2 Samuel 22:36

The Greatness Of Gentleness

Thy gentleness hath made me great. 2 Samuel 22:36.

Don't you think this is rather unusual? You would not have been surprised if David had said, “Thy strength hath made me great” or “Thy power hath made me great”; but when he says, “Thy gentleness hath made me great,” you think he must somehow have got hold of things by the wrong end.

Well, if you look at the first verse of this chapter you will see that David sang this psalm, “in the day that the Lord delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul.” He was looking back on the difficult and dangerous times through which he had come; and he saw that it was God's care for him, the kind and loving way He had led him, that had made him the great man he was. Perhaps when he reached this verse in his song, David remembered the time when he had been a shepherd boy. Perhaps he was thinking of some little tired lamb that he had carried over the rough mountain-path, and he thought, “That is just the way God stooped down to me in my need, and lifted me up, and made me great and strong by His gentleness.”

Now it is a little difficult for us to understand how great a power gentleness is, so I want you to think about it for a little while today.

1. And let's see what nature has to say about it. What do you think is the most powerful thing in nature? Perhaps some of you will say an earthquake. An earthquake is certainly a very powerful thing, but what does it do? It makes great cracks in the earth's surface, it knocks down houses and destroys life. But can it build up the houses it has knocked down, can it give back the life it has destroyed? Not once. Then lightning seems a very powerful thing, and so it is. But what does it do? It blasts great trees, but it cannot give them life. And a hurricane is a very strong thing. It tears up plants by the root, it knocks down trees and flies off with our roofs and our chimneys, but it cannot make one tiny wild-flower grow.

Now do you think it is greater to make things or to destroy them? Surely it is greater to make them. It is easy to tear a book into shreds, but it is not so easy to write another book. We could all destroy a toy or a doll, but how many of us could make one? And what is it that makes the flowers grow? The soft, warm rays of the sun, the gentle rain, the silent help of the soil underground. These are the most powerful things in nature.

Perhaps it is because gentle things don't make a noise that we forget how great they are. Few things are greater and quieter than the growing of flowers and of boys and girls, the ripening of corn, or the coming of the dawn.

1. And just as gentleness is the greatest power in nature, I think it is the greatest power in people too. If a friend flies into a rage with you, you will accomplish more by keeping calm and giving a gentle answer than by flying into a rage too.

Once upon a time a man arrived in a town with a monkey and a barrel-organ. The monkey wore a little red coat and a little red cap. He sat on the organ while the man played a tune, and afterwards he performed some tricks. One day a little dog came rushing out of one of the houses and flew at the monkey, barking and making a terrible noise. The monkey waited till the dog came quite near; then he took off his little red cap and made him a very polite bow. You should have seen that dog. He was so astonished and so ashamed that he just dropped his tail and sneaked off into the house without uttering another bark.

You will find that people will do much more for you if you are polite and gentle than if you are rough and rude. “Please” and “thank you,” will always accomplish much more than grabbing.

Don't imagine that gentleness is a sign of “softness” It is a sign of strength. We can all be rough and cruel if we like, but it takes a strong, brave man to control a temper, and be kind to little helpless things.

There is a story told of General Lee who was the leading general on the Southern side in the American Civil War. One morning he was standing with some officers under a tree on a battlefield. A shell burst near them, and the general said he thought they had better retire as the enemy had evidently got their range. Nobody moved till the commander should move, and the next shell crashed into the top of the tree. Then the officers took their leader's advice and began to retreat; but when they looked round the general was still under the tree. The shell had knocked down a bird's nest and he had stopped to pick it up and put it carefully on one of the lower branches. Although he was a great general he was not ashamed to take care of a little helpless bird.

3. And now we come back to the place where we began. It is God's gentleness, not the thought of His majesty or power, that makes us great. It is His love that draws us.

There is a legend of a knight who did not believe in God and who was always boasting of his unbelief and laughing and sneering at those who did believe. One day in a bragging mood he threw down his gauntlet, as knights used to do when they challenged each other to fight. And he said, “If there be a God, I challenge Him to come down and meet me in mortal combat.” And while the people waited trembling, expecting to see a lightning flash strike the bold, proud knight to the ground, there came down from heaven a scroll of parchment on which were written these words, “God is love.” That message broke down all the knight's pride and unbelief, and he was ever after the humble and loving servant of God.

God knows how foolish we are, and how far we can wander, and how much we can hurt ourselves; and He just wants to put His arms round us and wrap us in His love, safe from all harm. He stoops down and takes us poor, silly children, and He lifts us up and makes us strong, and wise, and tender. His gentleness makes us great.