Beatitudes - Poor in Spirit

 

Blessed are the poor in spirit

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven

 

What does being poor mean?

What could being poor in spirit mean?

Describe what you think being rich in spirit means?  Whose spirit?

Luke 6:20 simply has "blessed are the poor"; that Matthew adds "in spirit" is seen to be of great import. The phrase does not appear in the Old Testament, but Psalm 34:18 comes close. The phrase "poor in spirit" occurs in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and seems to have been an important notion to the Qumran community.

Scholars agree that "poor in spirit" does not mean lacking in spirit, be it courage, the Holy Spirit, or religious awareness. Rather it is that poverty is not only a physical condition, but also a spiritual one. . .

Nolland notes that there have historically been three main interpretations of what is meant by "the poor" in this verse.

·       One view is that it refers to the disadvantaged, those forced to the fringe of society.

·       An alternative is that it refers to those who willingly surrender their belongings as a sign of piety.

·       The third view is that poverty refers to hardship in general, and not simply economic disadvantage.

Matthew makes a second reference to the poor at Matthew 11:5. In that verse it is a reference to Isaiah. Wikipedia.

According to the Key-Word Study Bible, “The Greek word translated blessed in these passages is makarioi which means to be fully satisfied. It refers to those receiving God’s favor, regardless of the circumstances” (emphasis added). Vaneetha Rendall Risner

Billy Graham - Q: What does it mean to be poor in spirit, as Jesus said we ought to be? I don't understand this, because it seems to me that we ought to strive to be rich in spirit, not poor. Or am I missing the point?

A: Your confusion is understandable; after all, the Bible does warn us against being empty and impoverished in our souls, and urges us to seek spiritual riches instead. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

But Jesus also said that there is another kind of spiritual poverty—one we should seek. He said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). What did He mean? Simply this: We must be humble in our spirits. If you put the word “humble” in place of the word “poor,” you will understand what He meant.

In other words, when we come to God, we must realize our own sin and our spiritual emptiness and poverty. We must not be self-satisfied or proud in our hearts, thinking we don’t really need God. If we are, God cannot bless us. The Bible says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6).

Pride can take all kinds of forms, but the worst is spiritual pride. Often the richer we are in things, the poorer we are in our hearts. (1 Corinthians 10:12)

“In our social-media world, saying you’re blessed can be a way of boasting while trying to sound humble.” Vaneetha Rendall Risner

Being rich in your spirit seems to be a perceptual condition. You perceive that you have it all together spiritually. What Jesus is saying that no matter how good you are, no matter what you think of yourself you are in a fallen world, you are tainted with sin Genesis 6:5; Matthew 15:19; Romans 3:9–20. REALIZE IT!

We as Christians equate “Blessings – successful career, money, health” with the perception that we are definitely in God’s will and that we are spiritually successful but what does Jesus say, “Blessed are the poor” whether that is poor physically or spiritually. Remember the rich young ruler Mark 10:17-27. He went away sad. The disciples asked, then who can be saved? Jesus answered, “The poor in spirit”.

When was the prodigal son at his spiritual best before he asked his father for his inheritance? When he asked for his inheritance? As he stood in the pig pen realizing that he would be better off being a servant of his father. What about his brother, was he at his spiritual best? The father was rich but yet he was spiritually poor. Luke 15:11-32

I mentioned in a study once that we should thank God for the challenges we face in our walk and not just our blessings. One of the men was astonished at that teaching, “he said he had never heard of such a thing” James 1:3, Romans 5:3. But isn’t that what God is intimating, do we learn when our cup overflows or when we thirst? As Laura Story asks in her song “Blessings,” “What if your blessings come through rain drops? What if trials of this life — the rain, the storms, the hardest nights — are your mercies in disguise?”

So I ask again:

What does being poor mean?

What could being poor in spirit mean?

Describe what you think being rich in spirit means?  Whose spirit?