Want to be more humble and meek? Look to Christ.
“‘This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.'” – Luke 2:12-14
How infinite and mysterious is the wisdom of God! It is displayed in the marvelous complexities of the universe—the cosmos above us on a starlit cold winter night, the soaring birds who have flown south for the warmer climes, the animals and plants hibernating and awaiting the warmth of the coming spring. So also the wisdom of God is displayed in human history, and especially in redemptive history—how God chose Abraham and promised him a child in his old age, and how from that child God raised up a nation more numerous than the stars of the sky. But nowhere is the mystery of God’s wisdom so deep and unfathomable as the meekness and majesty of the Christ-child as he lay in the manger of Bethlehem. There is a marvelous blending of the commonplace with the supernatural in this nativity story. The commonplace of a census for taxation, of a crowded city, of an innkeeper unable to find a vacancy, of a natural childbirth, of the pain and pleasure of a baby boy born into the world, of shepherds watching their flocks at night, earning their living; the supernatural of a virgin giving birth, of an angel appearing with the glory of the Lord igniting the night, of an innumerable company of the heavenly armies praising God.
How perfect, then, that commonplace and supernatural power are married in the account of the birth of the incarnate Son of God, for He was both human and divine. So also, we see the meekness and majesty of Christ displayed as well. Meekness is lowliness, humility, gentleness of spirit. It is a gentle answer that turns away wrath, it is the humility of the turning of another cheek, it is the lowliness of heart that takes the lowest seat that banquet, it is the spirit of a quiet servant whose ministry of footwashing goes unnoticed by all by God. That is meekness, and it is perfected only in Jesus. Look at him, a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. A baby! That is how the Son of God entered the world—the very picture of meekness, lowliness, humility. Helpless, needing the ministrations of his mother and the protection of his earthly father. Weak, lying in a feeding trough for mules and cattle. Poverty stricken, unable to buy anything to ease his earthly discomfort, he would grow up to say, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” And meekly, like a sheep, he would be lead to the slaughter, never opening His holy mouth to defend Himself. Meekness incarnate, meekness perfected. And it all began in that stable in Bethlehem.
But it wasn’t meekness alone that was on display that night! The God and Father of that lowly baby had to give foretastes of that baby’s future glory. An angelic messenger bore the visible light of a supernatural glory that ripped apart the darkness of the night and terrified the humble shepherds. That heavenly glory that shone all around was a foretaste of Christ’s future majesty—of the visible glory that will illuminate the New Heavens and New Earth and render the sun, the moon, and all lamps useless and obsolete: “For the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.” Majesty—a breathtaking display of power and sovereignty, of glory and unapproachable infinitude, before which holy angels hide their faces in holy fear. Majesty incarnate, that was Jesus. And it will receive its fulfillment when Christ returns at the head of an undefeatable heavenly army to defeat all evil forces and establish a majestic throne of glory in a resurrected earth. So it was fitting also for a foretaste of the majesty to be on display that evening as well. And it came “suddenly”, this great company of the heavenly host (that is, an army!), exulting and splitting the stillness of the night air with the loudest and most perfect sounds of praise this world had ever heard. They proclaimed the majesty of the baby, his power, his glory, and his future salvation which he would work for those on whom God’s favor rested.
“Meekness went to the cross, majesty was resurrected from the grave.”
Meekness went to the cross, majesty was resurrected from the grave. The meekness and majesty of Christ saves sinners, and will give them something to ponder and celebrate for all eternity!
