Blessed be ye Poor

Q: What does the Bible say about being poor in spirit?

The Bible teaches that being poor in spirit means recognizing our spiritual need and dependence on God, leading to blessings in the kingdom of God. In Luke 6:20, Jesus declares, 'Blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.' This beatitude emphasizes that those who are poor in spirit are highly favored by God and understand their spiritual destitution. To be poor in spirit involves a humble acknowledgment of our sinfulness and need for Christ, aligning with Matthew's parallel which notes that being poor in spirit is essential for entering the kingdom of heaven. This condition is not merely a transient state but reflects a profound transformation initiated by God's grace, wherein the Spirit enables us to see our true nature and need for salvation.

Q: How do we know we need to be poor in spirit?

We recognize our need to be poor in spirit through the work of the Holy Spirit, who reveals our sinfulness and our need for Christ. Understanding our need to be poor in spirit comes from the Holy Spirit illuminating our hearts to the reality of our sinful condition. As preached in the sermon, until Christ makes us hear Him and experience the gospel's truths, we remain unaware of our spiritual poverty. Ezekiel 36:26 provides a powerful promise of transformation, stating, 'A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.' This new spirit helps us realize that all our supposed righteousness is as filthy rags, leading us to reliance on Christ alone rather than our works or merits. It's the Spirit's work that helps us discern our need for mercy and grace.

Q: Why is being poor in spirit important for Christians?

Being poor in spirit is important for Christians because it emphasizes humility and reliance on God's grace rather than self-righteousness. Humility gained through being poor in spirit is crucial for Christians as it aligns us with the nature of Christ, who was meek and lowly (Matthew 11:29). Only when we recognize our absolute dependence on God can we truly enter into a relationship with Him and receive the grace offered through Christ's work. The denial of our merit and the embrace of our need for grace lead to an authentic worship experience, where we can finally say, 'I am nothing and Christ is everything.' This posture also fosters genuine love and humility in our relationships with others, echoing the commandment to love one another as Christ has loved us.

All right, brethren, let's turn to Luke chapter 6. Luke chapter 6. I didn't plan this, but the messages go really good together. They just fit really well together. Luke 6. We're told at Mark that The Lord goeth up into a mountain, and he called unto him whom he would, and they came unto him. Matthew says, and he opened his mouth, and he taught them. There was a multitude of people there. But he went up into a mount, and he called whom he would, and they came to him, and he opened his mouth and taught them.

Our Savior finished the work of redemption. He justified his people. He completely put our sin away. And he arose and he went into the mountain. That's what I tried to show us last time. He went to the mountain. Luke said he went to the mountain and he prayed and he continued all night in prayer. Our Lord has been in the holy mountain in glory. since he arose and he's been interceding for his people the whole time. And our Lord calls to him whom he will.

He brings his child under the gospel. He's sovereign and he brings his child under the gospel and he opens his mouth and he teaches them. That's what our Lord does and he intercedes and he sends the Spirit, he said, I will pray the Father, he shall send the Spirit. He did that on the day of Pentecost, but he does that for his lost sheep, and gives us the Spirit, and he opens his mouth, and he speaks to the heart. The scripture says, give ear, O my people, to my law, incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

In verse 20, Luke 6, 20, he lifted up his eyes on his disciples. His eyes always on his disciples. His eyes always on his people. He guides us with his eye, scripture says. We walk in the light of his countenance, his eye looking upon us. The eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him. And he said, blessed be ye poor. For yours is the kingdom of God. Our Lord is going to declare here what it is to be blessed. Blessed means highly favored of God and thereby happy. To be favored by God makes his child happy.

These things that we're going to just look at one today, but this is what they call the Beatitudes. This is not what his people should be. This is not what we will be by degrees. This is what the Lord makes his people to be in the new birth, in the new creation. It's nothing like what carnal minds would call blessed. When you hear somebody say, have a blessed day, this is not what they're talking about. But this is what our Lord declares it is to be blessed. And we'll just look at this one. First he says, blessed be ye poor. Matthew says, blessed are the poor in spirit. How does a sinner become poor? How do we become poor in spirit? We're not this way as we come into the world.

