| “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 5:3 Do you feel spiritually empty sometimes? Like you have “nothing in the tank”? Like you’re desperate and hungry for something to fill you but you don’t know where to go? In the first of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3, Jesus tells us the “poor in spirit” are blessed. To be blessed means to be “shown favor” by God. To be loved by God and to have His favor “showered” upon us. And here, we’re told that the people who are blessed are the “poor in spirit”. “Poor” doesn’t mean they don’t have enough money to survive. “Poor in spirit” means to be lacking in spiritual resources. To not feel peace, contentment, and joy. To not feel like you can cope with life. And Jesus tells us the people who are blessed are the ones who don’t have the spiritual resources in themselves to live. This seems like a paradox! Wouldn’t the spiritually poor be less blessed than people who have their spirituality figured out? The ones who seem to be content and at peace through things like other religions, meditation, and wellness? Through “finding their inner selves”? Nope. The truth is everyone is spiritually poor. It’s the people who recognize the depravity of their internal state and turn to Jesus, the only source of true spirituality, who are blessed by Him. And why are they blessed? For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven! To the spiritually poor, the Kingdom of Heaven is given! The Kingdom of Heaven is the realm of God, the transcendent abode where He lives and reigns. A realm of peace, love, and meaning. In recognizing we are spiritually poor and lack the spiritual resources in ourselves to live, we gain God and His realm! We gain a Kingdom of spiritual riches beyond our imagining! And in that sense, we become richer than we can even fully comprehend. So, if you are feeling “poor in spirit”, look to Christ and His Kingdom. In and because of Christ, it’s already yours! You are rich not because you found your own spiritual riches, but because Jesus has given you the Kingdom of Heaven. Talk about being blessed! May God encourage you this week! Neil |
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