The Poor In Spirit

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What is Jesus saying in the sermon on the mount about the poor in spirit…What is its intended meaning in its original language:

Blessed are the poor [for] in Spirit they shall inherit…(they will receive the spirit as poor people)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (i.e. those who have a weak Spirit)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (e.g. the Spirit of the poor is blessed)
 
aaronjmagnan said:
What is Jesus saying in the sermon on the mount about the poor in spirit…What is its intended meaning in its original language:

Blessed are the poor [for] in Spirit they shall inherit…(they will receive the spirit as poor people)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (i.e. those who have a weak Spirit)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (e.g. the Spirit of the poor is blessed)
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It looks like nobody else is going to answer this…so here’s my best shot.

If you look at Luke 6:20, 6:24 it goes something like (depends on the bible) “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God” and “But woe to you that are rich, for you have received your consolation.”

Also - I’ve heard that the word “Blessed” in the Beatitudes could really be translated as “Lucky”.

So…you’re lucky if you’re poor because if you were rich, you’d have nothing (or less) to look forward to in the afterlife. [My words]
 
“poor spirit” doesn’t mean “weak”. In this context “poor” means that we always have something to learn from God or from other people, that we always need God more and more or anything he gives us (a rich man doesn’t need any more), so we are open to Him.

On the other hand, if you were rich in spirit, you wouldn’t need God. No one is that rich, but many people THINK they are, so they think they don’t need anything from God.
 
God blesses those people

who depend only on him.
They belong to the kingdom of heaven! (Matt 5:3 CEV)

“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
(Matt 5:3 NLT-Cre)
 
"Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them! (Matt 5:3 GNB)

"Blessed are those who recognize they are spiritually helpless. The kingdom of heaven belongs to them. (Matt 5:3 GWT)
Just wanted to give you some alternate versions
 
Poor in spirit means to be empty,to be spiritually broken.Our spirit is who we are on the inside. When we have a crisis that takes us to a place of emptiness, a place where we are so empty that nothing in this world can satisfy,we then have become truly poor in spirit. We are finally out of the way now, and so our Lord can finally fit in completely. He can take over now that we are emptied of all the stuff that has stood in the way between us.To be given the gift of poverty of spirit is a major blessing. We can’t wake up in the morning and say “I think I will be poor in spirit today.” this is something that is guided by the hand of God. If you listen closely now He will make Himself known to you . He will fill the void in a big way. It is the most beautiful thing.
 
I believe that happy is an important point.

I believe that happiness begins on earth.

I believe the beatitudes show how happiness begins here and is completed in Heaven.

I believe that God’s ears hear our prayers once we really realize that we cannot be sober, chaste, kind, patient, and humble.

I believe it is so important to know that we cannot be loving (patient, kind, sober).

Once we acknowledge our poverty, then He will make us wealthy, that is, loving.
 
Seamus_Sully said:
I believe that happy is an important point.

I believe that happiness begins on earth.

I believe the beatitudes show how happiness begins here and is completed in Heaven.
**
I believe that God’s ears hear our prayers once we really realize that we cannot be sober, chaste, kind, patient, and humble.

I believe it is so important to know that we cannot be loving (patient, kind, sober).**
Once we acknowledge our poverty, then He will make us wealthy, that is, loving.
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I don’t believe or accept that at all.

Are you really trying to tell us that Mother Theresa was not loving, sober, chaste, kind, patient and humble, as are many many people in the world.
 
I don’t think the poster meant that exactly. Correct me if I am wrong, but what was being said was that being poor in spirit is my awareness that I cannot save myself.That I am basically defenceless,that niether money nor power will save me from death. Poverty in spirit is my awareness that I need God’s help and mercy more then I need anything else,poverty of spirit means a letting go of self and all that keeps you locked in yourself.If we are anything at all it is because we are loved by God, and because we are worth something in Gods eyes.
 
thistle

Undeserving did understand what I meant.

The word that is translated blessed could be translated as happy.