A man could be, materially speaking, monetarily speaking, He could be as poor, the poorest man on this earth, and be so rich in his estimation of himself. Rich in this idea that he has some goodness about him. Rich in this vain notion that he's worked some kind of works that God looks upon and says, oh, that's wonderful. Rich in his estimation of himself. And the way a man deceives himself, his heart deceives him, and the way he deceives himself, boy, is comparing himself to somebody that's worse off. The Pharisee stood and prayed with himself and said, Lord, I'm not like this publican.

And while we're in that state, you can be as ultra-religious as you could be and not be poor in spirit. actually be rich. Our Lord said, how hardly shall a rich man enter into heaven. It easier for a camel to go through the eye of a sewing needle than for a rich man to enter in glory. A man could be, materially speaking, monetarily, he could be super wealthy and by God's grace be poor in spirit. The Lord saved some people that he gave material riches but he made them poor in spirit. But the rich that the Lord's talking about that keeps a man from entering heaven is a man thinking he has something he can give to God, something that's gonna please God.

When a man is in that state, he's rich and thinks he has need of nothing. He doesn't know he needs Christ. It takes the spirit of our Lord to make us poor in spirit. It takes God's grace to make us poor in spirit. to give us a new spirit, and that's how we're blessed of God and made happy. The means that God has chosen is how we're blessed, and that means makes us happy.

Look back at Luke 4, verse 18. Here's the means. Christ said, the spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. That's what Christ came to do. The means is the preaching of the gospel. And it's gonna take Christ speaking through his earthen vessel, and he preaches the gospel to the poor.

And until he makes us hear him, we're not poor, not poor in spirit. But when he makes you hear him, from the words of his mouth through his gospel into our heart, that's when we're made poor in spirit. That's when we're blessed. Listen to this from Ezekiel 36, 26.

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you. There's some people who say, you don't have a new spirit, you have a new principle in you. The Lord didn't say, I'm gonna give you a new principle. He said, I'm gonna give you a new spirit and a new heart. And he said, and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh. He doesn't remove it, but he doesn't have the dominion. He gives you a new spirit. I'll give you a heart of flesh, feeling. You can feel and you can discern spiritually.

He said, and I will put my spirit within you. and calls you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my judgments and do them." What is his statute that he teaches you to do? John said, this is his commandment, that we should believe on the name of his son, Jesus Christ, and love one another as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him and he in him, and hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the spirit which he hath given us.

That's the only way we believe. That's the only way we believe. To be poor in spirit begins with Christ giving us his spirit, a new spirit. That's how we're poor in spirit. We have a fleshly nature that we got from being born of the flesh. It's gonna be with us till we die.

But he gives you a new spirit. A new spirit, a new man, the new heart, the new spirit that Christ gives is pouring spirit, pouring spirit. And that's the spirit in which we believe upon Christ, that's the spirit in which we worship Christ. He told Nicodemus in John 3, 6, that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto you, you must be born again. First time we were born, we were born of the flesh, and all we were was flesh, sinful flesh. But being born again of the spirit, we have a new spirit. He gives a new spirit. Christ works this, brethren.

Men don't have spiritual discernment. We couldn't understand the gospel. We couldn't believe God the Father. We couldn't believe Christ the Lord. We were full of guile. We lied to God and we lied to ourselves that we were good and that we, by our works, were righteous or holy. We lied. We were full of guile.

The inward work of grace that Christ performs in the new birth is as needful as the work he did on the cross for his people. And he gets the glory for both. He is righteousness. and he is sanctification. We're talking about the work of sanctification here when he regenerates us through the spirit and creates a new holy man within. Another beatitude said this.

Luke doesn't record this one, but it's in Matthew. He said, blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. He told Nicodemus, Until you're born again, you can't see the kingdom of God. But he said through Matthew, blessed are the pure in heart, they shall see God. Where do we get this pure heart?

This is what we're talking about. He gives you a new spirit, a pure heart. Our savior creates it through his gospel, through him speaking. I say this all the time, I point this verse out to you all the time. In John 6, 63, John 6, 63, he said, it is the spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you, the words I speak unto you, they're spirit and they're life. It's his word.

That's how we're born of the incorruptible seed. What do you think incorruptible seed would make? Corruptible seed just created a corrupt flesh. He said, that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Incorruptible seed creates an incorruptible man. Peter said, the hidden man of the heart, which can't be corrupted.

