First Baptist Church Litchfield
May 18, 2025

      • Hebrews 11:1ESV

      • Hebrews 11:6ESV

  • I Have Decided to Follow Jesus
  • This I Believe (The Creed)

      • Proverbs 3:5–6ESV

  • The Solid Rock
  • Hymn Of Heaven
  • He Will Hold Me Fast

  • Meekness is not weakness, its power under control.

    I want to speak a word to our graduates this morning. You have a desire to change the world. It is somewhat innate in you. I think God puts it there and you may feel it’s passion most at this age. Too many of your peers, however, have believed a lie. They believe being boisterous, self-righteous, and self-assuring are the pride of one’s strength. The measure of your character is best displayed by how well you virtue signal a cause. Cultivating self-will toward God and ill-will toward your fellow fallen image bearers is righteous and even necessary.
    It is opposite of what Christ models for you and empowers you to value and live in this world. For Christ, meekness is the pride of the God-honoring life. Meekness is not weakness. It is power under control.
    Meekness is not valued in our modern culture. To many, meekness is a sign of weakness because society views it as either passive indecision or fearful incompetence. In the eyes of most Westerners, meek people just resign themselves to the fate of their circumstances.
    But the bible has a different view of the meek.
    Jesus says
    Matthew 5:5 ESV
    “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
    Who are the meek? The meek are the poor in Spirit (Matthew 5:3), those who mourn over their sin (Matthew 5:4). The meek realize they lack righteousness and need to seek it in order to be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). The meek are the ones who are saved from their sins (Matthew 1:21) and are ransomed from death by the cross of Christ (Matthew 20:28). Through His blood the meek find forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:28). The meek, by faith, receive Him, put their trust in Him, and find their righteousness and rest from their enemies in the kingdom of God. They are blessed. They have his favor and his inheritance. In Matthew 5:5, Jesus promises the meek will get to possess the new earth, the new creation, that comes when he returns to make all things right and new.
    Those who take possession of the earth, who “inherit the earth” are described in
    Psalm 37:11 ESV
    But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.
    Mathew’s audience would have heard him use the same Greek word for earth that is used in the LXX (The Greek Old Testament) in Psalm 37:11 for land. Just as David is telling the righteous that they need not fret over the wicked because God will judge the wicked and give the righteous the land, so Jesus is promising the same thing to his disciples who are being persecuted by the wicked.
    Possessing the land in Psalm 37:11 is essentially transferred to Jesus’ disciples when he says they will possesses the earth in Matthew 5:5. Jesus partially fulfills this promise with his life, death, and resurrection. The promise remains, those who humble themselves and trust the Lord, that is those who accept Christ, will live with Him in his kingdom in the new heavens and earth that is coming when he returns.
    “The bible says these are the meek. The gentle, tender, humble, mild, and considerate. In God’s economy of things, the Meek possesses control, discipline, and restraint. They do not throw their weight around, but seek the good of others, as well as the Lord.”
    In summary, graduates, the meek are genuine Christians.
    With that in mind, Psalm 37:1-11 gives us a portrait of what the meek look like today.

    The meek trust in the Lord (Psalm 37:3)

    Psalm 37:3 HCSB
    Trust in the Lord and do what is good; dwell in the land and live securely.
    Trusting the Lord means placing your confidence in Him and relying on Him. This is often described as "leaning one’s weight on,” "hanging on,” or "placing oneself in the hands of.” You demonstrate trust every time you enter this sanctuary. 
    You never hesitate about what will happen when you sit in that pew; you are sure it will hold you. You understand how long you can sit there before your back starts to ache and how to stand and maneuver to get in and out. It’s become second nature. You trust the pew to fulfill its purpose: to support you, to sustain you, to protect you from falling, to provide comfort, to assist you in worship, to encourage fellowship with your fellow members, and to help resolve conflicts within the family. That level of confidence is what God expects from you when He commands trust. The meek place their confidence in the Lord.
    I believe Proverbs 3:5-8 bests explain how the meek trust in the lord.
    Proverbs 3:5–8 HCSB
    Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths. Don’t consider yourself to be wise; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. This will be healing for your body and strengthening for your bones.
    How can you trust in the Lord? You trust Him by loving Him as He instructs: with all your mind, heart, soul, and strength. Every single part of your heart, every thought, every affection, every idea, and every ambition is recognized by Him and submitted to His authority.
    You demonstrate this trust by not relying on your own understanding. Do not consider yourself wise, as that is evil.
    To trust the Lord is to believe Him when he says your heart is full of pride. We often rely on our own wisdom. We focus on our own ways, which may seem right to us but ultimately lead to death (Proverbs 14:12). Pride lacks reverence for the Lord. The meek humble themselves under God’s omniscient wisdom. The meek acknowledge him in all their ways, trusting that God will make the crooked path straight. They live faithful lives doing good. They do not allow circumstances to throw them off the path of righteousness. Their trust works itself out in faithful living.
    If you need a living picture of this, graduates, look at your more seasoned saints. These are brothers and sisters who have been members of this church for 30, 40, or even 50 years. Some have entered and settled into these pews more than 2,600 times, counting just Sundays. If you include Wednesdays, that number doubles. Their life reflects much of what it means to trust in the Lord. Get to know them. Spend time hearing story after story how God has been faithful to carry them through the rising waters and fiery trials of this world. One lesson you will learn from these brothers and sisters, the same lesson Oswald Chambers spoke of in his work, “My Upmost for His Highest,”
    It is not our trust that keeps us, but the God in whom we trust who keeps us.
    Oswald Chambers (Lecturer and Missionary)

