Galatians 5:16-6:1, Meekness vs. anger (2)

5)    Bible Study on “meekness.”

a)    “Meekness” is a quality of the life of Christ.  He told us to learn of Me for I am meek, lowly of heart (Mt. 11:29).  The picture of His triumphal entry, entering Jerusalem to offer Himself as their King, is one of “meekness” (Mt. 21:5;           quoted from Zech. 9:9). 

i)      How do we “learn of” Christ?  We learn about Christ in the Scriptures.  There can be no learning of Christ without a steady diet of the Word of God in our lives.  But as we learn “about” Christ we must reckon that what we see in Christ is true of the new man that we are becoming in Christ.  In Col. 3 we are told to “put on … meekness” as we would put on new clothes (v12).  The motivating factor as that we have already put off the old man (the sin-oriented person we used to be) and have already put on the new man who is the image of our Creator (v9-10).  That “new man” is Christ who lives in us (Gal. 2:20).  Rom. 6:11 says it this way: Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

ii)   The “fruit of the Spirit” in Gal. 5:22-23 is another description of this life of Christ.  “Meekness” is one of those spiritual fruits (translated “gentleness” in the NKJV).  The context of Galatians makes it clear that we cannot be “meek” simply by hearing and obeying a command or law to be meek!  We must be led by the Spirit (Gal. 5:18) and walk in the Spirit (5:25).  He leads and we walk as we yield ourselves to Christ.

iii)            Prov. 22:24-25 has something important to say.  Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul.  We can learn Christ through the fellowship of believers.  We need role models to learn “meekness,” which is the opposite of anger.

b)    What kind of people need to grow in meekness?  Everyone, of course (Titus 3:2f).  It should adorn the life of a woman (1 Pt. 3:4).  It should characterize leadership (a mature believer who reaches out to restore a fallen brother, Gal. 6:1; a pastor who seeks to correct “opponents,” 2 Tim. 2:25; the Apostle Paul as he encourages the Corinthian believers (2 Cor. 10:1).  And believers in Christ who seek to be Christ to their unsaved friends, must be ready to give an answer of the hope they, but with meekness and fear.  Let us not be those who lord it over others. 

c)    Here’s one last word of encouragement: there is no happiness in life apart from meekness; Jesus said so (Mt. 5:5).