Marriage is…Submission (3/4)

Marriage Is… Submission

Submission – “Meek”, the Third Beatitude

We do well to remember the value of being “meek” in our households and especially in marriage with our spouse?

“Blessed the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”  (Matthew 5:5)

Little difference is there between being “poor in spirit” and being “meek.”   The difference is:

1. The ‘poor in spirit’ describes the man more as he is in himself, namely, broken-hearted

2. the ‘meek’ pictures him more definitely in his relation to God and the fellowman.

Note the following texts for greater understanding all from the 37^th Psalm.

Ps. 37:11 –  ¹¹   But the meek shall inherit the earth,  And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

Ps. 37:22 –       For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth,  But those cursed by Him shall be cut off.

Ps. 27:29 –       The righteous shall inherit the land,    And dwell in it forever.

Ps. 27:34 –  Wait on the Lord, and keep His way,  And He shall exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.

From these scriptures we see that a man (individual) is

1.      not resentful,

2.      bears no grudge,

3.      does not mull past injuries but finds refuge in the Lord and

4.      commits his way entirely to Him.

One’s behavior is such because we know we have died to all self-righteousness and that we cannot claim any merit before God (cf. Ps. 34:18; 51:17).

When we value God’s favor then we do everything for him, learning to take joyfully “the plundering of his possessions, knowing that he has a better possession and an abiding one” (Heb. 10:34).

Mmeekness is not weakness.   It is submissiveness under provocation, the willingness rather to suffer than to inflict injury. The meek person leaves everything in the hand of God as He is the one who loves and cares.  He looks for the reward of being able to possess the earth. 

To inherit the earth indicates the following:

a.   By grace the citizen of the kingdom has a right to this possession;

b.   He will certainly receive it as an inalienable treasure;

c.   He will not need to—cannot even—earn it himself.

The Collegiate Dictionary definition:

meek\ˈmēk\ adjective [Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse mjūkr gentle; akin to Welsh esmwyth soft] 13th century 1  : enduring injury with patience and without resentment : mild 2     : deficient in spirit and courage : submissive 3   : not violent or strong : moderate — meek•ly adverb — meek•ness noun

MW Collegiate Dict. (11th Ed.)

Louw-Nida dictionary of Greek Words:

88.60πραΰς,πραεῖα,πραΰ: pertaining to being gentle and mild—‘mild, gentle, meek.’ καὶ μάθετε ἀπ̓ ἐμοῦ,ὅτι πραΰς εἰμι ‘and learn from me because I am gentle’ Mt 11:29.

It is seen today that an overwhelming self-centeredness and self-indulgence exist.   The entertainment-conscious society feeds us all kinds of ‘illusions’ to reality of life.  They portray the fantasy of a ‘perfect romantic and sexual relationship’ and the reality falls short.  We can not live up to the expectation in our relationship.  Paul stated that in the last days “without family affection” as a sign of the times.  We need to watch that the world’s ideas do not influence our lives.  God’s standard for marriage and the family is the only standard that can produce meaning, happiness, and fulfillment.

For that type of a relationship to be a reality, Christ must be at its center.  We need to realize that only those who belong to God through faith in His Son will fully understand and apply the power and potential of those principles.