    The meek delight themselves in the Lord (Psalm 37:4)

    Psalm 37:4 HCSB
    Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.
    The world in which you are navigating today is going to try to convince you that God is not desirable, not worthy of your affections, or to be the object of your enjoyment. The wicked will do a tremendous job of convincing you to satisfy the desires of your natural heart, which are the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21): sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy,4 drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do5 such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
    And yet, the bible says,
    Psalm 37:4 HCSB
    Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.
    Delight means to take pleasure and enjoyment in something you desire. God says to take pleasure in him. God is enjoyable. David uses the same word in
    Psalm 37:11 HCSB
    But the humble will inherit the land and will enjoy abundant prosperity.
    Prosperity encompasses good health and abundant resources that simplify life. When you're both physically and emotionally healthy, your happiness increases. Having your bills settled and enough funds for a vacation contributes to a satisfying life. With a brand new, fully paid vehicle, concerns over expenses and car payments fade away. Living in a spacious, modern four thousand square-foot house equipped with new appliances and up-to-date systems means you don’t have to worry about furnace breakdowns or replacing central air, nor are you burdened by mortgage payments. While we often claim that money can't buy happiness, it certainly makes life easier.
    The bible says in the same way you enjoy prosperity, graduates, you are to enjoy God.
    Jesus says,
    Matthew 6:21 HCSB
    For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
    To treasure something is to set your affections on it. A treasure is something you have deemed worthy of your love and attention. You steer your life toward it and compromise nothing to obtain it because it is your delight. And when you have it, you make sure to keep it.
    The meek treasure the Lord. The meek set their affections on the Lord and find him worthy of their love and attention, and are happy to be in His presence. Their heart is satisfied with God. He is their portion. The meek say things like
    Lamentations 3:24 HCSB
    I say: The Lord is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in Him.
    Psalm 73:25–26 HCSB
    Who do I have in heaven but You? And I desire nothing on earth but You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart, my portion forever.
    You need to read Charles Spurgeon. He is so good at conveying this very idea of delighting in the Lord. He says,
    “When I hear persons say, “My religion consists in some things that I must do and in some things that I must not do,” I reply, “Mine consists in things I love to do and in avoiding things I hate and would scorn to do....
    He who fears God and is wholly God’s servant has no chains about him; he may live as he likes, for he likes to live as he ought. He may have his full desires, for his desires are holy, heavenly, and divine.” Charles Spurgeon
    Your Christian faith isn’t just about religion as much as it’s about your love for God and His love for you. I love God. I love following Christ. The greatest moment in my life was when Christ transformed my heart, altering my desires and the course of my life forever. I find joy in living in obedience to Jesus. I resonate with Spurgeon’s words, “My religion consists in things I love to do and in avoiding things I hate to and would scorn to do.” I discover that I am happiest when I am holiest.
    Another great theologian you must read is John Piper. He helped me see this one essential truth, the manifest destiny of my life. Piper rightly sums up the meaning of life:
    “God is most gloried in me when I am most satisfied in him.” John Piper
    The meek enjoy a close fellowship with God. The fruit your fellowship Christ is a changed heart with changed desires. Your desires will match God’s desires. The meek delight in God’s will and purpose. The meek seek to joyfully advance the kingdom of God by seeking his righteousness (Matthew 6:33).
    Some of you may be familiar with Eric Liddell. He won the Gold Medal for Scotland in the 1924 Paris Olympics. He was trained to run the 100 meter but because the heats were on Sunday he refused to run. He won the 400 meter by a landslide. Eric Liddell was a Christian who understand being satisfied in God. He delighted himself in the Lord, so much so, that he worshiped God as he ran.
    One day he was being reprimanded by his sister for not being as committed to his devotional life as he was to running. He responded to her criticism.
    “I believe that God made me for a purpose. But He also made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure.” Eric Liddell
    What I find fascinating about Liddell’s life is he found satisfaction in God in everything he did, even in the mundane things like running, and God was glorified in Liddell. And when he was satisfied in God in running, God used running to satisfy Liddell. Liddell’s heart was not satisfied with Olympic medals. His real desire was to be a missionary to China.
    After his race, Eric Liddell became a missionary to China. When the Japanese invaded in World War II he stayed and brought the gospel to many disenfranchised Chinese people as he could. He was eventually captured. He died in a concentration camp from a brain tumor delighting himself in the Lord.

