Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit….
2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt. 5:2-3 NKJV).
Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who confess their spiritual poverty and their need of redemption, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
In the first Beatitude, Jesus reminds us that our starting point is knowing our spiritual poverty and our need of redemption. This understanding is the bedrock, the foundation for all spiritual growth.
Psalm 77:13 states, “Your way, O God, is in the Sanctuary….” Is His way not also to be our way?
The layout of the Sanctuary was in the pattern of a cross. This is an appropriate image. The first step of the journey leads to the foot of the cross, the Altar of Sacrifice, in the Courtyard.
The penitent begins this spiritual journey by stripping away the baggage accumulated in this world. This is not so much the accumulation of physical things (although much of this will be but an encumbrance and must be shed) as the accumulation of beliefs about God, our fellow men and women, and ourselves. The discovery of foundational truth causes the tower of our man-centered ideas to topple. We must remove the debris to find our core truth.
Here we offer to God as a sacrifice the results of our life-long efforts at accumulation – money and goods; secular wisdom and the traditions of men; and false beliefs about God, other people and ourselves. The Altar of Sacrifice accepts all of our offerings, our physical possessions and the emotional, intellectual, and spiritual possessions that stand between us and our God.
This sacrifice is more than a lamb or dropping an envelope in the tithe box.
Moses spent 40 years in the desert in preparation for his mission. Paul spent three years in the desert and Damascus before launching his ministry. Even Jesus spent 40 days in the desert in preparation for His ministry. These men, like countless others before and after them, left their culture, their family, their father’s house. Each embarked on a journey well before embarking on his mission.
There is irony in the fact that the closer we are to God, the greater the gap that we see between ourselves and God. The human who is aware of this tremendous distance cannot help but to see their spiritual poverty, to see how far they have fallen short of the image in which mankind had been created.
Likewise, the farther we are from God, the closer we imagine ourselves to be to God, comparing self to a deity who is essentially made in the image of man. We imagine ourselves not to be such a bad person, oblivious to our true nature, to the nature of his Creator, and to the purpose of his creation.
In Proverbs 1:7, we are counselled, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…”
This verse and the first Beatitude make the same statement. The “fear” that Solomon counsels is “fear (of God), respect, reverence,” according to Strong’s Concordance #3374. In other words, we put God in the proper perspective to ourselves, the Creator and the created. The “poor in spirit” have this correct perception.
Seeing this loss of relationship and the resulting spiritual poverty is only the first half of this equation. The poor in spirit also recognize that they have sold themselves to the world and are in need of redemption.
Paul reminds us “that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness” (Rom. 6:16). We place ourselves under the lordship of either the physical world or the spiritual world, and when we choose a different lord, there is a price that must be paid. This is our ransom or our redemption price.
The redemption price is everything we have because the coin of exchange of one world has no value in the other world. What is counted as gain in the physical world is counted as loss in the spiritual world, and the reverse is also true. There is a price that we must pay, but the slave of the world of sin does not have sufficient wealth in the coin of heaven. As slaves to the physical world, we are spiritually bankrupt. This is our starting point. This is God’s starting point within us.
Luke’s wording of the Beatitudes in his Gospel is different, but we must understand that he is in agreement with Matthew.
Luke 6:20 “Blessed are you poor,
For yours is the kingdom of God.”
Some people look at Luke’s version of this first Beatitude, “Blessed are you poor…,” and assume Jesus is speaking to those who are economically poor. The context of the talk, as well as the larger context of the Bible, does not support this interpretation.
These “poor” are those who do not desire wealth in terms of physical possessions, but are content with the necessities. Jesus says later in the Sermon, “…provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail…” (Luke 12:33).
Paul says, “And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare…. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil...” (1 Tim. 6:8-10). And again Paul says, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have” (Hebr. 13:5).
Choosing poverty is quite different from being in the circumstance of poverty involuntarily. Poverty does not guarantee holiness any more than wealth guarantees evilness. The condition of the soul is not dependent on circumstances. This is good news and part of the Good News.
Jesus told several parables of unequal circumstance. One example is also in Matthew, the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:14-30). Note that it is the poorest of the servants, the man who received only one talent, who is unfaithful and is condemned.
The parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matt. 25:1-14) portrays ten women in equal circumstances who are faced with the same decision. Five choose wisely and are rewarded, and five choose unwisely and suffer the consequences.
Circumstance may be random, or the result of our own actions. Regardless of circumstance, our choices determine our character.
We must understand that Luke is not presenting a different account of Jesus’ Sermon but rather a more condensed version presented to a different audience. Luke is writing to a Gentile, a man without an understanding of the Jewish writings and history. Therefore, Luke is less concerned with matters of the prophets and the Law. Matthew’s Gospel is written to the Jew and his writing reflects this.
Luke presents a counterpoint to each of his, “Blessed are you…” statements. The opposing statement for “Blessed are you poor…” states:
Luke 6:24 “But woe to you who are rich
For you have received your consolation.”
