8 Days to Christmas: "Blessed are the poor in spirit"

Read: Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Observe:

When Jesus was teaching about the beatitudes, he was speaking to a crowd at the mountainside. The crowd whom followed Jesus came from various places: Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan (Matt 4:25). A result of his teaching and healing ministry (Matt 4:23). Most probably the people heard about Jesus through word of mouth since there was no telephone, Facebook or Twitter then.

Jesus taught that the people who are poor in spirit are blessed because they inherit the kingdom of heaven. In Luke 6:20, it was recorded that ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.’ In no matter what financial or emotional state that we are in, it’s encouraging to know that we have an inheritance in heaven. We are blessed! It doesn’t matter how inferior we feel about ourselves. We are blessed because God will share his kingdom of heaven with us for eternity. What we already have in heaven is greater and grander than what we can ever possess or accumulate on earth.

Knowing such great blessings from God may lead more Christians to share the good news with others who are also despair or in need to come to know the Almighty God and experience his love for us.

Apply & Do:

Whenever I feel spiritually down or finances are tight, I’m reminded that I’m a child of God. It’s not what I have that matters but who I know in heaven that matters.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, thank you for assuring me that I’m a child of God and I’m blessed. Not because of how much I can accumulate for myself materially or emotionally but because of who You are in my life. May I also share the good news with others about the great inheritance that await for them in heaven. Amen.

Image source: MaxPixel

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