Poor in Spirit?

1. Poor in Spirit?– 31st
July 2017
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).
In the beatitudes inthe Sermononthe Mount,Jesusspeaksabout‘poorinSpirit’.Whenwe readthis
one may questionastowhat exactlydoesitmeantobe poorin spirit,andwhydoesbeingpoorinspirit
resultinthe kingdomof heaven? Is“poorinspirit”somethingGodwantsus to be?WhywouldGod
wantus to be “poor”at anything? WhatdidHe mean?Simplythis:If youputthe word “humble”in
place of the word“poor,” youwill understandwhatHe meant. BeingHumble meansmeeknessor
modesty;notarrogant or prideful. Inotherwords,whenwe come toGod, we must be humble enough
to realize ourownsinand ourspiritual emptinessandpoverty. Eventhe mostmoneyedpersoncanbe
spirituallyemptyandthus“poorin spiritual value.” Therefore asChristians,howeverrichone may be,
we shouldbe determined notbe self-satisfiedorproud,thinking that“IachievedwhatIhave” and
therefore I don’treallyneedGod. We needtobearinmindthat the bible teachesus thatif we are
proud,God cannot blessus. We can learnthisfrom James 4:6,“But he givesus more grace. That iswhy
Scripture says:“Godopposestheproud butshows favorto the humble.”
Some “false evangelists”propose thatJesusisspeakingof financial poverty,thatHe isadvocatingbeing
poor sothat richesand possessiondon’tcome betweenusandGod. They referto Matthew 6:24, “No
one can serve two masters. Either youwill hate the one andlove the other, or youwill be devoted to
the one and despisethe other. Youcannot serve both Godand money.” While itistrue that Jesus
elsewhere warnedagainstseekingriches, itiscontextuallywaydifferent! Jesus’pointasstatedabove in
Matthew 5:3 isspeakingof being“poor inspirit”; i.e.,being“spirituallypoor”andinthe beatitudes, He
isNOT speakingof beingfinanciallypoor! Jesusisconcernedwithspiritualrealities,notmaterial
possessions.
To be poorin spiritistorecognize yourspiritual bankruptcybefore God. Whenapersonis“financially
poor” he or she in worldlytermsis bankrupt.Butwhenwe referto anybodybeingpoorinspirit, asa
Christianthatperson hasabsolutelynothingof worthtoofferGod. Due to the regardlessand sinful lives
ledbythem, theyhave distancedthemselvesfromGodspresence.Therefore he orshe is completely
destitute spirituallyand worstof all can do nothingtodeliverthemfromthatdire situation. Therefore in
reference tothe beatitudes,Jesusissayingthatnomatter yourstatus inlife,youmustrecognize your
spiritual povertybefore youcancome to God infaithto receive the salvationHe offers. Therefore
althoughwe maylike tocall ourselvesas‘good’Christians,simplybecause he orshe isa church pillaror
being‘financially rich…’ithaslittle valueinthe eyesof God.The importance forHimis; how ‘rich’or
poor inspirithe or she is!
An importantunderstandingforthe Christiansisone’sself assessmentof hisorherown spiritual
standing…am I Spirituallyrichorpoor? Whyand how doesbeingpoorinspiritresultinthe kingdomof
heaven?While the phrase canbe broadin meaning,“kingdomof heaven”essentiallyreferstosalvation.
The kingdomof heavenis an eternityinheavenwithGod - afterdeath.We can learnfrom Romans 6:23,
“Forthe wagesof sin isdeath, but the gift ofGodis eternal life inChristJesus our Lord.” Therefore
one’squalityof life andone’srelationshipwith Godbefore we are called, mattersagreatdeal with
regardsto where we maybe foran eternitybeingaveryverylongtime!.

2. We knowthatall of us have to face deathand a day of judgmentbasedonthe goodor badwe have
done duringourlife span. We can understandthiswhenwe read Romans2:5,“But because of your
stubbornnessandyour unrepentantheart, youare storingup wrath againstyourselfforthe dayof
God’swrath,when his righteousjudgmentwill be revealed.” Whatis importantfor usto knowis that
evenif one has livedasinful life, throughfaithinJesusChristhe orshe can repentforsame and revert
back to the presence of God.Throughonesfaithand belief inJesusChristasonessaviour,repentingfor
the sinful life,seek salvation;he orshe can begina new life withGod.Jesuscame tosave us. Jesussaid
inJohn 10:10, “The thief comes onlyto steal and kill anddestroy; I have come that they mayhave life,
and haveit to the full.”
God offersussalvationasa free gift,throughthe atoningsacrifice of JesusChristonthe cross,the full
paymentforsin’spenalty. Butbefore we canreceive thisgift,we mustunderstandthatwe cannotmake
ourselvesworthyof it because we are poorin spirit and thus fall prey to Satan’s ways. The bible tells us
that salvationisavailedonlythroughJesusChristandnoone else. We can learnfrom John14: 6, “Jesus
answered, “Iam the way and the truth and the life. Noone comes to the Father except throughme.”
But before we seeksalvation,we mustrecognize oursinfulnessbefore we canunderstandourneedfor
a Savior.We mustadmitour spiritual povertybefore we canreceive the spiritual richesGodoffers aswe
learnfromEphesians1:3, “Praisebe to the Godand Father ofour Lord Jesus Christ,who hasblessed us
in the heavenlyrealms with every spiritual blessinginChrist.”
Therefore we mustknowthatwe are “poorin spirit”andtherefore throughfaithinChristseekthe
provisionthatonlyHe can give us. We can nor understandwhenJesussays,“Blessedare the poorin
spirit,fortheirsisthe kingdomof heaven,”He isdeclaringthat,before we canenterGod’skingdom,we
mustrecognize the utterworthlessnessof ourownspiritual currencyandthe inabilityof ourownworks
to save us. We must clearlyunderstandthat Salvationisbygrace throughfaith,notof anyof our works
as saidin Ephesians2:8-9, “For it isby grace youhave been saved, throughfaith—andthisisnot from
yourselves,it is the gift ofGod— 9
notby works, so that no one can boast.”