Matthew 5:1-3 Blessed Are The Poor in Spirit

When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,  "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5:1-3 NASB]

When Jesus began teaching, he basically turned peoples worlds upside down.

The word "blessed" is not used much in normal conversation. In conversational English, we would say "fortunate" or "prosperous". To get the impact of the word "poor", think of someone who is destitute, has lost everything, including home and income, and is reduced to the point of begging.

Putting this together, we can paraphrase by saying, "Prosperous are the destitute in spirit". Put another way, we can say, "Fortunate are those who are not spiritually arrogant."

Jesus often encountered the "spiritually arrogant" in His dealings with the Pharisees and Sadducees. With rare exceptions, the religious leaders rejected Jesus, while the common people accepted him. The opinion of the leaders regarding "common" people is revealed when Jesus heals a blind man. The man concludes, "“If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?” So they put him out." [John 9:33-34 NASB]

In their arrogance, they conclude that a common man was born in sin, yet somehow absolved themselves of this disgrace.

The hardest people to reach are those who are "spiritual".

The "churched" are among this group. Having grown up in church, they consider themselves to be spiritual by default, even if they have never accepted Jesus at their Lord. Sadly, many can spend their entire lives in church and never hear the message of salvation. Asked about whether they are Christians, they will answer, "Of course, I'm a member of the first church of the Lukewarm."

Other "spiritual" people are those who follow non-Christian religions. I have heard many people say that they are not a Christian because, "I just believe in being spiritual". What they don't understand is that there are many spirits in this world besides the Spirit of God. Demons will gladly receive the worship of the ignorant and gullible. So they stare into crystals or candles and seek "spirit guides" to lead them on their spiritual journey. 

It's hard for a "new ager" to become a follower of Christ. I have known some who have nominally converted to Christianity. They go to a conservative, evangelical church where the gospel message is preached. They worship God on Sunday morning. Then they arrange their offices according to feng shui. They hang crystals and quotes from the dalai lama on the wall. They like to talk about their "spiritual journey", and consider Christianity to be just one step on that journey. They see no contradiction in letting Christ sit side-by-side next to their new age beliefs.

Whether you have once asked Jesus into your heart or not, you can be assured of this. If you continue in idolatry, you will not inherit the kingdom of heaven. "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God." [1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NASB] And make no mistake about it - New Age practices are idolatry.

God wants people who understand their need for Him. If you offer a wealthy man a hamburger, he will treat it with disdain. "I can go the Four Seasons and order the finest Delmonico steak." A starving man will gladly receive the hamburger, and consider it a feast.

The "spiritually wealthy" treat the gift of God's grace with disdain. The poor in spirit receive His grace gladly, and are saved.

The principle continues after salvation as well. I have known a number arrogant Christians. Having been saved by grace, they would try to convince you that they have achieved some great measure of success by their own wits and spiritual fortitude. They like being in leadership positions. They often write books about how to become prosperous (by which they mean making money), or guide you through the principles of how to build a megachurch. Their methods involve manipulating people and systems to reach their goals. You will rarely hear them speak about humbly submitting to God, and allowing Him to lead you. Much less practicing this for themselves. You may achieve what the world would call success by following these principles of prosperity. But you will lose God in the process.

To be a follower of Jesus is to remain poor in spirit. Understand that by the power of His Spirit, you can overcome sin. By your own power, you will fail. God's plan is not for His people to grasp for the riches of this world, but to receive from Him the riches of His kingdom. That is righteousness, truth, love, joy and peace. You will not attain these things by the power of your will, but only by submitting to the will of God.