Vincent Mercado Supporter Skeptic turned believer, Catholic, father of 3

Certainly, this is not a romanticizing of economic poverty or demonization of wealth, but rather, a formula for detachment. A variant rendition of this verse could be "How blessed are you if you are not attached to material things - if you have not placed the goods that money can buy as the center of your concern."

If the Kingdom of God is the center of your concern, not only will you not become addicted to material things, you will able to use them with great effectiveness for God's purposes.

We sense within ourselves an infinite longing for God. We attempt to fill it up with something less than God. And so necessarily, we are frustrated. In our frustration, we convince ourselves that we need more of that finite good. But it is never enough. At some point we find ourselves experiencing a sort of spiritual panic, obsessively turning around some finite good that, in principle, can never make us happy.

We have a modern term for this - addiction. What Jesus is saying is this, "Do not be addicted to wealth."

May 07 2014 • 2 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

letty nkosi Supporter

The kingdom of God is for the humble. When the bible says, 'blessed those who are poor in spirit', it means that God blesses those who depend on him. When you are rich, how can you can you depend on someone? When you are poor, it means you are in need. 

God wants people who will need him. God is spirit and he want us to be poor in spirit so that it will be easy for him to provide us. These days we Christians sometimes think we are spiritually rich, and then we no longer listen to God. That is why sometimes when we seek god in our most difficult times, it seems like he is far from us. It because we know much, we are not depending in him. 

When we look at Abraham he was wealthy and rich, but spiritually he was poor; he was blessed in every aspect of his life cause he only depended on god. Even when he was tested by killing his child as an offering, he didn't question god or he didn't have opinion, options or doubt; he just humbled himself and looked forward to god's plan.

September 10 2015 • 2 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Mary JaniceOwens Supporter

The poor in Spirit will inherit the Kingdom of God. This is a true statement; we must totally trust,rely and have faith in God to supply all of our needs. God created us to live in love peace and harmony and he would supply all of our needs.

September 10 2015 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jeffrey Johnson Supporter

What does the Beatitudes mean by saying 'blessed are the poor in spirit'?

"Blessed are the poor in spirit" means possessing profound humility, recognising one's complete spiritual bankruptcy, and dependency on God rather than self-reliance. It signifies a "beggar" posture before God, acknowledging that all goodness comes from Him and leading to receiving the kingdom of heaven. 

Jesus presents this as the first Beatitude because this recognition of need is the starting point for a relationship with God. Only those who admit their spiritual need are in a position to receive the "Kingdom of Heaven".

It is the opposite of pride. It is a humble recognition of one's own limitations, sins, and unworthiness.

It means realising that apart from God, one is spiritually destitute, driving him or her to seek His grace and mercy.

It signifies being empty of self-importance, arrogance, and self-righteousness, allowing one to be filled with God's grace.

It describes a heart that recognises it has nothing of its own to offer God and relies entirely on His provision.

Those who recognise this spiritual need are "blessed" (fortunate, favoured) because the kingdom of heaven is designed for them. 

This phrase is generally understood not as a call to physical poverty, but as a spiritual attitude. 

Concerning the use of pto·khosʹ in this text, M. R. Vincent's Word Studies in the New Testament (1957, Vol. I, p. 36) says that "it is very graphic and appropriate here, as denoting the utter spiritual destitution, the consciousness of which precedes the entrance into the kingdom of God, and which cannot be relieved by one's own efforts, but only by the free mercy of God."

Jesus says that people who recognise their spiritual need, who are saddened by their sinful condition, and who come to know and serve God are the ones who are pleased. Even if they are hated or persecuted for doing God's will, they are happy because they know that they are pleasing him and that he will reward them with everlasting life.

People who mourn, who hunger and thirst for righteousness, and who are conscious of their spiritual need are aware of the importance of having a good relationship with the Creator. A good relationship with humans contributes to happiness, but a good relationship with God contributes even more. 

Why did Jesus say those words in Matthew Chapter 5:3? Because, unlike animals, we have spiritual needs. Created in God's image, we can, to a degree, cultivate divine attributes, such as love, justice, mercy, and wisdom. (Genesis 1:27; Micah 6:8; 1 John 4:8) Our spiritual needs include the need to have meaning in our lives.

Such joy intensifies when we allow Bible truth to guide our lives.

During his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus used an expression that is often translated "Blessed are the poor in spirit." (Matthew 5:3, King James Version) But in many languages, a literal rendering of this expression is obscure. In some cases, a strictly literal translation could imply that "the poor in spirit" are mentally unbalanced or lacking in vitality and determination. However, Jesus was here teaching people that their happiness depended not on satisfying their physical needs but on recognising their need for God's guidance. (Luke 6:20) Thus, renderings such as "those conscious of their spiritual need" or Example noted in Matthew 5:3; The New Testament in Modern English. "those who know their need for God" may convey more accurately the meaning of the original expression.

Being poor in spirit is a type of spiritual posture, acting as a "beggar" before the Lord. 

When Jesus says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven," He is declaring that, before we can enter God's kingdom, we must recognise the utter worthlessness of our own spiritual currency and the inability of our own works to save us.

15 hours ago • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report