Scripture: Matthew 5:5; Matthew6: 25-34; Zephaniah 3:9-14
Read Matthew 5:5
Remember
2 weeks ago, when we considered Jesus’ words about the “poor in spirit” – that
it refers to our attitude toward the world, and not to the depth of our faith? Today, in our 3rd Beatitude, Jesus
takes this Christian attitude to an even higher level – that our poverty in
spirit will reveal a meekness in our approach to worldly things, that this will
reveal the extent of our identity and faith in Christ. It tells others that we no
longer have any use for
the power of earth, or trust in the riches of earth, or dependency
on the ways of earth.
But
what about the reference to our “inheritance” of earth? Are we supposed to assume leadership here some
day? Not exactly. This offer is not making reference to the
present earth, but rather to the renewed earth, the new earth that
Revelation 21 speaks about, the earth that will come in Christ’s Day. (Revelation21:1-5) “Meekness” toward the things
of earth in this life, will bring us glory in the earth that awaits all who
trust and follow in the way of Jesus.
This is about what awaits us through our faith in the salvation that
Jesus Christ will bring.
This
is what today’s Beatitude is promising to all who will believe and follow in
the word of God.
Read Matthew 6:25-34
A
lot of folks have a problem with this passage, in that they find it nearly
impossible not to worry about their life in this world. After all, we need food and clothing, as well
as many other vital essentials – why would Jesus tell us not to worry about
them?
In
the first half of the 20th century, a psychologist by the name of
Abraham Maslow developed an approach for ranking our human needs. You may have even studied his pyramid, known
as Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, especially if you took a Psychology course in
college. At the most basic level, he
determined that we are all in need of certain minimal supports for our life –
things such as air, food, water, clothing, shelter, sleep, etc. He stated that without fulfillment of these
basic necessities, we will struggle, if at all possible, to move up through the
next 4 levels of needs.
In
our passage from Matthew, Jesus is acknowledging that these needs are, indeed,
important, and even necessary, for our life.
But He is also telling us that through faith in Him, He will see to our
ability and efforts to obtain all of the needs that are vital for our existence
in this life. But I think the caution
here is not that we can just sit back and do nothing to achieve those
necessities, but that we must trust in God’s provision of work and ability and
sufficiency. In those times of
unemployment, or illness, or tragedies, or other major issues in this life, He
will see to it that we will always have enough to sustain us, whether we
receive all that we would like or not, it will always be enough.
Remember
Israel’s time during their trek from Egypt to the Promised Land? They became hungry and thirsty, and the Lord
provided them with manna and quail that came every morning and evening, directly
from heaven (Exodus 16:11-15), and for their thirst, water was provided
that issued right out of solid rock (Exodus 17:3-6)! Even the clothes that they wore never wore
out during the entire 40 years that they spent on their journey “home”. (Deuteronomy29:2-5)
He
is the great Jehovah Jireh – a name which means “The LORD Will Provide” (Genesis 22:14). He did, He does, and He
always will.
Read
Zephaniah 3:9-11
The
prophet begins with “Then”, implying that the Lord’s purification and cleansing
of the world will occur at a given time.
Some translations read “At that time”, or even “In the end”. We seldom get an exact time or day in
prophecy, but in general, God’s timing for renewal is centered on the return of
Christ and His day of Judgment.
Zephaniah
seems to be telling us that the process of purification will be made in a way
that separates the faithful, from those who are arrogant and self-centered, or
in other words, the meek and obedient will be separated from the worldly. The reference to the region of Cush (an area
that existed in the northern part of Egypt) tells us that judgment will not be
limited to Israel, and neither will salvation – that all who come to the
Lord and His ways will know His justice and mercy, and that for the faithful,
forgiveness and worthiness will also become theirs by the grace of God.
And
those who have never surrendered their worldly passions, pride and self-importance
will never again have a chance to give it all up in favor of God’s
blessings. They will be left in the
“outs” of humanity, with no hope, no promise, no redemption, no
forgiveness. They will be separated as
the sheep from the goats. They will be
seen and judged just as they are. (Matthew 25:31-34)
And
no one will miss seeing the Lord’s “refining fire” at work throughout the face
of the earth.
Read Zephaniah 3:12-14
And
who will be left? The meek, the humble,
the “poor in spirit”. And all temptation
will be taken away, along with those who saw them as ways to be enjoyed. Lies, arrogance, deceitfulness, sinful ways
in general, will no longer plague the faithful of the Lord, and they will be
seen as worthy and purified in Christ.
Those
who had always seen humility as a waste of time will be made humble, and
the meek and lowly will be raised up by God’s glorious blessings. The hope that the Lord has given to the
faithful of earth will bring a holy reversal upon all of the people – the great
will become least, and the meek will become honored, and nothing will ever again be as
it once was. And all will, at last, know
the complete truth of God, and will have no choice except to submit to it.
For
on that day, “at the sound of the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians2:9-11) But for many in the world, it will be too late to experience the
glory that comes from proclaiming that holy and precious name.
For
on that day, it will only be the meek of earth who will ultimately come to know
the glory of heaven for their own lives.
