“Blessed are the humble, for they will inherit the earth.”

(Matthew 5:5)

Many of our Bibles will translate this passage as, “Blessed are the meek.” So what is meekness, and what does that have to do with the context of the church itself? The Greek word that is used here is πραῦς (praus), and in English, it means to be gentle, humble, considerate, or meek. In other words, it means that one is not overly impressed with oneself (think of how this word is used in 1 Peter 3:4), hence the use of the word humility here in our translation. This word does not equate with being weak, but instead, speaks of great strength that is under control, as Jesus uses this word to speak of himself in Matthew 11:29.

When we apply this to the individual Christian, its application is obvious. The Christian is not proud or boastful. In fact, we boast in Christ and in His cross, not in ourselves. Thus, we arrive at the obvious conclusion that a Christian should never be self-seeking or interested in his own gain, but instead, he should be focused on Christ and Christ’s glory. And, herein lies the rub. Too many churches are focused on their own growth and success. Programs are planned, productions are put forward, all with one goal in sight: build themselves up.

When a church focuses on itself, it loses the ability to be humble. In fact, often, churches that are primarily focused on attendance compromise the Gospel in a great many ways just to keep people happy. Or worse, they bend over backwards to keep their major donors happy. Yet, folks, that is not how Christ’s church is to behave. Notice too the little word that is part of the blessing: “inherit.” Inheritances are given; they are not earned. If a church wishes to inherit the earth, it must do so not by trying to aggressively market itself in such a way that they grow large. Such would be a corporate business model. No, the church must be humble, meek, and lowly while also being utterly committed to the commands of Christ.

So, what is one of the simplest ways to judge a church’s humility? Look at their worship. Is worship built around what God commands in His Word or is worship built around the preferences of the people? If worship is built around preference, where is the humility? No, the scriptures speak of the things that God desires from His people: prayer, reading and preaching of the Word (with understanding in the body), singing psalms, and the administration of the sacraments as Christ demonstrated them to us (Baptism & the Lord’s Supper). When other things begin to be imported into worship or when some or most of these elements are removed from worship, the church loses its humility. When a church is more interested in its programs than in God’s program, they seek to be meek. And, with the sacrifice of humility, they will never inherit the earth. Worse yet, in some cases, they cease to be a church altogether and exist more as a social club under the guise of Christ’s church.