blessed are...

Matthew 5

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The Greek word for ‘Blessed’ is ‘Makarioi’ which means ‘happy, supremely blessed, and fortunate’.

First Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit..”  What does that mean, and how can we be poor in spirit?  Is it something we just are, or is it something we attain to be?

The word for ‘poor’ in Greek (‘Ptochos‘) literally means having nothing, reduced to begging, like a beggar, totally broke.

‘Spiritual poor’ is exactly what it sounds like. It is a state when you realize that you have nothing and need constant help.

The opposite of ‘Poor in Spirit’ is ‘proud in spirit’.  So, if we want to be poor in spirit, we must not have a spirit of pride.  This may be an easier way to view things as pride is something that is easy to pinpoint.  It’s easy to know when we are being prideful.  The tricky part is that we can have a false humility which is also pride.  What I mean by that is that we can downgrade ourselves or have what would seemingly be a really sucky self esteem, and that is a form of pride.  It’s like saying, “God, you didn’t make me good enough.”  We don’t want to do that either.  It’s definitely a balance.

Also, lets look at the kingdom of heaven because I know there has been a lot of controversy regarding this subject as well lately… thanks to Rob Bell.

Kingdom of God (Heaven) is twofold:

Already Here: Luke 17:20-21: “Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”

Yet to Come: Kingdom of Heaven will be fully realized and established when Christ will come as a King and Ruler over all earth. (Daniel 7: 13,14,27)

What a hope and promise, Jesus offers to those who are poor in the spirit. “Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.”

So… yay!  I will strive to be poor in spirit so that I will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven-both here and later when it is fully established.  That means, I will remember and live every day with Christ because I know that on my own I just can’t get it right.

Love ya Jesus!