“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:3, LSB

 

 

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Jesus’ very first words of His sermon begin with a blessed statement that acts as the very bedrock of true discipleship. “Blessed are the poor in spirit” is the beginning of a chain-link description of Christ’s followers that shatters all earthly expectations. Here in the Greek, to be blessed (makarios) is to be happy. So what on earth does “Happy are the poor in spirit” mean? What does it even mean to be “poor in spirit?”

 

Some have taken this phrase to denote a lack of courage or perhaps to be downcast, but if that were the case then the promise which follows seems to lose any meaningful correlation. But what we must always do when studying Scripture is uphold these statements in the light of their broader context. The eight blessings are not unrelated. In fact, they are intricately woven together into a tapestry of what a disciple of Christ truly looks like. As we will see as we continue through the sermon, the blessed one who is poor in spirit (v.3) is also the one who mourns (v.4). As a result, that same individual then is shown to be meek and lowly (v.5). And the links continue as we will see further into our study.

 

With that in mind, to be “poor in spirit” is best understood in our context as spiritual bankruptcy. Scripture testifies repeatedly regarding man’s complete lack of inherent righteousness. “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). It is the genuine realization of this truth that sparks deep conviction and repentance in the hearts of true believers. We begin to understand that we cannot, by any human methods, earn the level of righteousness necessary to stand before The Holy and Righteous One. Only God Himself, in the person of His Son, Christ Jesus, could merit that kind of righteousness. The beautiful thing, friends, is that He does so for the sake of His disciples.

 

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“What you and I cannot ever hope to achieve for ourselves, Christ has achieved on our behalf.”

 

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That is the whole point of the Gospel. What you and I cannot ever hope to achieve for ourselves, Christ has achieved on our behalf. So what each of us are called to do now is to recognize our desperate need for this wonderful Savior, to cry out to Him in repentance, and to place our faith in the One who is able to save our souls. So yes, friends, it is he who is poor in spirit that is truly blessed, because mingled in with conviction and faith is the very promise of eternal life with God: “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (v.3). What greater blessing could there be?

 

Let us always remember, friends, to recognize our great need for the Righteous One. It is Christ alone who saves us and preserves us until we join together with Him in glory (Rom 8:28-30).

 

 

Soli Deo Gloria