Oh! How I love the man Jesus. The more we behold His character, the more irresistible it is to fall deeper in love with Him. He is unarguably the greatest example of gentleness. In fact, the bible goes out of its way to demonstrate Jesus' gentleness. In the Old Testament, Isaiah prophesied about the Messiah, saying that He would not break a "bruised reed" or snuff out a "smoldering wick" (Isaiah 42:3). Jesus Himself said, "Learn from Me—for I am gentle and humble in heart." (Matt. 11:29). And Apostle Paul also reminded the early church of Jesus' gentleness: "By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you" (2 Cor. 10:1).
Gentleness is a God-like quality and was strongly evident in the life of Jesus Christ as a man on the earth. He gathered children about Him—they sat on His knees and He took time to converse with them. When the disciples sought to dismiss them as a nuisance, Jesus rebuked them (Matthew 19:13-14). His gentleness is seen in the way He treated the woman caught in adultery that the Pharisees wanted to stone (John 8:3-11) and the way He treated Thomas, who refused to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead until he saw Him with his own eyes (John 20:24-29). He was also gentle with Nicodemus, taking the time to explain the Kingdom of God and what it means to be born again (John 3). And He was gentle with the Woman at the Well in Samaria, engaging her in conversation that drew her in rather than alienating her. He allowed her to admit her sin rather than condemning her from the start (John 4). He even rebuked James and John (the Sons of Thunder) when they wanted to duplicate Elijah’s miracle of destruction by fire on Samaria because they felt snubbed (Luke 9:51-53).
Another memorable example of Jesus' gentleness was during his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Peter pulled out a sword and struck Malchus, the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. But Jesus rebuked him, touched the servant’s ear and healed him (Luke 22:49-51). Jesus also showed firmness in His gentleness. He became angry whenever God the Father was dishonored. When He found the Temple filled with people selling exorbitantly priced sacrificial animals, He drove them out, pouring out their money and overturning tables. He told them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a robbers’ den” (Matt. 21:12-13). He also said to the scribes and Pharisees, “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how shall you escape the sentence of hell?” (Matt. 23:33). He did not stand idly by while the Temple was defiled. He spoke out in judgment against hypocrites who dishonored God. However, even though Jesus became angry when God was maligned, He neither retaliated against nor condemned those who attacked Him personally.
We can learn from all of these examples, that although Jesus is the truly powerful one, He was gentle for the benefit of the weak and sinners. Gentleness should not in any way be confused with weakness or a lack of resolve. In fact, the reverse is true. A simple illustration: A little girl tried squeezing her dad’s hand as hard as she could, trying to make it hurt. She squeezed with all her might, but he never felt a hurt. She didn't need to be gentle because she lacked the power to cause him any pain. Then, just for fun, her dad gave her hand a tight little squeeze until she yelped.
You see, It's the strong hand, not the weak one, that must learn to be gentle.
Friends, let us examine ourselves. Do people know you for your gentleness or do they know you for your harshness and brashness? Do you strike back when someone criticizes or attacks you? Do you correct others gently in love or do you yell at/talk down to them? Are your words and actions laced with tenderness or brutality?
Let your gentleness be known to all men (Philippians 4:5).
Oh Lord, transform us into your likeness, help us to be gentle like you!
