ARE YOU MEEK?

What does the Bible mean when it praises the meek?  What is "meekness?"  The Blue Letter Bible defines "meekness" this way: 

"Meekness toward God is that disposition of spirit in which we accept His dealings with us as good, and therefore without disputing or resisting. In the OT, the meek are those wholly relying on God rather than their own strength to defend against injustice. Thus, meekness toward evil people means knowing God is permitting the injuries they inflict, that He is using them to purify His elect, and that He will deliver His elect in His time (Isa. 41:17, Lk. 18:1-8). Gentleness or meekness is the opposite of self-assertiveness and self-interest. It stems from trust in God's goodness and control over the situation. The gentle person is not occupied with self at all. This is a work of the Holy Spirit, not of the human will (Gal. 5:23)."

The first time the word appears in the Scriptures, it is used to describe Moses.  In Numbers 12:3, we read, "Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth."  Moses felt inadequate for God's call upon his life, and in balking, he angered God (Ex. 4:1-17) .  Jesus is described as meek (Mt. 11:29; 21:5), and yet all that He did pleased God (Mt. 3:17; 12:18; 17:5; 2 Pet. 1:17).  So what is the difference? 

Moses was meek in that he failed to recognize that God would work through him, to accomplish all that He was calling him to do.  In other words, his meekness was due to his lack of faith in God, and fear of failure.  Jesus, on the other hand, knew God's Word and believed that what His Father was asking of Him would be accomplished in the strength and power of the Holy Spirit (Mt. 12:28; Lk. 11:20; Jn. 14:10).

I believe that meekness is the outworking of humility.  A meek person does not view himself as superior to others.  A meek person does not utilize his own strength to subjugate others, but rather, he determines to walk in the strength and authority of God.  Jesus is our example, our role-model:

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:  bug made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:  and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:5-8).

The Lord became the Servant, so that we might become the servants of God!