“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

Today we conclude our teaching on Poverty of Spirit by looking at its remaining attributes as listed in the previous study (Absolute Dependence on God’s Grace; Humility and Self-abasement; Deference to God’s Will in the Matter of Material Possession; and Unaffected by Worldly Wealth or Position.)

Humility and Self-abasement (Cont’d)

Salvation requires humility; it requires that we recognize that we are sinners and that Jesus died so that our sins may be forgiven, so that we would not die but live forever. A proud or arrogant person can never accept this. Rather he believes in himself and his good works to get him to. heaven; he believes that he does not need free salvation and that he can do it all by himself. Romans 3:23 says that, “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

In 1 Corinthians 15:9,10, Paul the great apostle recognized the lowliness of his life and claimed that he was the least of all the apostles. In fact Paul was the apostle who worked hardest and suffered the most, as he was the apostle to the gentiles. But he gave God all the glory in his life and considered himself as nothing but a vessel to be used for God’s purposes.

As believers God must be glorified in our lives but this will not happen if we continue to think highly of ourselves and our capabilities. Let us adopt the posture of Paul the apostle and the Canaanite woman and bring ourselves low before God’s feet. For it is only then he will be able to use us for his glory and it is only then we can enter the kingdom of heaven.

Deference to God’s Will in the Matter of Material Possession. A person who is poor in spirit will contentedly accept not to be affluent in the material things of this world if God says that will be his or her lot. Such a one will not bemoan his or her lot to the extent that it will get in the way of relationship with „God nor allow his or her service to God to be adversely affected by material insufficiency. He will not allow bitterness or sorrow to overwhelm him and rob him of the joy of experiencing a good Father-son relationship with God. A good example of someone who exhibited this attribute to the glory of God is Apostle Paul (Phillipians 4:11,12) who was contented in every situation. good or bad. That faced him. Like Paul, all of us must be able to relate to and serve God well no matter what our state of material well-being may be.

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Unaffected by Worldly Wealth or Position. This attribute enables the Christian not to place such high premium on the acquisition of wealth and position that he finds it difficult to obey or serve the Lord as much as he should. This is the attribute displayed by Elisha who abandoned a   thriving business to accept the divine appointment as Elijah’s assistant (1 Kings 19; 19-21).

Many of the apostles and disciples also repudiated   their secular occupations to become disciples of Jesus. Notable among these are Matthew (Matthew 9:9) who left a stable job in order to answer the call of becoming, a disciple of Jesus and Zachaeus (Luke 19:1-10) who, in his quest for salvation, was willing to give half of his” possession to the poor as well as make handsome restitution to people from whom he had extorted money in the past. On the other hand, the rich young ruler in (Mark 10:21 -25) found it difficult to part with his worldly wealth for the sake of eternal life in Christ Jesus. Are you able to turn your back on things you most cherish in order to answer the call of God? Moses turned his back on a life of ease and pleasure in Pharaoh’s palace in order to identify with the people of God during the period of their affliction (Hebrews 11:24-29); can you?

Those who are poor in spirit stand to reap enormous blessings not only in the present world but also in heaven. In contrast to the obstinate and the proud, the poor and lowly in spirit respond quickly to the gospel and are saved easily. Even in the area of worldly possession and fame, God’s preference is for the humble (1 Peter 5:5,6). Solomon was blessed by God with unparalleled wisdom and wealth because of   the   unusual humility he displayed in admitting that   he   could   only   rule Israel successfully with divine wisdom (1 Kings 3: 4-13). Contrast Solomon’s blessing with the bitter experience of his son, Rehoboam, who impudently rejected wise and godly counsel and consequently lost a sizable portion of the kingdom he inherited from his father to his rival, Jeroboam. (1 Kings 12:14 -19), Finally, as the word of God clearly states, the kingdom of God belongs to” the poor in spirit. This means that the proud and self-conceited will not find a place there.

A man or woman who does not have a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ cannot be poor in spirit. If you are such a person, I am glad to inform you that you can fulfill this condition of entering into the kingdom of God by repenting of your sins and asking that God forgives you because you believe that Jesus has atoned for your sins. Then ask that the Spirit of God should abide with you and empower you to live a life that is totally surrendered to God’s will.

A Call to take a Decision

Beloved, have you entered into personal relationship with Jesus Christ by accepting Him as your Lord and Saviour? If you have not, you need to do so without delay. Inviting and accepting Jesus Christ into your life is the beginning of a glorious and eternally rewarding relationship with God, your Creator. It is a decision you can never regret as you walk with Him faithfully and consistently for the rest of your life. Surrender your life to Jesus Christ today by acknowledging that you are a sinner. God sent Jesus Christ to die for you and as you confess your sins to Him, He will forgive you so that you will not have to be punished for the same. Ask Jesus Christ to cleanse you with His precious blood, deliver you from sin and Satan and empower you by the Holy Spirit to henceforth live above sin and live totally for God from now on. You can write and share your testimony via [email protected]