“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace…meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Gal 5:22-23).
Meekness (prautēs), the seventh dimension of the love-fruit of the Spirit, denotes a mild or humble disposition. It’s the opposite of harsh, bitter, severe or arrogant action or effect. There’s a moderation that true love possesses. This dimension of love enables us to avoid exerting extreme effects on those around us. It moves us to tone down rather than escalate situations. Beloved, when you walk in this kind of love, you’re not keen to compete and win every argument. You’re quite willing to lose petty battles in order to win the war of loving like Jesus. Elsewhere, the Bible says, “Love …does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant” (1 Cor 13:4). Yes, true love may be confident but it is never proud. Many of us think meekness is weakness. On the contrary, it takes immense strength of character to keep one’s passions under control. That’s meekness in action. Compare how Moses’ meekness pays off for him under unjust criticism by his siblings (Num 12). God Himself points out to Aaron and Miriam that Moses was in a class of his own in terms of relationship with God. Yet Moses doesn’t assert his superiority or boast about his face-to-face encounters with Yahweh. Will you also let God vindicate and defend your righteous cause? Can you be humble enough to take criticism without overly defending yourself? Beloved, regardless of how much God uses you, let the Spirit’s gentleness characterise your expression of God’s love in and through you today.
Pastor Josh