Gems of Jesus

[HKHaugan]

Gems of Jesus

Matt.5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven

There is no question that Jesus wants to completely reorient mankind’s mind and heart to process everything spiritually; who they are, why they are here and how they behave. His first teachings, the Beatitudes, are all spiritually rooted. Again remember, Jesus was conceived by the Spirit, is led by the Spirit and lives ‘…by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (Mt.4:4).’ Evidence His first words here, “Blessed are the poor in spirit…’ If you recognize you are really lacking spiritually, that is in itself a blessing because it is the beginning of turning the mind and heart to God, who alone can solve what the world calls poverty. Turning the mind and heart to God allows Him the spiritual latitude to work within and restore us.

Sitting at the Red Light Waiting for the Green

It’s 8am, long line of traffic and a red light that never seems to want to change just when I really need to be on time. Isn’t this typical? The tyranny of a schedule, time, fear, impatience and being totally absorbed in the anxiety of the moment, what if I’m late, oh yes and the bills are all due today and I have to pick up the kids (and all the cumbersome details of life)…oh light, please change. It isn’t only in this situation but in all similarly demanding happenings every day. Jesus really speaks to these in His first Beatitude. Let’s look at it in more detail.
The first word is blessed. It means to be touched by God. As one of our friends responds when asked how he feels, ‘I’m blessed,’ he says, meaning, he believes in God’s presence in the moment.
The second words, …are the poor in spirit. Why are the poor in spirit blessed? When Jesus teaches it is the Spirit that is motivating Him, it is the same Spirit that penetrates the heart of the hearer through Jesus’ words and confronts him. So when we recognize that we are not starting all of our experience in a spiritual context God is blessing us, touching us. And the good news is God is not only touching us but also offering us who are willing, restoration in the Spirit. Here is where poverty on every level is dealt with. Poverty is not just being without money, a place to live and no food. It is also intellectual poverty, emotional poverty, social poverty, relational poverty…there are many levels of poverty and God says, in essence, ‘I can meet them all but you have to recognize that your basic poverty, the one that leads to all the others is spiritual poverty.’ Paul had a grasp of this on a spiritually relational level after He recognized his own spiritual poverty, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich (2Cor.8:9).” Paul not only found a relational richness but he discovered the joy of hard work as a tentmaker, the support he received from those who helped as he traveled on his missionary trips and how his hardships added to his character. He counted it all blessings.
The last words, …for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. It is from the one spiritual God that everything material comes. He created the Heavens and the earth. He was before all things and will be there after everything we see is gone. What we observe as kingdoms in this world are only shadows of a spiritual reality that is accessed solely through the recognition that we are spiritually lacking in giving God precedence over every aspect of life. And, by the way, Jesus tells us that to be lacking spiritually and know it is an open door to the Kingdom. But catch this, He also says that when you accept this truth, He is the door, the gate, and to accept Him means that the Kingdom is no longer outside, “…the kingdom is within you (Lk.17:21).”
Sitting at a red light? It could just be that the green light is the Door of the Kingdom standing open. “Come unto me all who travail and are heavy laden and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Mt.11:28-30).”