~ Part 2 ~

In our day of a prosperity-laden Gospel, some say this could not possibly be speaking about money. How could a person who is poor possibly be blessed? I read where one commentary said that Luke omitted part of what Jesus said, and Matthew clarified it. The story in Mark chapter 10 presents a problem for those with this mentality. A rich young ruler came to Jesus one day, wanting to know how to inherit eternal life. He told Jesus that he had lived by the Ten Commandments since he was a child. In His response, Jesus told him to sell everything he had and give to the poor. This is clearly speaking of the physical needs of those in poverty. Unfortunately, the young man was not willing to part with his riches. Jesus said that kind of attitude would keep people out of heaven.

Jesus was saying that mere adherence to religious rituals is not enough. There has to be a change of heart that is reflected in how we live and how we give. Let me hasten to add that money is not necessarily the problem. We need money to help those in need. According to 1 Timothy 6:10, it is “The love of money that is the root of all evil.” When our love of money becomes greater than our desire to help those in need, we find ourselves at odds with the Bible.

The message Jesus gave John on the Isle of Patmos concerning the church in Smyrna vividly illustrates extreme poverty. Their decision to remain faithful to Jesus resulted in hardship and destitution. But in the midst of their poverty and starvation, Jesus said they were rich. Jesus drew a defining line, showing us a stark contrast between the physical and the spiritual. You can be lacking in one but have an abundance of the other.

Jesus’s words in Matthew 5:3 confront us with a secondary issue that is sometimes, but not always, caused by the first. I see several applications to “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” I have seen those who feel trapped by the circumstances of life to such an extent that it breaks their spirit. They feel unworthy; they feel unloved, and they feel the sneering jabs of those who look down their nose at them as being nothing more than the scum of the earth, and it worsens an already tragic situation. They live a troubled life because of the attitudes and actions of others.

Sometimes, the poor in spirit are not necessarily poor financially. Something has broken their spirit, not their bank account. I see people on social media almost daily who feel beaten down. They see no hope for a better tomorrow and are convinced that no one cares for them. They live in nice homes; they own nice cars, and on the surface, life would appear to be good, but their words and their wounded hearts betray a crushed spirit.

Then there is this. A person who is poor in spirit can be the person who sees no need of God. They are not necessarily poor financially, in fact, they may be affluent. They are not necessarily sad and depressed, at least on the surface. They may appear to be happy and enjoying life. But somewhere deep inside, there is a void; something is missing. Perhaps this is where the application of the word “humble” would apply: the humility of spirit that acknowledges our dependency on God rather than the attitude of the poet who said, “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.”

Humility is the opposite of arrogance and pride.