Christ gives us the new spirit so that we have discernment and we can believe, he gives you faith, we can believe and actually, for the first time, worship God. It's a necessity, because all worship, true worship, is in spirit. Listen, John 4, 23. The hour cometh, and now he is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a spirit. and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Now as we're born the first time, we're guile, we are not truth. And we're flesh, we are not spirit. So we can't worship God that way. That's why we have to be born again. When he saw Nathanael coming, here's what the Lord said, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile. We'll wait just a minute. I don't want you to be distracted. Brother, we're in Luke 6, Luke chapter 6. We're in verse 20. Blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. So the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. God is a spirit. They which worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

But we're born the first time, that which is born of flesh is flesh. We are guile. We lie to ourselves that we're not sinners, we lie to God that there's some goodness in us, but we're fooling nobody except ourselves. We lie, we don't have truth, and we're flesh and no spirit.

And when he saw Nathaniel, he said, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile. Was that true of Nathaniel as he was born the first time? No, that's all he was, was guile. and flesh, the way the Lord could say that about him is because the Lord Jesus prayed the Father and through Christ being his surety and Christ's righteousness and Christ being his holiness, he sent him a new spirit and there was a new man born. Paul said, he's not a Jew, which is one outwardly. Circumcision is not that which is outward in the flesh. Circumcision is in the spirit.

It's God creating a new man. That's a true Jew, an Israelite indeed. That's what the Lord was saying. Here's one that's been born of me. He's a true Jew. And in whom is no guile. The Lord had made Nathaniel honest with God. I'm nothing but a sinner. I have to have Christ. I have to have His righteousness and His holiness to be accepted. I'm a sinner. That's when we stop lying. This is the work of the Lord. All of this is the work of the Lord. That which is born of flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.

We have to be born again. And I want to say this. I get accused of this. I just got accused of this this week. that when you preach something like this and you talk about this work as inward, you need to keep all the glory on Christ at the cross and what he's done for us.

This work is his glory too, and he has to receive all the glory. He does this work in his people because he's the sanctifier and the sanctification, the same as he's the righteousness of his people. This work is as much necessary as the work on the cross. He must do both, and he must get the glory for both. But they say, when you preach this, you're telling people to look inwardly. No, I'm not. Every time I preach this, I tell you, when this work is really done for the first time is when you look out of yourself to him.

Because you see for the first time, there's nothing in you. This is what made Paul make the distinction when he said, I know that in me that is. In my flesh dwells no good thing. Would you say the spirit Christ gave me is no good thing? Uh-uh. Because that's Christ. But of what I was in myself is nothing good. That's the first time you know that about yourself. And so you start to truly worship God.

He said, here's his commandment also. He said, a new commandment I give unto you that you love one another as I have loved you. that you love one another. How are you going to know how to do that? You're going to have to be given eyes to see how he loved his people.

How that he came and he who was rich became poor that we might be made rich through his poverty. That's how you love one another. We're going to have to see that he came down and willingly took all our sin and took all our condemnation to make us the righteousness of God. That's how he loved us. That's how he teaches us to love one another.

But we have to be born of the Spirit to see him. We have to be born of the Spirit to know what he did before we can ever love as he loved. And even then, we still see sin in us so that we know we can't come to God based on our love for one another, anything we've done. but you don't enter into anything spiritual until this work of grace is performed in the heart. Here's another way the poor are blessed. Isaiah 57, 15. Look there with me, Isaiah 57, 15.

Thus saith the high and lofty one that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy. I dwell in the high and holy place. I dwell, I inhabit the high and holy place. And with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit. I dwell in him that's poor in spirit. When Christ gives this new spirit, Christ comes and dwells in us who are poor in spirit. Before, we were proud, thinking we could come to God by some merit in us. But when he makes you see that you're the sinner, he makes you humble and contrite. And it's Christ then has taken up his dwelling in his people.

This is what the Spirit of God says in 1 John 4.12. Here he said, love one another as I've loved you. Here's what it says, 1 John 4, 12. No man hath seen God at any time.

If we love one another, here's why, God dwelleth in us and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us because he hath given us of his spirit. And we've seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whosoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God God dwelleth in him and he in God. He's saying the only reason we believe on Christ and the only reason we love one another is because Christ took up his dwelling in us. That's how the poor are blessed. Christ's presence dwelling in us. That's how we have spiritual life. That's how the new man is holy. It's because Christ is our sanctification.

For the first time, we stop looking to ourselves. We stopped looking and trusting our works, and we began to trust Christ only, trust him only. This is how we're made poor, humble, contrite, not trusting our works, but seeing we need God's mercy. We need his mercy.

