The downloadable pdf is now available on www.fbckilleen.com or
Blessed
are the poor in spirit:
for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
|
Spiritual bankruptcy
What does “poor in spirit” mean? Jim Forest explains, “Without
poverty of spirit, none of us can begin to follow Christ…It is my awareness
that I cannot save myself, that I am defenseless, that neither money nor power
will spare me from suffering and death.”
Martyn Lloyd-Jones says, “If one feels anything in the
presence of God save an utter poverty of spirit, it ultimately means that you
have never faced Him. That is the meaning of this Beatitude.”
The Sermon on the Mount and especially the Beatitudes tell
us that without Jesus Christ, none of us could ever be saved. Since Christ came
to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10), He wanted to communicate the
complete depravity and sinfulness of the human race.
Only in Matt. 5:3 is the word “poor” used for anything
else other than monetary poverty. Those who are poor in spirit are those who deny their own spirit so that God’s
spirit would be rich in them. It is the condition that is required for us to
die to ourselves and live for God.
Born again believers are, as J.M. Boice said, “spiritually
bankrupt.” As a result, we have, present tense, the kingdom of heaven. Spiritually
poverty is the first step to being where God wants us to be: saved.
Question: What is the opposite of being
poor in spirit?
Question: Why would Jesus use a
financial word like poor?
God’s Standard: Perfection
Later in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus commanded the
disciples to be “perfect as your Father
in heaven is perfect.” Even if we define perfect as “to be fully grown,
mature, complete,” we are impossibly challenged to be as mature or perfect as
our Father in heaven.
To understand the word “perfect” look at Matt. 19:21.
Jesus told the rich ruler, “If you want
to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will
have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
Was Jesus telling the man that selling all and giving to
the poor is the way to sinless perfection? Is that what it takes to be saved?
No! Jesus was trying to show the proud man, who thought he had kept
all of the commandments, that he too was imperfect.
Questions: Read Matt.
19:16-26. Was the rich man happy? What do his
three questions show about the man and his state of happiness? (“Teacher, what
good thing must I do to get eternal life?” “Which ones (commandments must I
keep)?” “What do I still lack?”
Contrition and Humility
God’s standard of perfection leads us to profound
humility. People today view God far too casually, certainly in comparison to
those who saw God in the Bible. Here are some Old Testament parallels.
Psalms
34:18 “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and
saves such as have a contrite spirit.”
Psalms
51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A
broken and a contrite heart-- These, O God, You will not despise.”
Proverbs
16:19 “Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly,
than to divide the spoil with the proud.”
Proverbs
29:23 “A man's pride will bring him low, but the humble in
spirit will retain honor.”
Isaiah 57:15
“For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name
is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite
and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive
the heart of the contrite ones.”
Isaiah 66:2
“…but on this one will I look, on him who is poor and of a contrite
spirit, and who trembles at my word.”
“Contrite” can
also mean lame, stricken, crushed, broken, even destroyed. It is with that type
of spirit that is the first step to salvation and also to happiness and
blessedness.
Question: How can a
contrite, humble and impoverished spirit bring happiness?
Theirs is the Kingdom of
Heaven
What is the
Kingdom of Heaven? It is more
than going to heaven or even salvation. John the Baptist said the Kingdom of
Heaven (KOH) is “at hand,” revealed in part during Jesus’ early ministry
(10:7).
There is a present
tense (5:3, 10; 11:12) and a future tense (8:11).
There is a spiritual sense (13:11) and a physical sense
(11:12).
There is an earthly realm and a heavenly realm (16:19).
The KOH and Old Testament: Keeping the commandments is important and brings great praise (5:19-20),
but the Law ended with John and
the KOH came into being during Christ’s ministry (11:12 with Luke 16:16). The
KOH includes Old and New Testament believers (8:11), but we have a greater understanding
because of Christ (Matt. 11:11).
The KOH and unbelievers: The KOH is a powerful change, and the mighty take hold of
it strongly (11:12). The mysteries of the KOH are hidden from unbelievers, but
are revealed in part through the parables of Matthew 13, 19 and 22. The KOH is
given solely by grace (22:10), but not to everyone (22:11). We cannot have the KOH
through legalism (23:13).
The KOH and believers: Entrance to the KOH requires conversion (18:3) and doing God’s
will (7:21), but even a child can enter by faith brings the greatest praise in
the KOH (See Matt. 18:14 and 19:14). It is hard but not impossible for the rich
to enter (19:23, 26). Sacrifices made have results in the KOH (19:12), but the
KOH is not given by works (19:30-20:16).
The Kingdom of Heaven is going to heaven but so much
more. It is for believers right now, Christ reigning in our hearts. The poor in
spirit are blessed because we receive the KOH (salvation).
Question: Have you submitted
to the Kingdom of Heaven by receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord, Savior and
King?
