The Friday just gone (2/5/10) we had another talk on the beatitudes. I spoke on Matthew 5:5. "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." (NIV).
It was flipping difficult to communicate my understanding of this verse. The way I understand meek was based on the Greek- 'Praus' which is another word for mild (by implication) or humble. The way I interpreted the verse was by looking at what wasn't meek. And who inherits or possesses the earth now. From what I can see those who inherit the earth (greek- 'ge'- soil, by extension a region or the solid part or the whole of the globe) at this moment in time is those in power, those who have influence. The politicians, the land owners, the billionaires, the oil companies, the CEO's, the "super sweet 16's" (if you've ever seen that program!), etc... The earth is carved up and distributed to those who can grab a hold of it. Domination, force and sometimes oppression are how we 'inherit' the earth.
So how is it that Jesus can say the MEEK inherit the earth. My experience of it is the opposite. I imagine in Jesus' time the same rule applied as it does today or at least looked somewhat similar. The earth was carved up and the Romans had most of it. The disciples who Jesus was teaching would believe that they were the rightful owners of the land, that they were given the land by their fathers before them, that if God was really God, and they were God's chosen people then He would want the very best for them.
Rob Bell helped me to understand that what Jesus may have meant was based on Psalm 37. Bell explains in one of his sermons (http://marshill.org/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=57_38&products_id=560) that when Jesus was speaking, what He was saying wasn't new. Throughout the Psalm there are the words 'meek', 'inheritance' and 'earth'/'land'. The disciples will have been familiar with if not knew Psalm 37. By using words like meek, inheritance and earth, Jesus was doing was what Bell calls 'Remez': a hint, a reference to something else.
Have a look and see that the Psalm speaks of how the evil in this world will wither away. "For like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon wither away". All the imagery in the Psalm speaks of how God will oppose evil. How God will stand with the meek and oppressed. That God walks with the meek, the righteous. It is a Psalm of hope and comfort for the oppressed.
And that is what Jesus is pointing at. Jesus is saying that you don't need to gain power, gain status, and force your way to the top, you don't need to fight for your land, you don't need to pick up your sword and start swinging, because by doing that (even if you do it in the name of God) you will only be opposing God. Jesus taught to turn the other cheek when struck (Matt 5:39), to walk two miles when forced to walk one (Matt 5:41)... to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matt 5:44).
It's a very radical, very revolutionary idea... "To our most bitter opponents we say: "Throw us in jail and we will still love you. Bomb our houses and threaten our children and we will still love you. Beat us and leave us half dead, and we will still love you. But be ye assured that we will wear you down by our capacity to suffer. One day we shall so appeal to your heart and conscience that we shall win you in the process, and our victory will be a double victory." - Dr Martin Luther King Jr., "The American Dream".
I think the point is not about who actually 'inherits" the earth but what will last. Psalm 37 says that evil will wither away... empires will rise and fall, oppressors and dictators will have their time but eternal things will live on for... well, eternity - things that are creative and reproduce, things that we all connect with and deeply desire. Things like love, things like acceptance, peace, joy, kindness, and so much more. Maybe when Jesus points to eternal life He is pointing to what is already created, what already exists and IS will last forever. But evil will not go on forever. Better to invest in what is eternal than to invest in what will wither away... right?
On Friday I spoke about how we draw distinctions, divisions and lines. Not necessarily physically on the earth but socially speaking there is plenty to define our differences, there is plenty of room for a crisis of identity in an individual today. There are different races, religions and cultural and generational divisions. The meek are the oppressed. I can see now that I might have been wrong when I said that "everyone is meek", because I imagine that there are people who believe that they have it all together, that they have what they want and can do whatever they want to whoever they want. But does anyone actually believe this, or does everyone still have at least a niggling feeling that they don't have it all together or that they aren't keeping up... after all, don't those who do strive for having it all together only do so because they believe that they don't yet?
Meekness is this recognition that we don't have it all together.
I don't know about you, but I don't think meekness is drawing up a constitution or policy and getting the biggest number of followers. Neither do I think it is forcing our thinking onto someone else, nor is it "fighting terror with terror" (George W. Bush Jr).
Maybe meekness can be recognizing that we don't have all the answers to saving the world.
Maybe meekness is knowing that without God we are screwed.
Maybe meekness is trusting that God has it all sorted regardless of race, religion or denomination.
Maybe meekness is dying on a cross asking "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"...
I think that we would be very blessed if we recognized that we share the same needs, and actually acted to help each other to meet these needs. But naturally, as I spoke on Friday in church there was a whole plethora of complicated discussion over humility, whether everyone was meek, how everyone was or could be meek especially when I when I said that "everyone is meek". Somehow, it led to a discussion on heaven, hell and eternal life, which led to a discussion on unconditional love, which led to a discussion of truth and interpretation of the Bible, which led to subjective and objective truth, which led back to the interpretation of the Bible, which led to aspects of eschatology, which led back to heaven and hell, etc...
But I'll end with a joke.
So there's this massive queue of people outside the pearly gates of heaven ready to go in and Peter is standing there with the book of life ticking people off as they go inside. An admin angel with a full-on suit comes up and taps Peter on the shoulder saying, "hey Peter, there seems to be a bit of a problem. There are more people inside heaven than there are recorded in the book of life." and Peter says, "that's strange..." The angel says, "but don't worry about it, I'll go check it out and see what's going on." The angel returns a little later saying to Peter, "Yeah, we found the problem... Turns out Jesus is on the other side of heaven pulling people in from the other side."
It is a wonderful thought isn't it? The thought of Jesus pulling people over the walls of heaven saying to the homosexuals, the murderers, the liars, the thieves, the pedophiles, the Hitlers and Stalins "Come in, there's plenty of room for you here. Don't worry, you won't mess it up. My grace is enough."
