Blessed are the poor in spirit! What does this mean?

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Matthew.5:3

I like how Bob Wells summarizes this Beatitude where he states, “the poor in spirit are those who are conscious of their sins and know in their hearts that they are completely unworthy of the grace that a most holy and loving God pours down upon them.” Being poor in spirit has nothing to do with physical poverty or lack of riches. Being poor in spirit is a demonstration of us acknowledging that we are absolutely nothing, except for God’s saving grace.  Being poor in spirit means that we have nothing to be boastful of except our loving Heavenly Father, His Son the Lord Jesus, and the ministering of His Holy Spirit in our lives.

 Another writer states, “these are people who are humble and who do not think of themselves more highly than they ought. Jesus once said that whoever humbles himself as a little child would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. In the book of Proverbs, we read that a man's pride will bring him down, but a lowly spirit will bring him honor.”  The entire focus of someone who is poor in spirit is on the Lord.  He or she is absorbed with Jesus in giving Him praise and honor.

Another great example presented by Bob Wells is about the prodigal son in Luke 15 where we see how he became poor in spirit. “In his pride and arrogance he left his father's house, wasted his inheritance and fell into great need in some far away country. During a severe famine, this son had no job and nothing to eat. At that point, the text says, he came to himself. He went back to his father and said, "I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son" (Luke 15:21). That is being poor in spirit.

According to Dr. Tom Constable, a Biblical Scholar, “The "poor in spirit" are those who recognize their natural unworthiness to stand in God's presence and who depend utterly on Him for His mercy and grace (cf. Ps. 37:14; 40:17; 69:28-29, 32-33; Prov. 16:19; 29:23; Isa.61:1)." They do not trust in their own goodness or possessions for God's acceptance. The poor in spirit acknowledges his or her lack of personal righteousness. This condition, as all the others the Beatitudes identify, describes those who have repented and are broken.

"'Poverty in spirit' is not speaking of weakness of character ('mean-spiritedness') but rather of a person's relationship with God. It is a positive spiritual orientation, the opposite of the arrogant self-confidence which not only rides roughshod over the interests of other people but more importantly causes a person to treat God as irrelevant."  Have we been treating God as unimportant until something occurs when we have nowhere to turn?  God is not there for us to put on and put off as we choose.  He created us, and desires us to worship Him.  God is a jealous God!  We can be everything we need to be when we are poor in spirit.

Another example of being poor in spirit is the story of this poor old man in Burundi who, eating one slice of bread that was all he had, smiling, said, "I have my piece of bread and Jesus too!"  This man was praising Jesus even though he had nothing else.  Are we praising Jesus for what He has done for us, that which we could never do for ourselves?
The latter part of the verse states, "for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."  One writer believed that Jesus was not talking about the poor in spirit entering the kingdom but rather, possessing it (i.e., it will be theirs in the sense that the poor in spirit will reign over it with Jesus (Rev.3:21). “He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

As we reread this blog, including all of the Bible references presented, take time right now to give thanks to our Heavenly Father for His saving love that He demonstrated by sending His only Son, the Lord Jesus, to die for our sins on the cross.  If you have never asked Jesus to come into your life, do so now by repeating the following prayer, “Dear Jesus, I ask you to forgive me for the sins I’ve committed.  Come into my life right now!  Thank you Jesus for coming into my life!

If you are a Believer, and know that you are not "right" with God because of unrepentant sin, or because you have sided with someone who has accused another believer, whatever your situation that the Holy Spirit has placed in your heart, why not bow down right now, to agree with God that you have sinned.  Then, determine that you will make things right with God's help, and focus on deepening your relationship with our Heavenly Father.

In my next blog, we'll look at the second beatitude in Matthew.5:4. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."