Lession 1: Blessed are the poor in spirit

(WARNING/DISCLOSURE: There will be some (or many!) grammatical mistakes within the content of this site. I apologize in advance for my inadequacy in my writing ability and undisciplined action to correct it. I will try my best to convey the message as clearly as I possible can)

The first statement of the Beatitudes starts with “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’

Before I discuss the importance of this first statement, MLJ points to the readers that understanding the Good News of the Gospel necessitates digesting the BAD news, which is our sinful state before God. We hear this fairly often in our Christian community; that if the bad news isn’t all that bad, then the Good News which is the work of Christ on earth and death on the Cross and resurrection and having eternal fellowship with the Father is not all the great either. So if our view of sin were small, then inevitability our view of God would also be small.

MLJ states “it is an essential part of the gospel that conviction must always precede conversion; the gospel of Christ condemns before it releases.” Remember, the Good News is offensive and defensive. First, it is offensive because it exposes our sins and our true state of our weakness in the flesh. Who would happy to volunteer in front of thousands of people and say, “I’m a great great sinner because I did XYZ…” Our sinful nature does not want to admit to our weakness, let alone our sins. But it is also defensive to us because we as Christians do not have to bear the wrath of God since Christ did that on the Cross. But I would say it’s much more than defensive because we have the Righteousness of Christ, which freely allows us to have fellowship the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. But the point here is that there is a sense of confession to the ‘poor in spirit’ as though one who utter those words cannot save him/herself from the presence of Holy and perfect God.

However, before I keep going with what ‘poor in spirit’ may indicate for believers, let’s first discuss what it DOES not mean.

It does not mean that we must strive to be literally poor. The Lord did not say, “blessed be ye poor” nor the Bible states that poverty is a good thing. We must understand that poor man is not anymore closer to God than the rich man. MLJ says, “there is no merit or advantage in being poor” and “poverty does not guarantee spirituality.” We see this in many of the poor countries (i.e. S. Africa). If that were the case than North Korea would be flourished with vibrant spiritual life. Thus, it does not mean to be the literal sense but rather “poverty in spirit.” In nutshell, MKJ says, “it is ultimately a man’s attitude towards himself.” There are two general ways to look at one’s self. One, from the worldly perspective, she/he can believe in themselves, trust in their own powers, works and even overcoming sins all before the Lord. We hear these phrases a lot: “try harder,” “you can do it”, “trust in your heart or yourself,” “it’s in your heart that all that matters,” etc. Essentially, it is the man’s (and woman’s) innate will power and its dependency to ignore his/her total depraved nature before the Lord on this earth. But more than that, it is to say in front of God, “hey God, I can trust my own abilities to be good and overcome this sin and I have no need for you!”

Now, the other way of seeing this is through humility. It is say, I’m a “vile and full of sin!” MLJ gave several examples from the Scripture. For example, Isaiah got a glimpse of the Lord and his response was “woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips.” There was a sense of absolute inadequacy in his heart as he realized how holy and pure God is and how far and sinful and wretched his heart was in comparison! Humility was his initial response. But more than that, Isaiah’s utter hopeless in his ability to save himself from God. Yes, there was no way to save himself from the Holy God because sin cannot co-exist with God. So what does God do? He sends seraphim to touch his lip and remove Isaiah’s guilt away, as his sin was atoned for.

MLJ tells it how it really is. Also being poor in spirit does not mean that we beat ourselves up as though we walk around like zombies nor “falsely crucify yourself or assume another character and personality in life.” I think of the Pharisees who were fasting and making sure that the public knew about it. It also does not mean that we put ourselves down with “false” humility. This is tricky because it could go very subtle. I don’t time to go on details but this is something that I have struggled (and still struggling) with it. Lastly but not least, it does not mean that we become people with certain personality that is well liked by people or appear to be popular. A nice person does not make him/her to be humble and therefore, “poor in spirit.” MLJ gave a great example in the Bible; namely Peter who was “naturally aggressive, self-assertive and self-confident.” While those were nevertheless traits of “a typical modern man of the world,” he still remained bold for the Gospel. Thus, his Peter-like personality did not change but his attitude toward God did. I mean, look at Apostle Paul. He was a stud in the eyes of the world yet after his conversion, his confidence was in Christ and he still remained bold and just as intense (if not more) for the Gospel! Yet, “he felt insufficient because he was ‘poor in spirit.’ Nuff said.

So, what does it really mean by ‘poor in spirit?” It is “a complete absence of pride, a complete absence of self-assurance and of self-reliance. It means a consciousness that we are nothing in the presence of God. It is nothing, then that we can produce; it is nothing that we can do in ourselves. It is just this tremendous awareness of our utter nothingness as we come face to face with God.”

It’s saying this to yourself (and genuinely meaning it, quote by Jeremiah Burroughs)

“Lord I am nothing. Lord, I deserve nothing, Lord, I can do nothing, I can receive nothing, and can make use of nothing, I am worse than nothing, and if I come to nothing and perish I will be no loss at all, and therefore is it such a great thing for me to be cut short here?”

So the natural man/woman cannot do this without the Lord’s initiative. One cannot make himself ‘poor in spirit,’ unless God is convicting him/her of such great inadequacy of self before God. That is mercy!

So how does not become ‘poor in spirit?’ MLJ says, “you do not look at yourself or being by trying to do thing to yourself. The answer is to look at God, read His Word, (Bible) and ultimately the Cross of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Finally, MLJ leaves us with few application questions for you and I.

• Am I like that, am I poor in spirit?
• How do I really feel about myself as I think of myself in terms of God and in the presence of God?
• And as I live my life, what are the things I am saying, what are the things I am praying about, what are the things I like to think of with regard to myself?