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“For all these things my hand has made, and they are mine, says the Lord; but to this man only will I give attention, to him who is poor and broken in spirit, fearing my word.” (Isaiah 66:2 BBE)
Every kingdom or nation has a peculiar set of values, principles, constitutions, or standards that guide and govern the mindsets and lifestyles of its citizens.
Therefore, when the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world to set up His spiritual Kingdom in the hearts of those who believe and receive Him as their Saviour, Lord, and King, He had to spell out His Kingdom’s peculiar values, principles, and standards.
The Lord Jesus spent quality time with His first set of disciples to teach and explain, to express and demonstrate, and to infuse and inculcate in them the peculiar values, principles, and standards of His kingdom that must rule and direct, and also guide and govern their thoughts, words, emotions, conducts, actions or lifestyle.
A summary of the peculiar values, attitudes, standards, mindsets, precepts, and principles of God’s kingdom was perfectly spelled out, explained, and taught by the Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples as the Discourse, the Beatitudes, or Sermon on the Mount.
Christ spent the rest of His days on earth practically expressing and demonstrating His Kingdom’s peculiar lifestyle to His disciples.
In sharp contrast to this world’s values, standards, attitudes, and mindsets, the Lord Jesus taught that “Blessed are the poor in the spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:3 NKJV).
The truth is that nobody loves to be poor in any sense of the word, for the poor in this world are despised, oppressed, victimized, denied justice, stigmatized, and deserted by friends and relations.
Solomon writes, “All the brothers of the poor hate him; how much more do his friends go far from him! He may pursue them with words, yet they abandon him.” (Proverbs. 19:7 NKJV).
Sadly, even in our churches today, the poor are looked down upon, treated with disdain, and made to feel like the worst sinners or outcasts among God’s people.
However, God’s priceless, inexhaustible, and unlimited provisions or resources are readily accessible only to those who approach God as poor in the spirit—those who acknowledge their spiritual and moral poverty, bankruptcy, or wretchedness.
God always sends away empty those who approach Him as rich or full, but He fills the poor or the hungry with good things.
“He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent away empty.” (Luke 1:53 NKJV).
“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” (Isa. 44:3 NKJV).
The Lord severely rebuked and corrected Laodicea’s church because she thought and said, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing…” (Rev. 3:17 NKJV). Regrettably, like Laodicea’s church, the church today claims to be “rich, have become wealthy, and need nothing….”
The early apostles of Christ were men who passionately longed for, reached out for, and panted after increasingly knowing Christ. Although they were men highly anointed, they sought to be filled again and again with the Holy Spirit.
Despite Apostle Paul’s grand visions and revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ, his constant longing or heart’s cry is: “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” (Philip. 3:10 NKJV).
Although Paul was caught up in Paradise and heard inexpressible words which he said were not lawful for a man to utter, he passionately states, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” (Philip. 3:12 NKJV).
Beloved, in God’s kingdom, only those who constantly acknowledge their weaknesses and limitations as mortal men and choose not to trust in themselves or depend upon themselves but continuously trust in God or depend upon God will increasingly and consistently draw from God’s resources.
Until a sinner acknowledges or accepts that he is spiritually and morally bankrupt, cannot save himself by any means, and then chooses to put his faith in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour, he cannot receive God’s gift of eternal life.
Friend, having become born-again through faith in Christ Jesus, you must maintain an attitude of a poor in the spirit—continue to acknowledge your human weaknesses and limitations, putting no confidence in the flesh, but always seeking to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ and always depending on the Holy Spirit.
2 Peter 3:17-18 – NKJV
17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;
18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
Therefore, don’t be so rich in the spirit that you no longer have any room or need for God. Only the poor in the spirit will always have unlimited access to the inexhaustible riches, graces, or resources of the kingdom of heaven.
The Lord Jesus teaches, “Blessed are the poor in the spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:3 NKJV). God only gives attention to the poor in the spirit, not the rich in spirit who are full of themselves.
God said through Isaiah, “For all these things my hand has made, and they are mine, says the Lord; but to this man only will I give attention, to him who is poor and broken in spirit, fearing my word.” (Isa. 66:2 BBE).
Prayer:
My Dear Holy Spirit, stir up a fresh and insatiable hunger in my soul today for the revelation knowledge of Jesus Christ, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
OUR mandate is to preserve the faith of the Apostolic Generation.
Eniyekpemi Fidelis Oyinpreyebi.
AWH, Blogs.
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