    The meek commit their way to the Lord (Psalm 37:5-6)

    Psalm 37:5–6 HCSB
    Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act, making your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like the noonday.
    Commit your way to the Lord literally means to “roll your way upon the Lord.” It’s a Hebrew idiom that means to rely on Him. Because the meek trust in the Lord with all their heart and lean not on their own understanding they put all of their life in the Lord’s hands; their jobs, their family, their friends, their health, their anxieties, frustrations, and agitations.
    The meek, as John Piper explains it,
    “The meek admit that they are insufficient to cope with the complexities and pressures and obstacles of life, and they trust that God is able and willing to sustain them and guide them and protect them.” John Piper
    The meek cast all their cares on the Lord because they know God cares for them (1 Peter 5:7).
    Furthermore, when they commit their way the Lord, David says God will
    Psalm 37:6 HCSB
    making your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like the noonday.
    You will find in this life that your plans will change. You think you are going one way, then in the sovereignty of God, you will go a different direction. Sometimes the change is good and harmless. Other times it will hurt. Sometimes it will hurt because the wicked will hurt you.
    David acknowledges that the wicked agitates the righteous by their slander. The psalmist says of the wicked,
    Psalm 73:8–10 HCSB
    They mock, and they speak maliciously; they arrogantly threaten oppression. They set their mouths against heaven, and their tongues strut across the earth. Therefore His people turn to them and drink in their overflowing words.
    The wicked’s overflowing words heap injustice and oppression on the righteous to the point their anger can boil over into violence. The righteous need God to vindicate them. God promises to answer their prayers for justice and make his people shine like the sun. The meek know this and rest in his vindication as they live and have their being among the wicked.
    In Psalm 37, David writes, 'The meek shall inherit the earth.' David remind’s us that even in the face of injustice, those who remain humble and trust in God’s justice will prevail. David faced numerous trials, yet he learned that true strength comes not from vengeance but from surrendering to God’s will. So, graduate, commit your way to the Lord. Trust him in the windings and turns, or sudden changes in direction. Trust him to vindicate you and redirect you when the wicked are the ones causing the turn.

    The meek wait for the Lord (Psalm 37:7)

    Psalm 37:7 HCSB
    Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for Him; do not be agitated by one who prospers in his way, by the man who carries out evil plans.
    To Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for Him is another way of saying “Rest in God.” In other words,
    Psalm 62:5 HCSB
    Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from Him.
    Its an intentional act of waiting for answered prayer. The meek do not take matters into their own hands. They wait for God to respond.
    Psalm 27:14 HCSB
    Wait for the Lord; be strong and courageous. Wait for the Lord.
    Proverbs 20:22 HCSB
    Don’t say, “I will avenge this evil!” Wait on the Lord, and He will rescue you.
    Psalm 40:1 HCSB
    I waited patiently for the Lord, and He turned to me and heard my cry for help.
    The meek do not rise up in violence and seek vengeance. They do not riot in the streets and burn things down or assault the innocent when they perceive injustice. As a matter of fact, the meek refrain unrighteous anger for the sake of the Lord.

