The Terrible Meek

This proverb is attributed to Jesus in several places in the Gospels. Quite honestly, it evokes an uncomfortable feeling in most of us. It turns us off because it presents us with an image of weakness. We’re not interested in anything that seems to suggest that we become “milquetoasts. ‘Milquetoast,” as you know, is the word for an extremely timid person, someone who is easy to push around. Some of you may remember the trials and tribulations of poor old Caspar Milquetoast, a comic-strip character with whom the repressed, inhibited, frustrated, intimidated people of the world could identify. Therefore, when we hear Jesus’ words about the last being first and the first being last, we’re turned off. We want to be out front, in our rightful place, and we don’t want to be pushed around.

This brings to mind the story of a “Going Out of Business” sale advertised by a neighborhood clothing store. It seems the store really was going out of business…