LEARNING OF CHRIST

"Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly of heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matthew 11:29).

I know how difficult it is to expect that the meek and lowly heart should be the first consideration in Bible study. It is hard to make people realize that, in communion with God, our attitude and character mean everything. A meek and lowly heart is the very seed and root of all Christian character. It is hard to convince us that without it, Bible study is of very little value. The meek and lowly heart is possible because it is the very thing Christ offers to give, teaching us how to find and receive it in Himself.

No one has ever thought of accusing our Lord of not honoring the Old Testament. In His own life, He proved that He loved it because it came out of the mouth of God. He always pointed the Jews to it as the revelation of God and the witness to Himself. But with the disciples, it is remarkable how frequently He spoke of His own teaching as what they most needed and had to obey.

The Jews had their self-made interpretation of the Word and made it the greatest barrier between themselves and Him of whom it spoke. Christians often do this, too. Our human understanding of Scripture, fortified by the authority of the Church or our own denomination, becomes the greatest hindrance to Christ's teachings. Christ, the living Word, seeks first to find His place in our heart and life, to be our only teacher. From Him, we will learn to honor and understand Scripture.

Learn To Be Meek

"Learn of Me for I am meek and lowly of heart." Our Lord gives us the secret of His own inner life, which He brought down to us from heaven. This secret, which He has given and which He wants us to learn from Him, is found in the words, "I am meek and lowly of heart." It is the one virtue that makes Him the Lamb of God, our suffering Redeemer, our heavenly teacher and leader. It is the one attitude which He asks us to learn from Him-out of this all else will come.

For Bible study and all our Christian life, this is the one condition we need to truly learn of Christ. He, the Teacher, meek and lowly of heart, wants to make you what He is, because that is salvation. As a learner, you must come and study and believe in Him, the meek and lowly One. You must seek to learn of Him how to be meek and lowly, too.

Why is this the first and all-important requirement? Because it lies at the root of the true relationship of the believer to God. God alone has life and goodness, and happiness. As the God of love, He delights to give and work these qualities into us. Christ became the Son of Man to show us how to live in complete dependence upon God. This is the meaning of His being lowly in heart.

Angels veil their faces and cast their crowns before God. God is everything to them. They delight to receive all and to give all. This is the root of the true Christian life: to be nothing before God and men; to wait on God alone; to delight in, to imitate, to learn of Christ, the meek and lowly One. This is the key to the teachings of Christ, the only key to the true knowledge of Scripture. It is in this character that Christ has come to teach: it is in this character alone that you can learn of Him.

Meekness And Bible Study

In the Christian Church, there is a lack of humility and of the meek and lowly heart that was in the life of Christ and the teachings of God's Word. I am deeply persuaded that this lack lies at the root of ineffective and unfruitful work by the Church. It is only as we are meek and lowly in heart that Christ can teach us by His Spirit what God has for us.

Let each of us begin with ourselves and consider this as the first condition of discipleship, the first lesson the Master will teach us. Let us make all our Bible study a time of learning about Christ, trusting Him who is meek, gentle, and kind to work His own spirit and likeness in us. In due time, our morning watch will be the scene of daily fellowship and daily blessing.

I know how difficult it is to expect that the meek and lowly heart should be the first consideration in Bible study. It is hard to make people realize that, in communion with God, our attitude and character mean everything. A meek and lowly heart is the very seed and root of all Christian character. It is hard to convince us that without it Bible study is of very little value. The meek and lowly heart is possible because it is the very thing Christ offers to give, teaching us how to find and receive it in Himself.

I urge all Bible students, thoughtfully and prayerfully, to make this the very first question to be settled in the inner chamber: Is my heart in the condition which my Teacher desires it to be? And if not, my first work is to yield myself to Him to work it in me.