The Poor in Spirit!

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" Matt 5:3 (NKJV)

Who are those who are poor in spirit? Should a man be poor in spirit? Why not rich? The scriptures make us to understand that those who are poor in the spirit are blessed for the kingdom of heaven is given to them. This part of the scripture is a very interesting and an instructional one.

Being poor is where the emphasis lies here. Poverty is known to be a state of lack. A situation where a man can’t provide for his basic needs. Poverty is not what anyone, at least, as much as I know, will desire. It is a situation that could place a man under depression. When you can’t meet the necessary basics of life, it could be frustrating. But, there is something beyond lack I want you to see in poverty.

Poverty is not directly all about lack. A man can possess all the material wealth and still be poor. Just as an heir who don’t have authority over his inheritance until he is of age. What separates a poor man from a rich man is beyond the possession, it is having the power to dictate the use of the possession. In this is where the complexity of poverty lies. When the power to decide the usage of all you possess is vested in another, then you are poor.

As much as a poor man wishes to buy the whole of what he sets his eyes on, he can’t. His state of poverty will limit him to buy according to what is being dictated. So, in this state, desire doesn’t matter. A nation like Nigeria has excess of oil produce but still the nation wallows in poverty; some forces outside the shores of the country determine the price of the nation’s oil. So, poverty is not just lacking in resources, it is also when the authority over the use of your resources is not under your control whether directly or indirectly.

Having done a clear analysis of what it means to be poor, you should also know when the scripture talks about SPIRIT, it is in two forms. When it is with the first letter in block as in, Spirit, this is referring to the Spirit of God and when it is in lower case, as in spirit, it is referring to the spirit of man.

“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” Rom 8:16 (KJJV)

“For his Holy Spirit speak to us deep in our hearts, and tells us that we really are God’s children” Rom 8:16 (TLB)

So, you see that the spirit of man is used interchangeably with the heart of man. This is the seat of where decisions are taken. The heart is a part of human composition that represents life in itself. Without the heart, man will seize to exist. So, we can conclude that the spirit is man himself as it also refers to the heart. In essence, this is referring to “self”- the natural desires of man.

That a man gives his life to Christ does not automatically take the place of “self” away. His spirit has just been brought alive to be able to receive instructions from God’s Spirit. So, he now has the power within to say NO to the desires of the old sinful nature

So, a man who has got the Spirit of God resident in him still has the choice to follow after the Spirit. So, it is a matter of choice to either follow the Spirit or your old nature (self).

“So, dear brothers, you have no obligations whatever to your old sinful nature to do what it begs you to do” Rom 8:12 (TLB).

Having seen poverty as the inability to take control over once resources and spirit as the natural man, we can come to understand what it means to be poor in spirit.

Those who are poor in spirit are those who can’t afford to make decisions from what they feel is good but leave it to the Spirit to decide. They can’t afford a decision, they are poor. The Spirit in them decides for them as a poor man does not have his power to decisions. It is coming to that state of saying “it is no longer I that lives, Christ is He that lives in me”. This is not by mere utterance, but living solely on the dictate of His Spirit in EVERY area of life.

So, as a believer, it is not enough to say you are of Christ when not all areas of your life is subjected to the leading of the Lord. Those times you confess that this is a matter of your household anger and nobody can talk you out of it; the moment you say let’s take God out of this and say the fact; those critical decisions that you come to the conclusion that even God will understand you have to do it in a questionable way; when you say to people “this is my life, let me live as I desire” are pointers to how rich you are in your spirit and poor in Spirit.  To walk in the path of the kingdom, you must come to a place of letting God’s Spirit determine all of how your life is lived.

As you go this week, become poorer. Let no decision be made without His consent. You can’t afford to pay for the demands of life. He has paid once, you can rely on Him. Be Poor, but in spirit!

Be Innovated.

Olufemi Ibitoye

@toyeolufemi