Here is how Eugene Peterson interprets “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5): “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.”
Meekness and contentment are not very popular words in our culture. The first implies a kind of passivity that allows people to run roughshod over your rights. The second seems to say we should feel okay about where we are in life. Many people today use their discontent as an engine that drives their ambition toward wealth and power, thinking that these things constitute success.
Jesus was describing kingdom virtues when he spoke these words. When we place Him in the supreme position in our lives these virtues are enabled and rewarded. When we cede control of our lives to God we can afford to be meek and content, knowing He will bring justice and true success in our lives. The same word is used to describe the regal Jesus as he triumphantly entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey. It was this virtue of “real strength under control” that led to his death on the cross soon after, and makes him both our savior and our Lord.
Discontent is a powerful force. It feels like our entire culture is based on getting us to feel dissatisfied with who and what we are. A constant media barrage bombards us, designed to create in us a hunger for things. These messages to us consumers play on the real hungers we feel inside. And we keep on feeling disappointed and we keep on consuming. When will we learn that things that can be bought never satisfy? We run headlong through life feeling hungry, consuming, and feeling hungrier still.
Here in this passage Jesus promises His followers a different future. If we can be content with His Lordship in our lives, the deep and true things will be ours. Everyone once in a while my mind clears and I see that everything that is real and good in my life comes to me as a gift from God. And I feel content. It’s a great feeling.
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