Walk Softly, Talk Righteously, & Carry A Big Stick
Word-Of-The-Day: ‘<Jesus said on the Sermon of the Mount,> (43) “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ (44) But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”’ (Matthew 5:43-44); ‘Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.’ (Psalm 144:1); ‘(6) I put no trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; (7) but You <God> give us victory over our enemies, You put our adversaries to shame.’ (Psalm 44:6-7)
Recently, a friend told me of an episode he had with a neighbor, where the neighbor had a legitimate concern with my friend. Unfortunately, the neighbor took a belligerent, profanity-filled verbal attack upon my friend, who, though was angered and upset at the attack, immediately said ‘I’m done’ and walked back into his house and closed the door on the belligerent neighbor. This was proper, as it is likely any continuation of the conversation would have escalated the situation and could have become physical. My friend was properly ‘meek’ in his response and stopped the escalation by refusing to allow the situation to continue at that moment. Hopefully my friend will eventually be able to discuss the concern later when the neighbor calms down so they can have a meaningful discussion.
Many mistake the meaning of ‘meek’ as ‘weak’; some Christians have a belief that we need to allow ourselves to be punching bags or doormats to be stepped on, over and over. This is not what is meant by being meek. Meekness is not a sign of weakness but a sign of Spiritual intelligence; it should be a quiet humility, the ability not to seek confrontation but instead use Spiritual tact and Truth to eventually create a dialogue that provides understanding and meaning to those that oppose us, to allow them to take pause and think.
The three verses selected appear to be disparate, but they actually all are in agreement with each other. Jesus talks of the need to be meek but strong in the Sermon of the Mount; He refers to the instructions of Leviticus 19:17-18, where the Israelites misapplied the meaning of the verses as to ‘hate the enemy’, but the intent of God was more to ‘change the enemy’, through dialogue, understanding, and most importantly, prayer. Instead of seeking confrontation, we are to seek common ground to build a modicum of trust and from there have a peaceful and prayerful resolution.
The Lord also knows that our enemies may not be so inclined to have a dialogue but rather seek a confrontation, and we may have no other choice but to stand our ground. Meekness does not mean ‘run away’ but to be steadfast and prepared to fight. Psalm 144:1 tells us the Lord will have us ready and will stand with us if we are righteous in our need to stand our ground. Though this more a ‘call to arms’, this also means the Lord will give us the courage and the words to say should we be in such a scenario where we cannot retreat, or if we need say what needs to be said to defend the Lord or Righteousness.
This preparedness to confront our enemies, when it is necessary to do so, comes from God and not from ourselves and we need to ensure He be given the credit. We may train with weapons or be educated to debate, but we cannot trust our own skills or tools to win over our enemies, but it is God Himself, through the Spirit, who provides us victory over our enemies, whether our enemy is a belligerent neighbor, a nation that challenging ours, or a facing a fear that is within us. Adding to the famous Teddy Roosevelt quote to clarify, ‘Walk softly, talk righteously, and carry a big stick.‘ Meek is not weak, but being humbly prepared through Christ to gain victory by reacting properly and Righteously through His strength and wisdom.
