God's Stamp of Approval: The gentle

"Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth."--Matthew 5:5.  This is the third of the Beatitudes.  Here Jesus tells us that the gentle have God's stamp of approval. 

The gentle.  Consider the image above.  Regardless of whether or not you like cats (For the record I do like cats :-) ), you have to agree that handling something as small as a baby kitten requires extreme gentleness.  Again, it is the gentle that have God's stamp of approval. 

The gentle.  According to the definition I found of the Greek word used here in Matthew 5:5, to be gentle means to not be "overly impressed by a sense of one's self-importance" (BDAG 861).  Essentially this means put yourself aside and put others first. Be gentle.  

The gentle.  So my intention here is not to show my bias as a cat lover but returning to my illustration with the image, even if you don't like cats, being gentle with a kitten means one has to put aside their feelings for cats and treat it with gentleness if that kitten is in his/her care.  If we are gentle, we have God's stamp of approval. 

The gentle.  But of course this passage by no means is restricted to our treatment of cats.  The definition for the Greek word means we are not to be so self absorbed that we refuse to help someone or something that might need it.  

Gentleness is required in so many different aspects of life.  Handling a newborn infant requires gentleness.  Handling something that is fragile requires gentleness.  

The gentle.  In addition to the definition I gave, this word also has to do with humility.  Sometimes being gentle as opposed to rash requires us to put feelings such as anger, frustration or even pride aside.  This is in order to help with whatever situation we might come into contact with, whether it's peaceably resolving a disagreement or helping a person or even an animal in need if that's what it comes down to.  Being gentle requires us showing good will toward others even when we might not feel like they deserve it. 

The gentle.  I have to take this opportunity to admit that this Beatitude is probably the one I struggle with most and this is simply because sometimes my pride and my frustration with any given situation can sometimes get the best of me especially when it's a sore spot of previous experiences I have had. 

So we know it is the gentle that have God's stamp of approval and furthermore we know that it is the gentle that will inherit the earth based on Matthew 5:5.  So my encouragement to you is this.  Next time you are tempted to just react in frustration to a situation or you have the opportunity to show gentleness to someone or something that is in need, remember Matthew 5:5 and show gentleness instead of letting your pride get in the way.  What this boils down to is the concept of putting others before yourself just as our Lord and Savior did.  We know that He could have called 10000 angels as He was being crucified and mocked.  His gentleness was demonstrated in that He chose to pay the penalty for our sins without saying but just a few simple gentle words such as "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."  What better demonstration of gentleness is there then that? So...

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!