Welcome to the For the Gospel podcast, where we're all about providing sound doctrine for everyday people. I'm your host, Costa Hind, and on today's episode, I want to talk to you about meekness. And regardless if you're a man or a woman, I do want to make some applications regarding meekness and manhood and womanhood. This is going to be very important for all of us to understand in these times. There is a lot of good attention being given to biblical manhood right now as we stand strong for God's design of male and female. There is a lot of good attention being given to biblical womanhood right now. And I believe it's important for us as Christians to be very clear about the unique roles God has given men and women. We should teach our children these things, and we should, if we are men, act like men. And if you're a woman, you ought to act like a woman. These are important truths. Furthermore, I understand, and I'm sure you do as well, wartime dynamics. What I mean by that is biblical, theological, or ideological war, if you will. There's a time to fight for truth. And I have no doubt that we are in that time. And by fight, I mean a strong, stalwart, unwavering stand, a bold and courageous, vocal stand. We are in that time. We need to be people of the book who proclaim the book. But theological and ideological war is never an excuse to become the evil we are seeking to eradicate. And in our quest for clarity and in our stand of conviction, we must not forget our sound exegesis and the fruit of the Spirit. What do I mean by that? Well, there are those who take biblical manhood into extreme applications. They oppress women, they make biblical complementarianism look horrible. And there are those who, in their desire to slay the so-called dragon, if you will, of cultural liberalism and paganism, which they are, they have become a dragon themselves. The sage-like wisdom of older men rings true here that even with the best of intentions, on their quest to eradicate evil, many good men with good intentions have become the evil they were trying to eradicate. This is why I believe Paul the Apostle tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 2, 24 and 25, and the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, that's definitely a quality that comes from being meek, which we'll talk about more in a moment, correcting his opponents with gentleness. There's no place for a spiritual bully in the body of Christ. And meekness is very important. I believe this is where meekness comes in because we want to be strong, we want to be bold, we want to be courageous, we want to be unwavering, but we also don't want to become the evil we are trying to eradicate. And here's a reality that I want you to fully understand and grasp and embrace. Meekness is not throwing cold water on the war effort. Meekness is not standing by while evil runs wild and free. And meekness is not weakness. People hear the word meek and they think of a you know sheepish little coward who is afraid of conflict, or someone who gingerly dips their toes in the water of the war, if you will. Beyond that, you'll have some who paint a picture of meekness as a primarily female trait, presenting the meekest of them all as a little submissive wife with a dainty voice and she's got glass slippers on and she is a servant's heart. While a godly woman will be meek, the Bible does not genderize meekness. In fact, meekness is a spiritual character quality that all Christians should possess. If a man claims to be a theologian, a pastor, or a spiritual leader, but he is not meek. Yet he boasts of great knowledge. He seems to have affluence and power, he puffs his chest with the best of them. He is one who is like a fighter, talking a big game during the press conferences only to be tapped out in the first round by his opponent who stayed quiet, who knew he was a warrior, therefore he was calm and focused. You know the phrase it's the quiet ones you should watch out for? In spiritual terms, it's the meek ones you should watch out for. They know the cards they hold. They know Christ is Lord, they know the task at hand, and they are not a flash in the pan here for one moment and then a headline the next. How many men in the young, restless and reformed movement bought into the bravado, but they were a nightmare as leaders. They cussed at men, they oppressed women, they shamed others, they took gender roles to insane, new and unbiblical heights, they were on a quest to change the culture only to end up operating like Attila the Hun, plundering and conquering, but in all the wrong ways. The spirit of God was not honored, instead he was grieved, and they were a flash in the pan. Now think of a man like RC Sprol. He was strong in truth, he had deep convictions, he was not afraid to say What's wrong with you people? But what is on his gravestone today? It says he was a kind man redeemed by a kinder Savior. This is the RC Sproll who got on a table to plead with brothers who were promoting false unity between Protestants and Catholics. This is a man who refused to back down when the inerrancy of Scripture was under assault. This is a man who had differences with his own friends theologically, but all the while the infectious laugh, the kind hearted friend, and the man enthralled with the holiness of God was not known as a jerk or a theological bar brawler, a tough guy or any other hot shot term. Was he a warrior? Of course. A lion? No doubt. But men like Sproll are so and were so filled up with the Spirit, bearing the fruit of the Spirit that you and I remember them and speak about them in spiritual terms. Without meekness, you and I, we rely on our own strength. Without meekness, you