by keeping it within the limits required by natural and supernatural prudence. So in order to keep anger out of our lives we practice meekness. In order to not let the earth possess us, but to own the earth, we must practice meekness.
One would think that being submissive is being a coward, not standing up for what was right. God gives us his words and commandments not as harsh law, to beat us over our heads if we transgress them. Instead he gives these words of wisdom so that we do not fall, so that we do not cause harm to ourselves, so that we can understand his love for us. Like a father knows that fire will burn, and a fall from a high place will cause injury, or that eating a poisonous substance will cause harm, he protects his children from these things so that they do not harm themselves. He loves his children. So does our heavenly father loves us and wants to protect us. He gives us commandments to keep us from harm because he knows what will cause us injury and what will destroy us. Meekness keeps the door to anger closed. It allows us to enjoy the beauty of this world, while not having the things of this world take possession of our minds, bodies and our souls. Instead we posses the world.
4 Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the
earth.
Again we find that we are blessed if we are meek. What does it mean to be meek? The dictionary describes meek as being humbly patient or submissive, as under provocation from others. So, I am blessed if I am patient or submissive, and I will possess the earth. These are the words of Christ, which are truth. If I am to believe the Bible and its meanings, to get some understandings, that means that I must believe the words of Christ because he speaks the truth. God does not lie. God cannot tell a lie but only speaks the truth. God is the father of all truth, just as Satan is the father of all lies. So how does this truth apply to me??
How does having possession of the earth help me?? Can I take my ownership and cash it in for the wealth of the world?? Will selling a portion of my possession buy me a new house or a new car or put money in the bank. If I possess the earth, own it, what benefit is it to me?? One can look at the opposite meaning, what does it mean for the earth to possess me as opposed to my possessing the earth.
In our time, we are taught that to be successful, we must be aggressive. We must go for what we know and what we want in life. We must not give up but be positive about our goals and assert ourselves in what we do. Our goals and desires drive our behavior, and our desires are fed by what we see on TV, read in magazines, and hear from the society in which we live. There are all sorts of things out there that will make us happy, if we only had them. A new car, sharp clothes, and money to burn, will bring us popularity with our friends and success with the opposite sex. This drives us to possess what we think will make us happy. And our drive is being reinforced by what is being fed to us by the commercialism of this day. Are we possessed by the earth?? Does the earth and what abounds in it have control over us, telling us who we are, how we feel, what value we place upon ourselves. Are our emotions compelled by our passions??
We feel anger by what does not meet our expectations. We know sadness by what we have been hurt. We are let down by the obstacles that we face in attempting to reach our goals that would make us happy. Our anger boils within us stealthily seeking a way to escape upon any opportunity that presents itself. We grow up thinking that we are wild and our emotions should express that sense of wildness. So we end up doing things that express this sense of wildness, far beyond the norms that are part of what we have been given by our parents. We experiment with relationships that we know are unproductive. We allow ourselves to experience behaviors that are detrimental to our health and well being, using drugs and drinking, having sex for the sake of pleasure, stealing, and using foul language to express the anger and frustration that is within us. The earth has possessed us, it has taken hold of us, as opposed to our having possession of it.
Meekiness is defined in biblical terms as, the virtue that moderates the passion of anger by keeping it within the limits required by natural and supernatural prudence. So in order to keep anger out of our lives we practice meekness. In order to not let the earth possess us, but to own the earth, we must practice meekness.
One would think that being submissive is being a coward, not standing up for what was right. God gives us his words and commandments not as harsh law, to beat us over our heads if we transgress them. Instead he gives these words of wisdom so that we do not fall, so that we do not cause harm to ourselves, so that we can understand his love for us. Like a father knows that fire will burn, and a fall from a high place will cause injury, or that eating a poisonous substance will cause harm, he protects his children from these things so that they do not harm themselves. He loves his children. So does our heavenly father loves us and wants to protect us. He gives us commandments to keep us from harm because he knows what will cause us injury and what will destroy us. Meekness keeps the door to anger closed. It allows us to enjoy the beauty of this world, while not having the things of this world take possession of our minds, bodies and our souls. Instead we posses the world.