He said, we've been looking at this now, he said, I will give you my spirit. He said in Zechariah 12, 10, I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplication. That's what makes you pray. Supplicate God, because he gave you the spirit of grace and supplication.

And he said, and they shall look upon me. Not to themselves, they look to me. They look to Christ, whom they've pierced. And they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son, and they'll be in bitterness for him as one that's in bitterness for his firstborn.

That's when we see our sin. We don't see our sin by looking at the law. You see your sin by seeing what your sin deserved. You see your sin by looking at Christ on the cross who was made sin for his people and bore that curse because that's what his people deserved. That's where you behold God is holy and righteous and will not clear. you the sinner.

He didn't spare his son. That's where you see, that's when you start mourning for Christ and crying out to God for mercy, mercy, mercy. Have mercy on me, oh God. And you get cast down. When he makes you know that, you can leave the church building and go join up with another congregation. You can go to the wilderness and try to get away from the preaching altogether. Wherever you go, the Lord won't let you go. That sin's with you, and you see it, and you know it, and you know I need a savior, and he won't let you go. And you can become so cast down, and you think you're gonna perish.

Here's another way the poor in spirit are blessed. The rest of that verse and how Isaiah 57, 15 says, he not only dwells in those that have a contrite humble spirit, but he does so to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite one. He revives you, he revives you. Paul said, you've put on the new man which is renewed, renewed, revived in knowledge after the image of Christ that created him.

Where there's neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, bond nor free, barbarian, Scythian, but Christ is all and in all. See, he's not gonna let his child go till he makes you see there's nothing in you that's good, nothing in you whereby you can come to God, nothing. And he makes Christ all to you. He makes Christ all to you.

He does this by continuing to revive you and renew you, because it's by him speaking the word to you, like we saw. It's by him entering in and his presence dwelling in you. It's by him giving you this spirit. It's by him reviving you. He's everything. He's everything.

You ever seen a beggar on the street? Most of the beggars that are on the street are not really beggars, especially not the sense that he makes us a beggar. That Canaanite woman came to him and he showed that When he works this in his child, he's the reviving in his child so that you're not going to quit coming to him. If you really is and you really see your need, you're going to keep coming.

He said, it's not it's not fit to give the children's bred dogs. Did that drive her away? You can't drive God's child away when they know they need mercy. She come back and said, or please have mercy on me. My daughter's grievously vexed with the devil. Please have mercy on me.

Old Blind Bartimaeus was sitting by that road, and he heard the Lord Jesus was coming by, and he began to cry out, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. Oh, Lord. They said, shut up, Blind Bartimaeus. Quit making such a racket. He cried the louder. Have mercy on me, Lord. Please have mercy on me.

When he works this work, he's going to accomplish it. He's gonna bring you, he's gonna keep on and keep on and keep on until you're like that publican in that temple, smiting on his breast. He wouldn't even, he got to the point he couldn't even lift his head up. And he's crying out, God, be merciful to me, the sinner. And here's what it is. That's what it is to be poor in spirit. And here's why it's a blessing.

1 Samuel 2.8, let's look at it, 1 Samuel 2.8. 1 Samuel 2, chapter, verse 8.

Up, well, the Lord maketh poor and he maketh rich. He bringeth low and he lifteth up. He made you poor now, how's he gonna make you rich? He raiseth up the poor out of the dust and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill to set him among princes. He comes to you and he makes you know that you are the dust, you are the dunghill, and he lifts you out of the dust of your own depravity, lifts you out of the dunghill of all your religion and all your works you put confidence in, and he makes you know he seated you at God's right hand in the Prince of Peace, and you've been there with him ever since he arose and sat down. He makes you know that, and he gets that accomplished. He makes you know it, and the Spirit of our Lord is meek and lowly in spirit, And when our Lord walked this earth, it was to Christ only that God looked.

Let me give this to you. You don't have to turn. He said, the heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool. Where's the house that you build me? He said, where's the place of my rest? All those things have my hand made. All those things have been, saith the Lord.

He said, but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and tremble at my word. That's Christ the Lord. Our Lord came down, and he took the form of a servant, and he made himself of no reputation, and when he walked this earth, he feared God, he trembled at his word, he trusted his Father, and he was meek and lowly. That's what it is to be poor in spirit. He walked this earth in a perfect holy, with a perfect holy heart, in perfect obedience to God, and went to that cross and satisfied divine justice. declared God righteous and justified all his people. And then when he gives you this new spirit, he said, I will give you my spirit.