and I, we talk up a big game and we can fake it till we make it, but I'll tell you this, we never make it. With meekness, you and I are nothing but schoolyard bullies pounding people over the head with our Bibles rather than walking with them as those enduring trial and living life in need of the same gospel, the same savior, and the same truth that we preach. And so how do we stand strong against darkness with genuine strength? How do we avoid the pompous display of ego, pretending to be strong in the Lord, and truly be strong in the Lord? How do we be more like the RC sprawls of old and really ultimately Christ our Lord? Well, it's not by laying aside conviction, it's by keeping meekness in the mix. So what is meekness? In basic terms, meekness is humility. It's also synonymous with gentleness. You say, how can we be both strong warriors for truth and women of God who stand strong for the truth and then yet gentle at the same time? That's a contradiction, I would say. Let's not forget the example of our Lord. He is both lion and lamb. I want to expand on this and give you four things that meekness is and four things that meekness is not, and then we'll wrap things up. Number one, meekness is strength under control. MacArthur commentates this meekness is not weakness, it's power under control. As the writer of Proverbs says, He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who captures a city. That's Proverbs sixteen thirty two. In contrast, the individual who is not gentle or not meek is likened to a city that is broken into and without walls, Proverbs twenty five, verse twenty eight. Meekness or gentleness, which is a word synonymous for meekness, is always that which uses its resources appropriately, unlike the out of control emotions that so often are destructive and have no place in your life as a believer. Meekness is strength under control. Number two, meekness is Christ like humility. Perhaps nothing captures this better than Philippians two, three through seven. Paul says, Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, regard one another as more important than yourselves. Do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude, verse five, in yourselves, which was also in Christ Jesus. Jesus is our example, who, although he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, verse seven, but emptied himself, taking on the form of a bondservant and being made into the likeness of men, being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Look, Jesus was truly God and truly man. He could have capitalized on all of his power, he could have crushed those who killed him with barely blinking his eyes, even a thought would have vaporized them. He submitted to the Father, though, which is truly remarkable because he was truly God. This is meekness. He submitted himself to death on a cross to fulfill the Father's plan, to accomplish the work of redemption. And Paul says in summary, be like Jesus. That's humility. That's meekness. And so in all of your fighting the good fight, let's not forget our Christ-like humility. Number three, meekness is enduring suffering faithfully. Psalm thirty seven, verses seven to fifteen paints this picture. I want to read it to you. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. Fret not means be not afraid. Fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices. Let me stop there for a second. How many of us get so frustrated when the evil are winning or the wicked are getting their way? The psalmist writes, Don't don't, don't fear that, don't worry. Verse eight, refrain from anger, forsake wrath. I think he says that because all of us burn with anger, and we want to unleash wrath on those who are wicked and getting away with it for now. Fret not yourself, it tends only to evil. That means we're tempted to evil. We want to get in the fight, we're going to do something about this, we're going to take them down. Verse nine, for the evil doers shall be cut off. Oh now we get into what God's going to do. But those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land. This has echoes of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount that the meek will inherit the earth. Verse ten in just a little while the wicked will be no more. Though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. Verse eleven, but the meek shall inherit the land, and delight themselves in abundant peace. The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming. The wicked draw the sword, and they bend their bows, and to bring down the poor and the needy, to slay those whose way is upright, their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bow shall be broken. Listen to me, friends. Meekness is not necessarily fighting fire with fire. It's not trading evil for evil, insult for insult, and shot for shot. It patiently suffers, knowing the Lord is laughing at the wicked. This should cause us to be gospel proclaimers. This should cause us to plead with all to repent. This should cause us great trust, patience, and peace, knowing our Lord is going to return soon and destroy all those who do not repent. Number four, and this plays right out of that. Meekness is ultimately trusting the Lord. Sinclair Ferguson writes this it is the humble strength that belongs to the man who has learned to submit to difficulties, difficult experiences, and difficult people, knowing that in everything God is working for his good. Meekness is trusting the Lord, learning to submit, knowing he's working this out. Let me give you four things that meekness is not. Number one, meekness is not weakness. I said it before, I want to say it again. Christ was meek. I would not dare relegate meekness to being