We must be able to submit to the sovereignty of God if we are going to claim spiritual meekness. "So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy." True spiritual meekness is an unconditional surrender to the sovereign will of God. It brings us as beggars before the throne of God pleading for mercy; mercy is undeserved favour. Our will becomes dissolved in the will of God. This is not self-centered; this is God-centered. The sovereignty of God is righteous and just.

Job’s meekness was displayed in accepting God’s sovereignty. JOB 1:20-21 says, "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." That is such a blessed demonstration of meekness. Job was stripped of everything he owned, yet he never defended himself. Job never claimed the children, cattle, sheep, or other possessions. Instead, Job said that the Lord gave them, and the Lord took them away, "...blessed be the name of the LORD." This is a powerful demonstration of meekness to the sovereignty of the will of God.

Job understood what Peter said in 1PE 2:19-20. "For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God." Job suffered wrongfully. The people took his property, killed his servants, and his children died.

What does it mean, "For this is thankworthy?" This means that it is showing gratitude for Christ’s suffering. Christ suffered wrongfully. He had no sin, yet He died as a malefactor. He was hanged upon the cross. He was accused of blasphemy. His life was wrongfully taken. Suffering wrongfully is showing gratitude for the sacrifice of Christ and that which He suffered. Job understood this.

Spiritual meekness is rooted in our relationship with the Lord, but it flows over into our relationship with others. The first full demonstration of meekness is to be able to surrender everything, as Job did, to the sovereign will of God. If we are able to see that the will of God is so much higher, then we are able to surrender everything.

Our spiritual meekness is full of shortcomings. We can see this in our own hearts and in those who have the greatest profession of meekness.

PRO 9:8 says, "Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee." Meekness is not to be measured by a pretense of love. Some people seem to be so loving. They have such love for their fellow man until they think that he might identify a sin of theirs; then he is accused of being judgmental. Is that true meekness?

The Lord will sort out the hypocrites. The Lord is looking for those who pray with David in PSA 139:23-24. "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."

The Lord Jesus said in JOH 3:20, "For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved." The righteous come to the light. We all have many things wherein we offend, but do we want to come to the light to have them identified? That is the trial of spiritual meekness. Do we want to identify the areas where we are displeasing the Lord?

David’s meekness ebbed and flowed. 1 SA 24:3-4 says, "And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet: and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave. And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the LORD said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul’s robe privily." Verses 5-6 continue, "And it came to pass afterward, that David’s heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul’s skirt. And he said unto his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the LORD’S anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD."

The Lord put Saul into David’s hand "...that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee." What did David do? Sparing Saul’s life seemed good unto David because Saul was the anointed of the Lord. Then David’s heart smote him that he had even cut off a piece of Saul’s skirt. This proved that David could have destroyed him; it was a demonstration of true spiritual meekness.

Saul was in that cave because he was hunting for David to slay him. David’s meekness shows when his heart smote him because he had touched the garment of the anointed one of God. David’s men wanted to slay Saul on the spot. The Lord put Saul into his hand so that David could do unto him as David saw fit. What did David see fit to do? He gave reverence to Saul’s office as being anointed of the Lord in spite of his need to flee from Saul to save his own life. David showed reverence. That is meekness.

David sent his servants to Nabal. This shows how David’s meekness ebbs and flows. When the grace of meekness wasn’t granted to him in the same measure, David wasn’t so meek. 1-SA 25:10-11 says, "And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master. Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men, whom I know not whence they be?"

Watch David’s human reasoning in the next verses. "So David’s young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings. And David said unto his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the stuff," 1-SA 25:12-13. David said, "And so do God to me and more also if there remaineth one of Nabal."

The spirit of meekness was not so generous. They had offended David, and he defended his own name and honor. The Lord was so gracious to David. This record shows us how we must fight the spirit of anger and of self-centeredness. We must pray for the spirit of meekness.

The Lord spared David through the meekness of Abigail. 1-SA 25:23-24 says, "And when Abigail saw David, she hasted, and lighted off the ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, And fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be: and let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine audience, and hear the words of thine handmaid."

Abigail wasn’t defending her husband, because she admitted the sin of her husband. She came to spare David from bringing reproach upon his name. Lest when he became king, this would be brought against him. 1-SA 25:32-33 says, "And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand." She kept him from avenging his own name and his own honor. The Lord spared David through her meekness.

The Lord allows these trials to come upon us so we can know the sins of our hearts. The Lord was so merciful to spare David from fulfilling the sins he would commit. The Lord spared David from bringing a reproach against his name. Yet the Lord tried him so David would know all that was in his heart.

Christianity must be seen, not only professed. PRO 19:11 says, "The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression." EPH 4:1-3 says, "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

Speak evil of no man. True meekness will not speak evil of anyone. TIT 3:2-5 says, "To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived [Doesn’t that describe why David’s meekness ebbed and flowed?], serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost."

Isn’t it blessed to see the righteousness of God who sent His restraining grace to David to keep him from committing sin. We must all say, like David, that we are also sometimes foolish. Weakness and foolishness dwells within us. Sometimes we are disobedient serving our lusts and pleasures. We sometimes live in malice, envy, and hatred. Who has a stone to throw? We are to speak evil of no man.