Meek as a lamb

Enduring losses that were beyond my control - death of parents, serious illness, loss of friends- has allowed me to understand Jesus in a new way. Unlike any time in the past, I know what it feels like to be vulnerable. And, I am beginning to grasp that His apparent weakness is really the spiritual quality of meekness. He was a Man who suffered but would not exercise His power to punish. He remained open and vulnerable. He did not lash out, get even, or retreat. To be vulnerable means that a person is open to attack, that he can be wounded. Vulnerability can be forced on us by circumstances, but it truly a work of the Spirit, a choice He enables us to make. My very humanity makes me vulnerable. Jesus was "God, in flesh." He could have crushed His enemies, but He would not. Jesus taught this - "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." (Matthew 5:5, NIV) The meek are those who choose vulnerability. That's the model Jesus demonstrates. He did not have to subject Himself to suffering at the hands of cruel people, but He did! He made the decision to leave Heaven's love and perfection behind and live among us where rejection was a certainty. He was called the "Lamb of God."  A lamb is virtually defenseless. It cannot run fast. It has no armor. It does not live in a shell. The only safety for a lamb is with the flock and the care of a shepherd. The Word teaches us that "our attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form." (Philippians 2:5-7, NLT) "Become one with him. ... no longer count on (your) own goodness or ability to obey God's law, but trust Christ to save ... For God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith. (then you will) really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. .... learn what it means to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that, somehow, (you) can experience the resurrection from the dead!" (Philippians 3:9-11, NLT) Those of us who live 'in Christ' must, like Him, drop our defenses, love those who hate us, submit ourselves to others, as we trust in our Shepherd alone. Will you give as good as you get, demand 'respect' you feel you deserve; or will you choose to be vulnerable? In that choice, love is spilled, the most beautiful and healing experience we can know. Here's a word from the Word. It is both beautiful and challenging. May the Spirit call us to greater meekness. "Who has believed our message? To whom will the Lord reveal his saving power? My servant grew up in the Lord's presence like a tender green shoot, sprouting from a root in dry and sterile ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected-a man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way when he went by. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God for his own sins!" (Isaiah 53:1-4, NLT) "He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth." (Isaiah 53:7, NLT) "When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of what he has experienced, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins." (Isaiah 53:11, NLT) When we feel the temptation to pull back, push back, and close our hearts, let's remember Jesus' vulnerability. When everything in us is screaming for retreat, revenge, or relief, let us pray this: "Lord, keep my heart open. Infuse me with the courage to live with the risk of rejection, to love those who hate, to serve those who do not understand, to be gentle to those who would wound me given the opportunity.  May Your kingdom and glory be of greater value to me than my own comfort, reputation, or security.  In the Name of the Lamb of God, Amen."