Matthew 5: 3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The crowds were following Jesus, and so he went up on top of a high hill overlooking the sea of Galilee, where the valley was shaped like a natural amphitheater. And then Jesus began his teachings in a perplexing manner by giving a long list of those who would be blessed in the Kingdom of God. A good teacher introduces his subject, giving the goals of the teaching. Only after setting forth the goals will the teacher proceed to explain how he wishes his students to achieve those goals. But this was such a strange list! This list had nothing in common with the writings on blessings appearing today.
For years, I had problems with this list because much of it failed to make sense. It wasn’t until I began reading the Amplified version of the Bible that I started understanding. In the Amplified version this verse reads “Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous – with life- joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the poor in spirit (the humble, who rate themselves insignificant), for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Today there are all kinds of teachings about how to become prosperous, spiritually or otherwise. And for every book about becoming prosperous, there are equal numbers of books advising on how to promote yourself. But very few of these formulas involve being humble or rating oneself as insignificant. So, what was Jesus aiming at with this statement? The first thing to examine is the definition of what it means to be blessed. Here the term “blessed” means to be “happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous – with life – joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward condition.” So many times, we equate being blessed with getting things – a new vehicle, a house, a great job, new clothes, fancy electronic equipment. And that kind of thinking was around in Jesus’ day as well. The crowd that followed Jesus was a mixed one, and there were probably at least a few rich people standing off at the side and feeling superior. But Jesus didn’t mention “stuff” or social position at all! In fact, Jesus seemed to be saying that all the things that were so important in society counted for nothing in the kingdom of God.
What does it mean to be “spiritually prosperous?” The Apostle John in 3 John1:2 states, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and may keep well, even as your soul keeps well and prospers.” (For an expanded explanation, see https://abideinchrist.com/messages/mat5v3a.html) But briefly, spiritual prosperity is demonstrated by having the fruits of the Holy Spirit operating in your life. Those fruits are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self – control. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Spiritual blessings also bring “life- joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions.” Here it is obvious that blessings have nothing to do with any outward condition, but with one’s relationship with God and acceptance of His salvation. It would seem that rating oneself as significant or important removes one from the category of being poor in spirit. But why?
When we concentrate on our own significance, we lose sight of the greatness of God. We are in danger of worshiping ourselves rather than our Creator. We are insignificant in that the creation can function quite well without any particular one of us. We are significant because Jesus cared enough about each one of us to die on the cross for us. An old country Gospel song says, “When He was on the cross, I was on His mind.”
So today, rejoice! Rejoice that you are not carrying the burdens of the universe! Those burdens are God’s burdens. If you are attempting to carry burdens you shouldn’t, lay those burdens down. But also rejoice that in your insignificance, you can be blessed beyond measure and spiritually prosperous.
PRAYER: Father, thank you that You bless us far abundantly above all that we can ask or think! Thank you that you love each one of us individually. But thank you also that we don’t have to promote ourselves to become spiritually prosperous; we only have to love you and serve you. In the mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.
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