”The Greatest Sermon Ever Preached- Part 3” (Beatitudes) Jesus gave the Beatitudes and said- here is the “Blessed, Healthy, Satisfied Believer.” The first one is “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 5:3.) The first step toward Blessedness is a realization of one’s own helplessness. It is a consciousness of our nothingness before God, and our complete dependence upon Him for all things, We must recognize that we are not spiritually self-sufficient. We need the Holy Spirit’s life, power, and sustaining grace in order to inherit God’s Kingdom. The Message, “You’re Blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you, there is more of God and His rule.” ”Poor in spirit” is the opposite of self-sufficiency and a haughty spirit. Jesus was talking about a sense of inadequacy, an awareness of our spiritual poverty and our need of more of God. It clashes with the worldly values of pride and personal independence. Jesus was clearly trying to get His disciples to understand Kingdom priorities. God’s reward is, “…theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 00:33:57 +0000