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POOR IN SPIRIT? By Jean Jantzen We are all worms, but I do believe I am a glowworm. ~Winston Churchill
In Matthew 5, (the beatitudes) Jesus is directing his comments to his disciples and the first thing out of his mouth is. "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." As a Christian and a disciple of Jesus Christ I want to inherit the kingdom but what does Jesus mean by poor in spirit? Why not rich in spirit? When God mentions rich and increased with goods…it is not a good thing. Talking to the Laodicean Church Jesus says, "You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked" (Revelation 3:17). These Christians seem to enjoy a nice standard of living, but they are blind to their spiritual condition. Remember the rich fellow who came to Jesus asking how to enter the kingdom…and Jesus replied ‘go and sell what you have.’ Apparently his riches stuck a wedge between him and what was truly important. Remember the scripture that says it’s easier for a camel to go through an eye of a needle than a rich man to enter into the kingdom…. It seems when we come to a place where we feel physically satisfied, we become less and less hungry for God because we become content with where we are. This contentedness is actually a form of pride and because we are no longer poor in spirit and reduced to beggary we have officially considered our own actions and abilities as the key to our success. We feel that we have reached a place where we have already experienced the fullness of God and therefore have nothing else to learn. The members of the Laodicean Church were in that mind-set When we look at different translations of "Blessed are the poor in spirit" it becomes clear what Jesus means. He said, `God makes happy those who know that they need him. The kingdom of heaven is for them" (Worldwide English NT). "Blessed are those who are spiritually needy. [not necessarily physically needy] The kingdom of heaven belongs to them" (New International Reader's Version). In today's Gospel Luke is translated as "Happy are you who are poor". This suggests physical, financial poverty. Matthew's Greek text is translated as "Happy are the poor in spirit". The Hebrew word behind both renderings into Greek has both meanings. In fact, depending on the context, the Hebrew word for "poor" can also mean oppressed, afflicted, wretched, miserable, helpless, humble, patient, meek. In such a religious context, the poverty intended is poverty in spirit, that is, the humble recognition of one's utter nothingness before God; that without His gifts one is and has nothing. This poverty of spirit, this humility, this recognition of one's absolute nothingness before God, is a virtue God says should characterize all members of His Kingdom. It is only with this recognition of what we are that we are able to grow in grace and knowledge. It is the kick off point…the beginning of our conversion. He said of Himself "Learn of Me, for I am meek and humble of heart" (Matthew 11:39 Young’s literal translation). I asked a minister a long time ago if he would look at one of my articles and he refused, saying he already knew all about that subject and he was not interested. I was certainly taken aback. I wonder how God looks on that kind of attitude. When we have a child, even if a grown up child, who is still willing to listen and take advice from his elderly parents… who does not brag that he knows it all…it is pure pleasure. There is something about a person when they have a humility of spirit about them that is utterly disarming. No wonder Isaiah says, "Our holy God lives forever in the highest heavens, and this is what he says: Though I live high above in the holy place, I am here to help those who are humble and depend only on me" (57:15 Contemporary English Version). Someone who is arrogant and knows everything cannot be helped. In this materialistic, technological age, in so many ways, we have removed our need for God, His instructions, his direction, his blessings. We must ask God to make us poor in spirit. We must repent of our own self righteousness and our own areas where we consider ourselves rich enough that we do not hunger for God. { We must not confuse poor in spirit with being poverty stricken, we can be prosperous and still hunger for God.} Jesus is saying that our emptiness and nothingness before God is a virtue. We cannot look to ourselves because the cupboard is bare, the plate is empty. "Blessed are the poor in spirit" means "blessed are those who admit their spiritual emptiness, their spiritual hollowness, their spiritual inertness". Jesus speaks these words to the Smyrna Church: "I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich!"(Revelation 2:9). Here are members of God’s Church living in poverty yet Jesus says they are rich. They recognize their condition of neediness for God and that makes them rich indeed. "Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars…The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being"(Matthew 6:19,20 The Message translation). Paul says it a little differently in 2 Corinthians 6: "Rather, as servants of God …having nothing, and yet possessing everything." Being poor in spirit is not taking vows of poverty, which can be acts of pretense, or despising the blessings God has given us. Instead it is a condition of the heart. As Matthew Henry said, "this poverty of spirit is a gracious disposition of soul, by which we are emptied of self, in order to our being filled with Jesus Christ." He also said it was, "To be contentedly poor, willing to be emptied of worldly wealth, if God orders that to be our lot; to bring our mind to our condition, when it is a low condition. Many are poor in the world, but high in spirit, poor and proud, murmuring and complaining, and blaming their lot, but we must accommodate ourselves to our poverty, we must know how to be abased, Philippians. 4:12. "Continue in the words of Paul "… for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need" (Philippians 4:10-12). Paul admonishes us to be content in whatever state we find ourselves. Being poor or being rich does not make us righteous. It’s our need for and our responsiveness to God that is important. When speaking of being ‘poor in spirit,’ Christ focuses on and emphasizes a change inwardly of the heart and mind. So let’s get rid of our pride, our stubborn self will and we will inherit the kingdom!
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