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Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3)
Poor in Spirit
What does Jesus mean by “poor in spirit?” In a similar passage, Luke records Jesus’ words as just “Blessed are the poor,” but I think Matthew captures the fuller sense. It can be the case, I suppose, that the poor in the world are more likely to be poor is spirit. But Matthew’s recording includes all people rich and poor alike.
To begin—what do you have that God needs? Imagine standing before your Creator. What can you offer? Elihu, in the book of Job, puts it very well: you have nothing to give Him and you cannot take anything away.
If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him? And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him?
If you are righteous, what do you give to Him, Or what does He receive from your hand? (Job 35:6, 7)
Rather, we stand before Him in need. We fall short of His glory. We have done wrong in thought, word, and deed. The hard truth is, we cannot even stand before Him. It is this recognition that leads to our salvation and the joy that it brings. In this parable, who is poor in spirit?
And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.' But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner!' I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 338:9-14)
Being poor in spirit leads to justification—being considered righteous by the Father who sees the end from the beginning. In other words, the poor in spirit find salvation.
Blessed by having the Kingdom of Heaven
The kingdom: therein is the presence and reign of our LORD. This is our final destination. Is this not the most remarkable thing? The first step in our Beatitude journey contains a promise of everything that is good—as if we were rich and deserving. It is a promise of making it to the last step. It is our weak beginning-but step by step we will come to our strong ending. And step by step, we will bring honor and glory to the One making those steps possible.