Blessed are the Poor in Spirit

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3)

Today when we hear that someone is blessed, we often think of a comfortable lifestyle, good health, and a successful job.  But Jesus said that those who are "poor in spirit" are blessed.  The New Testament word for poor means a beggar, one who is totally dependent upon another for survival. 

Here, Jesus is speaking of being “poor in spirit”; in other words, being “spiritually poor.”  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is concerned with spiritual realities, not material possessions. What, then, does it mean to be spiritually poor?  

To be poor in spirit is to recognize your complete spiritual bankruptcy before God.  It is understanding that you have absolutely nothing of worth to offer God.  Being poor in spirit is admitting that, because of your sin, you are completely destitute spiritually, and can do nothing to deliver yourself from your dire situation.  Jesus is saying that, no matter your status in life, you must recognize your spiritual poverty before you can come to God in faith to receive the salvation He offers.

If we turn this around, we realize that the cursed are those who are rich in self-sufficiency.  When we can take care of ourselves and control our situations, we're living in a different kingdom.

Those who are prideful and self-sufficient could never hope to enjoy the blessings of Heaven. They would never accept that they were sinners in need of a savior, never accept the need to obey God in God's way, and never accept the fact that without God they could do nothing. Thus, they will never enjoy a Heaven filled with sinners cleansed by the blood of Jesus. 

God does not force His kingdom upon anyone, but gladly gives it to all who know and admit that they are empty and lost without Him, and humbly seek His help.  It is really only the poor in spirit who can have access to the things of God, because they are the ones who know how to receive gifts. For them, everything is a gift.

The kingdom of God can only be received by empty hands. Jesus warns against worldly self-sufficiency: you trust yourself and your own resources, and don't need God, and religious self-sufficiency: where you trust your religious attitude and moral life, and don't need Jesus.

We cannot be filled until we are empty, because God cannot fill what is already full.  And we cannot be filled and helped by God until we recognize our need for God’s help.  God loves us and accepts us just the way we are, but He loves us too much to leave us that way.

God wants us to have real righteousness and be just like Jesus.  

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.” (2Corthians 8:9)  

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