for for the weak. Christ is our king, he was meek. Number two, meekness is not feminine. Christ was meek. Do I even need to say more? Be very careful with this. If you're one of those people that views meekness as more of a feminine thing, or this lowly little kind of soft womanly vibe, tread lightly. Sinclair Ferguson says there is probably no more beautiful quality in a Christian than meekness. It enhances manliness, he says. It adorns femininity. It is a jewel polished by grace, but it is all too rare. Let me warn you and say it again so we're real clear. Meekness is not feminine. Don't you dare and don't I dare push that one off as for women. It is for all of us. In fact, I'll go this far. Real men are meek. Bullies aren't. They masquerade as men. The minute real men stand up and challenge them, they cower. Meekness is not feminine. It is Christ-like. It is for all of us. Third, meekness is not passivism. I know some of you, and we can all be tempted to this thinking sometimes. You think, well, Christ was meek. Okay, do I now I just have to I'm a am I a passivist? Was Jesus a passivist? No. Christ was meek, yet he turned over tables in the temple. He called out Pharisees. He endured the cross on our behalf. Remember, even in his his laying down his life and his not doing anything, if you will, he was doing something. He was redeeming us. He stood strong and he resisted when it was time, and he held back wrath, which remember that's meekness, when it was time to absorb the Father's wrath on the cross. He was not a passivist, but understand this, he never sacked Rome the way the Jews thought he would. He was not a zealot. He even tells Peter, put the sword away, because he understood the moment he was living in and the task at hand. Meekness is not a call for passivism, it is humbly understanding the plan of God. And finally, meekness is not giving up. When we encourage meekness, someone might say, Oh, so you just want me to give up. I'm not, I'm not giving up on this country. I'm not giving up on my rights. I'm not giving up on my family. I'm not giving up on my church. You know, yes and amen to all of that. We live in America. Things are dark right now at times, and I'm of the mind that God will give a nation the leaders it deserves as part of judgment. We see that throughout the Old Testament. And so, yes, we are in dark days, but we are still in a country in which we can exercise our rights and freedoms. We don't want to just give that up and lay down all of those for nothing. No one in their right mind is calling for any of that when talking about biblical meekness. We should not roll over and sit idly by while evil men do their worst. By all means be engaged. But as you assess your arsenal in the war on truth, make sure you are also armed with meekness, in addition to the other essentials for fighting the good fight. This ensures that the Christian is still Christ like in all that they endeavor to do. I hope this episode has given you some truths to consider as we all seek to stand boldly for the gospel. If you're one of my brothers and sisters involved in politics, I'm so thankful for you. I praise God for you on the front lines. We are with you, standing with you, encouraging you, supporting you. If you're a Christian that is not registered to vote and is not engaged in the political sphere, I would say you are laying aside something you should take up. You and I, as believers, we get the opportunity in America to vote and to have our voices be heard. And you ought to be engaged. Do not be a pacifist or someone who just says, Well, I don't want to say too much. I need to be meek. Look, you now understand, meekness isn't giving up. Meekness is just being humble and Christ-like in the midst of the fight. So fight the good fight and stand for truth and be engaged in various fears throughout our world. If you're a believer who has been getting caught up in some of the manhood narratives that we have to beat our chests and do the young, restless, reformed kind of hot shot stuff, just be done with that. Be a man who speaks softly and carries a big stick. Be a man who is like the fighter, if you will, in a press conference that doesn't pop off, isn't running his mouth, he's just quiet, he's steady, he knows what he's about. That's real strength. Everybody talks a big game, everybody's trying to get hits, everybody's trying to get you to look at their social media page or uh download their podcast and cause controversy to get attention. Bottom line is there will be moments in which you got to say hard things, and I have to say hard things, and that may attract some level of attention, but that's not the mark of our faithfulness in ministry. We are those who proclaim the gospel, we are those who emulate our Lord, and so in all that you do and all that you say, know where you find your strength, know who your source is. Meekness is strength under control. Know when to say things and know when not to, know when to pull out the sword and know when to put it away. Thanks for listening to the For the Gospel podcast and for all of your support. We're so thankful. We're gonna keep on working hard to pump out free resources to serve you and equip you in whatever the Lord would have you do for his glory. To check out free resources, go to forthegospel.org. And if you want to give or partner with us as a gospel patron to help us produce resources, we would love that. You can do all that on our give page. If you haven't already, be sure to follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter and drop us a review on your favorite podcast platform. I'll be back next Monday with another episode. For now, keep on living for the gospel.