And he makes you poor and lowly and meek. And when you're rejected, he knows what that is. When will worshipers reject you and men reproach you and say you're beneath them because They're so holy and righteous and you're just a wretched sinner and all the things that they do. He knows what that is because he suffered that. And look there now, go with me to Isaiah 66 too, I want you to see this. He said, I will look to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at my word. That's Christ first, but it also is the spirit he puts in you to make you poor in spirit.

And he said, He that killeth an ox as if he slew a man, he that sacrifice a lamb as if he cut off a dog's neck, he that offer an oblation as if he offered swine's blood, he that burneth incense as if he blessed an idol. They've chosen their own ways, their soul delighteth in their abomination, I also will choose their delusions. I will bring their fears upon them because when I called, none did answer. When I spake, they did not hear, but they did evil before mine eyes and chose that which I delighted not.

Hear the word of the Lord, ye that tremble at my word, you that are poor in spirit, here's how you're blessed. He said, your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake, said, let the Lord be glorified, but he shall appear to your joy and they shall be ashamed. And when you know that, he makes you to be poor in spirit.

And we see it in David when he was going up that mountain and Shimei was cussing him and calling him every name in the book. David told his guard, No, you're not taking his head off. Leave him alone. God sent him, gotta deal with him. It might be God give me a blessing through him. And God'll keep you knowing that that's poor in spirit. Just let them rage. Did the heathen rage and accomplish anything when they tried to do it to Christ? Nope. They did just what he determined to be done. And that's what they're gonna do when they do it to you. Trust him.

Now, I didn't wanna have you turn from 1 Samuel 2, because here's what I wanted to give you. Here's the best blessed way that we're blessed of God. This is where we're gonna pick up in our second message, or get to in our second message. He said, blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

And look what he says there in 1 Samuel 2.8.

He raises up the poor out of the dust, lifts up the beggar from the dunghill to set him among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory. That's what Christ bought his people with his blood and he prayed to the Father and said, Father, I will that they be with me where I am to behold my glory. And he comes to you, you get down in this world and you think, oh, I'm not his and oh, I'm whatever it is, you know, and the Lord comes to you and he says, fear not, little flock. It's your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

He bought you. He made his people righteous and holy. He's going to have what he bought. He paid for it with his blood. You're his purchased possession. And when he brings you to glory, and he set the goats on his left hand and the sheep on his right hand, and he says, I was hungry. You didn't feed me. I was thirsty. You didn't give me drink. I was in prison. You didn't visit me.

And the Pharisee is so deceived in their sin that in the Day of Judgment, he said, they're gonna say, when did we not do that? And he said that he's gonna say to the sheep, you come, you did it. And they're gonna say, Lord, when did we ever do that? That's the difference between being proud in spirit and being poor in spirit. Lord, when did we ever do that? As much as you did it to one of these, the least of my brethren, you did it to me.

Come. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of, what do you say? Come ye blessed. Blessed are you poor and spirit. Come ye blessed of my father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Now that's what it is to be poor and spirit. is to know Christ is all.

He's gonna save me. He already has. He's saving me right now. He will continue to save me. And I don't contribute one thing to it. Salvation is Him saving us from us. We're not contributing to it. He's saving us from us. He's saving us from thinking we do contribute to it. It's all Him.

Father, thank you for your word. Thank you for making your people poor in spirit. Lord, keep all these works that we just saw you do. We pray you continue it in us. Keep us poor in spirit. It's better to be poor in spirit with your people than to be rich with the people of this world. Keep us poor in spirit, Lord.

Keep us looking to Christ only. that he might have all the glory and all the praise, both in our own hearts and in the hearts of all your people. And Lord, forgive us for our proudness and for looking to the work of our hands and thinking there's something in us. Forgive us, Lord, for our iniquity and our sin and our unbelief and do it for Christ's sake alone. We thank you for all these blessings in him. In his name we pray. Amen.

Blessed be ye Poor

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about being poor in spirit?

How do we know we need to be poor in spirit?

Why is being poor in spirit important for Christians?

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Blessed be ye Poor

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about being poor in spirit?

How do we know we need to be poor in spirit?

Why is being poor in spirit important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Clay Curtis

Comments

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