Although writing to a Gentile, Luke’s list of blessings and contrasting list of “woes” is reminiscent of the blessings and curses of God pronounced by Moses in Deuteronomy 28. He can write in this manner because the truth of the results of obedience or disobedience can be seen by Jew and Gentile equally.
The Creation story reveals the order of the created universe. We have discovered many of the physical laws (e.g., gravity), which create the order that we see. The spiritual laws of relationship seem more elusive, and we see less order in our relationships.
The Gospel message is focused more on a person’s character than what the person does. They are not Do-atitudes but are Be-attitudes. Jesus’ message is that there is a world of difference (or perhaps a heaven of difference is more appropriate) between the two. Our doing is evidence of our being.
A person’s relationship with God and other people is more important than the person’s specific deeds. When the relationships are appropriate, deeds will follow. Deeds, however, do not lead to the appropriate relationship, as evidenced by the example of the Pharisees.
Note the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man is condemned for not coming to the aid of Lazarus. Had the rich man aided Lazarus, the rich man would still have been rich, but he also would not have suffered condemnation. Wealth alone does not condemn. How we choose to use our wealth determines whether we will receive a blessing or a curse.
Jesus says later, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things (your needs for life) shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). We start at the beginning, “seek first.” Unless we seek first the kingdom and start with the spiritual poverty of our lives, then we do not have the proper foundation for spiritual growth.
The consolation for the poor in spirit is the kingdom of heaven. We are starting over. We count religious observances and a focus on law-keeping as worthless. We place these on the Altar of Sacrifice and begin as a new person. We are like a child in this respect: not self-conscious but open to learning a new way to live in an old world.
The kingdom of heaven offers freedom through truth. Shedding bondage to material goods and false beliefs is the price of entrance through a narrow gate. And inside the gate is a narrow way that beckons us to follow, that calls us deeper into the kingdom.
No matter how long the journey, the first step brings us closer to our destination. This first act of surrender gives us reason to feel blessed.
There is a tremendous burden that we carry when our actions alone are responsible for our future well-being. There is no rest for the weary in that struggle, and the future is always uncertain.
The Altar of Sacrifice, the symbolic foot of the cross, has accepted our offering: our pride. Pride was never ours to have, and laying down that burden is a great relief. Perhaps “happy” is not too strong a word to describe the emotion at the Altar.
Heart open to receive the word of God, the new person stands repentant in the Courtyard. With the heart open, the doors to the kingdom of heaven are open, as well.
Next article
2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt. 5:2-3 NKJV).
Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who confess their spiritual poverty and their need of redemption, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
In the first Beatitude, Jesus reminds us that our starting point is knowing our spiritual poverty and our need of redemption. This understanding is the bedrock, the foundation for all spiritual growth.
Psalm 77:13 states, “Your way, O God, is in the Sanctuary….” Is His way not also to be our way?
The layout of the Sanctuary was in the pattern of a cross. This is an appropriate image. The first step of the journey leads to the foot of the cross, the Altar of Sacrifice, in the Courtyard.
The penitent begins this spiritual journey by stripping away the baggage accumulated in this world. This is not so much the accumulation of physical things (although much of this will be but an encumbrance and must be shed) as the accumulation of beliefs about God, our fellow men and women, and ourselves. The discovery of foundational truth causes the tower of our man-centered ideas to topple. We must remove the debris to find our core truth.
Here we offer to God as a sacrifice the results of our life-long efforts at accumulation – money and goods; secular wisdom and the traditions of men; and false beliefs about God, other people and ourselves. The Altar of Sacrifice accepts all of our offerings, our physical possessions and the emotional, intellectual, and spiritual possessions that stand between us and our God.
This sacrifice is more than a lamb or dropping an envelope in the tithe box.
Moses spent 40 years in the desert in preparation for his mission. Paul spent three years in the desert and Damascus before launching his ministry. Even Jesus spent 40 days in the desert in preparation for His ministry. These men, like countless others before and after them, left their culture, their family, their father’s house. Each embarked on a journey well before embarking on his mission.
There is irony in the fact that the closer we are to God, the greater the gap that we see between ourselves and God. The human who is aware of this tremendous distance cannot help but to see their spiritual poverty, to see how far they have fallen short of the image in which mankind had been created.
Likewise, the farther we are from God, the closer we imagine ourselves to be to God, comparing self to a deity who is essentially made in the image of man. We imagine ourselves not to be such a bad person, oblivious to our true nature, to the nature of his Creator, and to the purpose of his creation.
In Proverbs 1:7, we are counselled, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…”
This verse and the first Beatitude make the same statement. The “fear” that Solomon counsels is “fear (of God), respect, reverence,” according to Strong’s Concordance #3374. In other words, we put God in the proper perspective to ourselves, the Creator and the created. The “poor in spirit” have this correct perception.
Seeing this loss of relationship and the resulting spiritual poverty is only the first half of this equation. The poor in spirit also recognize that they have sold themselves to the world and are in need of redemption.