Concerning Mother Theresa, I believe the opposite of what you said. She was loving, and therefore chaste, sober, kind and polite. She was humble, gentle and meek. She was generous and not jealous, She was able to forgive evil done to her. She was able to forget how to do evil. In other word, she was loving.

If you were to ask her, she would say: “It is God working in me; it is not Mother Theresa.” This is not false humility, but honest humility.

Jesus Christ does it all. We must die to our self. When we are weak, then He is strong. As we decrease, He increases.

It is not her human and fallen nature, but God’s love poured into her new heart. Her new heart was won by Jesus Christ. Once we Christians believe that we cannot do the chastity and kindness, then we accept His love. It is His love that makes us chaste and kind. That is correct: His love makes us kind.
 
Some good answers. I would go along with the idea that those who are rich in spirit are those who believe they do not need God/Jesus. If someone is a “self made man” would he think that he needed help from anyone. The poor in spirit, whether they have material goods or not, are those who recognize that to have eternal life and happiness they are dependent and open to the Lord working in them. They are the ones who recognize that human nature needs something more than itself. They are open to the Spirit.
 
thistle

I am sorry that I am not a clear as I should be.

Also, I believe Mother Theresa was happy on earth. If she were not happy, she could not have done the work that she did.
 
There are two renditions of the sermon.
The one in Matthew is the sermon on the mount, the one in Luke is called the sermon on the plain.
In Matthew, the jewish style of couplets which repeat the same meaning – a poetic device – makes four couplets or 8 sayings.
In Luke, only four are recorded – and woes are added.

Remeber that Jesus was itinerant so that the same homily would be repeated slightly differently to different crowds. Luke is far more Greek than Matthew.

The “poor” in Luke has a different thrust than “poor in spirit” in Matthew. I think the thread is really asking about Matthew’s text.
The spirit, or “ruah / Pneuma”, is directly related to breathing and
speaking. St. Augustine noted that a proud man is called “puffed up” because he has much to say. The poor in spirit then, really is related to being humble, and devoid of pride.

In Greek, the word for blessed – is macari/os (sp?) – in any event it does mean happy. The idea becomes ‘blessed’ when one realizes that it is God who has given the opportunity for one to follow him in suffering.
 
One could fill a library with books about saints who lived in fine houses and a still larger library with books on saints who counted it wealth to sleep on the ground and eat a stale piece of bread for a meal, their superficial differences are stunning, yet, ALL the saints are linked by poverty of spirit,All the saints lived an ascetic life, All of them approched God in a state of destitution, seeking as a matter of life or death to know God’s will in their lives, and to live it.Poverty of spirit is a condition of being a spiritual begger, seeking to live God’s will rather then our own.
Having said this, I am sadly still to achieve this condition, but I am trying…🙂
 
deborah_graves said:
Poor in spirit means to be empty,to be spiritually broken.Our spirit is who we are on the inside. When we have a crisis that takes us to a place of emptiness, a place where we are so empty that nothing in this world can satisfy,we then have become truly poor in spirit. We are finally out of the way now, and so our Lord can finally fit in completely. He can take over now that we are emptied of all the stuff that has stood in the way between us.To be given the gift of poverty of spirit is a major blessing. We can’t wake up in the morning and say “I think I will be poor in spirit today.” this is something that is guided by the hand of God. If you listen closely now He will make Himself known to you . He will fill the void in a big way. It is the most beautiful thing.
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This is a beautiful post. And, so very true.
 
aaronjmagnan said:
What is Jesus saying in the sermon on the mount about the poor in spirit…What is its intended meaning in its original language:

Blessed are the poor [for] in Spirit they shall inherit…(they will receive the spirit as poor people)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (i.e. those who have a weak Spirit)

or

Blessed are the poor in Spirit (e.g. the Spirit of the poor is blessed)
Click to expand...
I’m gonna go with what my mother taugth me in regards to this.
Poor in spirit doesn’t mean weak. One who is poor in spirit is humble. I think that sounds about right.
 
