Brian's Sermons

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5 What do you think of when you hear the word "meek?" One picture generally comes to my mind and that is a mouse or a mousy person. Meek doesn’t seem like a positive word – people generally don’t want to be described as meek. It carries the connotation of being weak or being a push-over. You can probably think of someone who you might describe as “meek” – and it’s probably not a good thing. Meekness seems to present a contrast with strength. The Greek word that has been translated "meek" or "humble" or "gentle" is πραος pra-os . Praos can also be used three interesting ways: it describes a soothing medicine; it is used by sailors to describe a gentle breeze; and is used by farmers to describe a broken colt. If you think about it this way, medicine can be soothing, but too large of a dose can be devastating. Sailors love a gentle breeze, but a gentle breeze can turn into a...

...for they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5 What do you think of when you hear the word "meek?" A mouse? I’ve found that it’s not an extremely positive word – people generally don’t want to be described as meek. It seems to carry the connotation of being weak or being a push-over. The Greek word pra-os that has been translated "meek" or "humble" or "gentle" is also used to describe a soothing medicine, is used by sailors to describe a gentle breeze, and is used by farmers to describe a broken colt. What do these have in common? They all describe something with great power, held under control. So can we work with a definition of meek as strength under control? Think about this: superheroes always had their alter-egos: Superman had Clark Kent, Spiderman was Peter Parker. Both Clark Kent and Peter Parker were known for being nerdy. They held their super strength under control. These are good examples of meekness. Why would anyone want to hold th...