#45 Poor in spirit. Thoughts from the Back Deck...

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:4

"See what I am involved with and how I do good things."
"I just love all people."
"Live and let live, that is my motto."
"I am a good person."
"I am spiritual."
"be good to others and good will come back to me."

What does it mean to be "poor in spirit?" 

The word "poor" means...
Lacking
Less than adequate 
Meager
Of little or small worth
Inferior in quality or value

So put it together... 
To know our spirit is lacking in a lot of things. Love. Faith. Trust. Hope. Understanding. Commitment. 

Our spirit is broken due to sin. 
We, the spiritually poor, understand no matter how much we try, we are morally bankrupt. We fall short in the eyes of God and have no chance at the kingdom of heaven. 

Another way to think of this is that we confess we are poor in spirit. We understand we need Jesus and there, in him, rests the peace in knowing the kingdom of heaven is ours as a gift, not because we "do" or "think". 

Not because we are "spiritual", do good things, love all people (seriously, do we see that in anyone?), have a cool-sounding motto we follow, that we try with all our might, or hold on to an idea of universal "karma". 🤮

All that is of no worth in God's eyes. It does not tip the scale in our favor. 

Why? 

Remember the words of Jesus as he reflected on the prophet Isaiah...
Luke 4:18–19 (ESV): “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. 
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

The kingdom of heaven is ours because of Jesus not because of our thoughts, work, deeds, or views. Blessed are the poor in spirit...because of Jesus.

Peace out,
Andy

Share as you are moved.

https://www.stpaullakeland.org/

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