deborah_graves said:
Poor in spirit means to be empty,to be spiritually broken.Our spirit is who we are on the inside. When we have a crisis that takes us to a place of emptiness, a place where we are so empty that nothing in this world can satisfy,we then have become truly poor in spirit. We are finally out of the way now, and so our Lord can finally fit in completely. He can take over now that we are emptied of all the stuff that has stood in the way between us.To be given the gift of poverty of spirit is a major blessing. We can’t wake up in the morning and say “I think I will be poor in spirit today.” this is something that is guided by the hand of God. If you listen closely now He will make Himself known to you . He will fill the void in a big way. It is the most beautiful thing.
Click to expand...
YES! 👍
 
Four of the beatitudes are the trials of Christ, and four of the beatitudes are the merits of Christ. Either way, we should recognize as christians when our Lord is acting in our lives.He knows what trials we need to form us into His image.When we are judged and we present ourselves in front of Him , He will look for His marks on us. We should not be so foolish as to think that we will live lives of beauty ,comfort, and ease ,exonerated from loneliness, persecution, injustices and hungering for righteousness.Our dear Lord suffered these things and so we should expect to suffer as well.The problem with most of us is that we don’t suffer well.We complain,get wounded, depressed,etc.We fail to see the hand of God in our crisis . He knows exactly what each one of us needs to draw us closer to Himself. He is God.I must bend to His wisdom. Most of us are so put out, so exasperated when crisis and trials come our way.Always see the hand of God working through the trial regardless of the injustice or evil that seems to be there.He will use all opportunities to draw us closer to Himself.He has custom fit all my crosses to my back . Don’t run from your crosses or try to throw them off. They are specially made for your sanctification.We carry them with joy as our Lord did.Remember that the merits of Christ suggest to us to be peacemakers, merciful, and pure of heart,etc. These also require a situation that is in dire need of these things. Hardly easy either. when a situation comes up that needs a peacemaker ,can you do it? Can we be pure of heart as our Lord was? Can we be merciful to those who we percieve as not deserving mercy?The beatitudes are God’s way of using everyday life ,everyday crisis to draw us closer to Himself. It is our response to these situations that we share in the merits and trials of christ. Every moment is an opportunity to share in the merits and trials of Christ.
 
deborah_graves said:
Four of the beatitudes are the trials of Christ, and four of the beatitudes are the merits of Christ. Either way, we should recognize as christians when our Lord is acting in our lives.He knows what trials we need to form us into His image.When we are judged and we present ourselves in front of Him , He will look for His marks on us. We should not be so foolish as to think that we will live lives of beauty ,comfort, and ease ,exonerated from loneliness, persecution, injustices and hungering for righteousness.Our dear Lord suffered these things and so we should expect to suffer as well.The problem with most of us is that we don’t suffer well.We complain,get wounded, depressed,etc.We fail to see the hand of God in our crisis . He knows exactly what each one of us needs to draw us closer to Himself. He is God.I must bend to His wisdom. Most of us are so put out, so exasperated when crisis and trials come our way.Always see the hand of God working through the trial regardless of the injustice or evil that seems to be there.He will use all opportunities to draw us closer to Himself.He has custom fit all my crosses to my back . Don’t run from your crosses or try to throw them off. They are specially made for your sanctification.We carry them with joy as our Lord did.Remember that the merits of Christ suggest to us to be peacemakers, merciful, and pure of heart,etc. These also require a situation that is in dire need of these things. Hardly easy either. when a situation comes up that needs a peacemaker ,can you do it? Can we be pure of heart as our Lord was? Can we be merciful to those who we percieve as not deserving mercy?The beatitudes are God’s way of using everyday life ,everyday crisis to draw us closer to Himself. It is our response to these situations that we share in the merits and trials of christ. Every moment is an opportunity to share in the merits and trials of Christ.
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Amen…👍
 
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