Paul reminds us “that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness” (Rom. 6:16). We place ourselves under the lordship of either the physical world or the spiritual world, and when we choose a different lord, there is a price that must be paid. This is our ransom or our redemption price.
The redemption price is everything we have because the coin of exchange of one world has no value in the other world. What is counted as gain in the physical world is counted as loss in the spiritual world, and the reverse is also true. There is a price that we must pay, but the slave of the world of sin does not have sufficient wealth in the coin of heaven. As slaves to the physical world, we are spiritually bankrupt. This is our starting point. This is God’s starting point within us.
Luke’s wording of the Beatitudes in his Gospel is different, but we must understand that he is in agreement with Matthew.
Luke 6:20 “Blessed are you poor,
For yours is the kingdom of God.”
Some people look at Luke’s version of this first Beatitude, “Blessed are you poor…,” and assume Jesus is speaking to those who are economically poor. The context of the talk, as well as the larger context of the Bible, does not support this interpretation.
These “poor” are those who do not desire wealth in terms of physical possessions, but are content with the necessities. Jesus says later in the Sermon, “…provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail…” (Luke 12:33).
Paul says, “And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare…. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil...” (1 Tim. 6:8-10). And again Paul says, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have” (Hebr. 13:5).
Choosing poverty is quite different from being in the circumstance of poverty involuntarily. Poverty does not guarantee holiness any more than wealth guarantees evilness. The condition of the soul is not dependent on circumstances. This is good news and part of the Good News.
Jesus told several parables of unequal circumstance. One example is also in Matthew, the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:14-30). Note that it is the poorest of the servants, the man who received only one talent, who is unfaithful and is condemned.
The parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matt. 25:1-14) portrays ten women in equal circumstances who are faced with the same decision. Five choose wisely and are rewarded, and five choose unwisely and suffer the consequences.
Circumstance may be random, or the result of our own actions. Regardless of circumstance, our choices determine our character.
We must understand that Luke is not presenting a different account of Jesus’ Sermon but rather a more condensed version presented to a different audience. Luke is writing to a Gentile, a man without an understanding of the Jewish writings and history. Therefore, Luke is less concerned with matters of the prophets and the Law. Matthew’s Gospel is written to the Jew and his writing reflects this.
Luke presents a counterpoint to each of his, “Blessed are you…” statements. The opposing statement for “Blessed are you poor…” states:
Luke 6:24 “But woe to you who are rich
For you have received your consolation.”
Although writing to a Gentile, Luke’s list of blessings and contrasting list of “woes” is reminiscent of the blessings and curses of God pronounced by Moses in Deuteronomy 28. He can write in this manner because the truth of the results of obedience or disobedience can be seen by Jew and Gentile equally.
The Creation story reveals the order of the created universe. We have discovered many of the physical laws (e.g., gravity), which create the order that we see. The spiritual laws of relationship seem more elusive, and we see less order in our relationships.
The Gospel message is focused more on a person’s character than what the person does. They are not Do-atitudes but are Be-attitudes. Jesus’ message is that there is a world of difference (or perhaps a heaven of difference is more appropriate) between the two. Our doing is evidence of our being.
A person’s relationship with God and other people is more important than the person’s specific deeds. When the relationships are appropriate, deeds will follow. Deeds, however, do not lead to the appropriate relationship, as evidenced by the example of the Pharisees.
Note the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man is condemned for not coming to the aid of Lazarus. Had the rich man aided Lazarus, the rich man would still have been rich, but he also would not have suffered condemnation. Wealth alone does not condemn. How we choose to use our wealth determines whether we will receive a blessing or a curse.
Jesus says later, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things (your needs for life) shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). We start at the beginning, “seek first.” Unless we seek first the kingdom and start with the spiritual poverty of our lives, then we do not have the proper foundation for spiritual growth.
The consolation for the poor in spirit is the kingdom of heaven. We are starting over. We count religious observances and a focus on law-keeping as worthless. We place these on the Altar of Sacrifice and begin as a new person. We are like a child in this respect: not self-conscious but open to learning a new way to live in an old world.
The kingdom of heaven offers freedom through truth. Shedding bondage to material goods and false beliefs is the price of entrance through a narrow gate. And inside the gate is a narrow way that beckons us to follow, that calls us deeper into the kingdom.
No matter how long the journey, the first step brings us closer to our destination. This first act of surrender gives us reason to feel blessed.
There is a tremendous burden that we carry when our actions alone are responsible for our future well-being. There is no rest for the weary in that struggle, and the future is always uncertain.
The Altar of Sacrifice, the symbolic foot of the cross, has accepted our offering: our pride. Pride was never ours to have, and laying down that burden is a great relief. Perhaps “happy” is not too strong a word to describe the emotion at the Altar.
Heart open to receive the word of God, the new person stands repentant in the Courtyard. With the heart open, the doors to the kingdom of heaven are open, as well.
Next article