    The meek refrain their unrighteous anger for the sake the Lord (Psalm 37:8)

    Psalm 37:8 HCSB
    Refrain from anger and give up your rage; do not be agitated—it can only bring harm.
    The Psalmist was tempted to be angry because he saw the wicked prospering and God had not judged them.
    The command is to control your anger and give up your rage. He says do not be agitated, going back to verse 1. Why? It can only bring harm.
    The bible describes the quick-tempered as ignorant people who allow their anger to do stupid things and generate strife.
    Proverbs 14:17 HCSB
    A quick-tempered man acts foolishly, and a man who schemes is hated.
    Proverbs 29:22 HCSB
    An angry man stirs up conflict, and a hot-tempered man increases rebellion.
    The meek trust in the Lord, delighting in His ways and committing their decisions and actions to the will of God. That means the meek refrain from anger so that they do not become murderers.
    Alexander the Great was not known as a hateful man, but there were a couple of times when his anger got the best of him. A general in his army, who was a close childhood friend, became intoxicated and began to ridicule the emperor in front of his men. Blinded by anger, Alexander snatched a spear from the hand of a soldier and hurled it at his friend. Alexander only intended to scare the drunken general, but his aim was true, and the spear took the life of his childhood friend. Alexander was overcome with guilt, so much so that he attempted to take his own life with the same spear, but he was stopped by his men. For days he lay sick, calling for his friend and chiding himself as a murderer, which he was. The meek are wise with their anger. They are eager and willing to forgive an offense (Proverbs 16:11).
    They trust the Lord with all their heart and commit to
    Romans 12:17–19 HCSB
    Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Try to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone. Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His wrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, says the Lord.

    Jesus is the Meek King

    Jesus’s life is one of meekness. He trusted His Father with all of His heart when He left heaven, took on flesh, lived a perfect life, and surrendered Himself to wicked men. He showed His delight in His Father through His perfect and joyful obedience (John 14:31). He committed His way to the Lord, letting the Holy Spirit lead Him into the wilderness to fast and pray for 40 days, and then to be tempted by Satan. He committed His way to the Lord when Judas delivered Him over to be crucified. At His trial, He did not defend Himself. On the cross, He did not deliver Himself. He waited until the right time to give up His spirit. He waited for His Father to vindicate Him by raising Him from the dead. Jesus refrained from His anger toward His enemies, instead praying for them and dying to deliver them from the wrath of God. Jesus is the Lion who could have pounced on all His enemies, devouring them in a single moment. No one can withstand Him. And yet, He suppressed His right and restrained His power in order to love His enemies and provide for their salvation. Christ’s meekness ensure you have the opportunity to repent and believe to receive his salvation from the wrath of God. His meekness extends his peace toward you, his enemy. If you have not repented of your sin and accept his gift of gift of eternal life, today is the day of your salvation.
    If you want to change the world, start with your salvation first. Clean up your own house before you decide to clean up the world. You don’t have to virtue signal. You can live a life of virtue. You don’t have to cultivate self-will toward God and ill-will toward your fellow fallen image bearers. You can love God with all of your heart and your neighbor as yourself. You don’t have to be boisterous, self- righteous, and self-assured. Jesus offers you power, real world-changing power with his meekness.
    Meekness is not weakness. It is power under control. It is not passive. Jesus was not passive on the cross. Meekness is intentional act of surrender to the Spirit as the Father works all circumstances, good, bad, and mundane, for your good, as you pray and live and have your being. Meekness does not prove your frailty, but is a strong show of perseverance and commitment to God’s kingdom.

    In Christ, your meekness is not weakness. It is His power under control to help you joyfully advance his Kingdom by making much of Jesus in the church, community, and home.

    The same Spirit that sustained Jesus now lives in you, Christian graduate. Christ-exalting Spirit empowered meekness is how you change the world. Amen.

      • Matthew 5:5ESV

      • Psalm 37:11ESV

      • Psalm 37:3ESV

      • Proverbs 3:5–8ESV

      • Psalm 37:4ESV

      • Psalm 37:11ESV

      • Matthew 6:21ESV

      • Lamentations 3:24ESV

      • Psalm 73:25–26ESV

      • Psalm 37:5–6ESV

      • Psalm 73:8–10ESV

      • Psalm 37:7ESV

      • Psalm 62:5ESV

      • Psalm 27:14ESV

      • Proverbs 20:22ESV

      • Psalm 40:1ESV

      • Psalm 37:8ESV

      • Proverbs 14:17ESV

      • Proverbs 29:22ESV

      • Romans 12:17–19ESV

  • Grace Alone
First Baptist Church Litchfield
pastorjason.fbcl@gmail.com
217-324-4232
http://www.firstbaptistlitchfield.org/
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