Poor in Spirit
Matt. 5:3
- What does poor in spirit mean?
- First, What it does not mean:
- Being poor in spirit does not mean financial poverty.
- Being poor in spirit does not mean thinking badly about yourself.
- Second, What does poor in spirit mean:
- To acknowledge our utter helplessness before God, our spiritual poverty, our spiritual need.
- To acknowledge our utter lack in facing life and eternity apart from God.
- To acknowledge our utter lack of superiority before all others and our spiritual deadness before God.
- A Simple definition of Poor in spirit = being totally dependent upon God.
- Happy are those who realize their spiritual helplessness.
III. Happy are those who see themselves as God sees them.
- We must see ourselves as sinners.
Rom. 3:23, Isa. 53:6
- We must see ourselves as an object of God’s love and concern.
Gen. 1:26-27
- We must understand pride is the opposite of this beatitude.
Proverbs 16:18
- Happy are those who accept the will of God as the goal for their lives.
Matt. 6:10, Matt. 6:33
- What does a person who is poor in spirit look like:
1. The poor in spirit have a broken and contrite heart.
Psalm 34:18
- The poor in spirit are humble.
Job 22:29, Proverbs 16:19, Proverbs 29:23
- The poor in spirit are dependent on God.