By Mark Siverling
In Recovery, we are taking several months to consider Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached (Matthew 5-7). We’re calling our series “Right-side Up Living” because living as citizens of Jesus’s Kingdom is totally different from the upside-down ways of this fallen world.
The sermon starts with nine “beatitudes” or blessings. Jesus reveals who is blessed by the coming Kingdom. This first is this:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
-Matthew 5:3
Poor In Spirit
To understand what it means to be poor in spirit, consider the story in Luke 7. One day, Jesus went to the house of Pharisee named Simon to eat and fellowship. Pharisees were devoutly religious Jews who kept the ceremonial laws. Jesus was known for associating with the lowly, but He was not afraid to love the spiritually uppity.
In that culture, they would lay around a low table to eat. It’s called “reclining at table.” As they were reclining at table, a woman came in and approached Jesus. The Pharisee recognized her as a prostitute from the city. She knelt at Jesus’s feet and began to kiss them, weeping and drying her tears with her hair. She anointed His feet with expensive oil.
This would have been shocking and controversial, since sinful women did not touch teachers, and women in this culture did not let their hair down in public. Simon saw this and judged Jesus, thinking: “If this man knew what a sinner she is, He’d be so embarrassed.”
But Jesus is God, so He can read minds. He turned to Simon and said, “I have something to say to you.” Let’s pick it up in Luke 7:41
“A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii [almost 2 years’ wages], and the other fifty [about 2 months’ wages]. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.””
Luke 7:41–50
Poor in spirit means empty-handed, bringing nothing to the table. Like this woman, when we realize how awful we are and how good God is, we are overwhelmed. I don’t believe she was one bit more sinful than anyone in that room except Jesus. What made her different was her awareness of her sin and need for Him. That is poor in spirit.
Kingdom of Heaven
What does Jesus mean by the Kingdom of Heaven? According to pastor John Piper, the Kingdom is God’s reign. It is a present reality and future hope, here today, but not yet fulfilled. God reigns from Heaven now, but someday He will bring this Kingdom to Earth in full. To have it means that we have what Jesus has. He shares His Kingdom with us.
To have the Kingdom means that we have spiritual blessings. This is not the Prosperity Gospel, a false gospel that tells us life will be easy if we have enough faith. Spiritual blessings are not less than physical blessings, but greater. Here are five:
1. We have grace and forgiveness.
No matter what terrible things you have done, you can be forgiven and accepted because of what Jesus accomplished. God is merciful and compassionate to you. He loves to forgive sinners; it is the most natural inclination of His heart. The Bible describes God as having to be provoked to anger and punishment, but quick to forgive and abundant in mercy. The Kingdom of Heaven has a gracious King. His wrath is only for those who are not His.
2. We have the presence of God.
Jesus sent His Holy Spirit to live in us and walk with us our whole lives. In the Old Testament, God was manifestly present in Eden until Adam and Eve messed that up. Then He was present in the tabernacle and Ark of the Covenant, as Israel wandered. Then He was present in the temple that Solomon built. But in the New Testament, God is present as a man, Jesus of Nazareth. Then Jesus ascends and sends the Holy Spirit to be present in every member of the Church.
You can speak to God any time, any place, and know that He hears you, that He cares, and that He is with you. This is an incredible privilege – better than speaking to any human ruler or celebrity. We get to have intimate relationship with the Maker of the Universe.
3. We have the family of God.
Some of us come from messed up families. Our new family, of God’s people, is a little messed up too, because Jesus hasn’t finished making all things new. But because of God’s Spirit, this messed up family is messed up together, and we are learning to love one another well. Citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven love one another.
4. We have the Word of God.
The Bible is not just a religious textbook or a handbook for life. This is God’s living Word, His revelation of reality to the people He loves. It is full of truth and it tells us the great Story that makes sense of the world – the Gospel. It gives us purpose by showing us who our King is and who we are as His people. It is a treasure, and I encourage you to study it every day. Understanding this book is the key to life in the Kingdom.
5. To have the Kingdom means that we are promised future restoration.
Someday, you will not be a sinner or suffer from others’ sins. Someday, your relationships will be restored. Someday, your body will be whole. Someday, you won’t have to worry about finances. Someday, every broken thing will be made better than new. Nothing can stop God from bringing this to pass – nothing, nothing, nothing.
To have the Kingdom means to hold the blazing fire of this great hope in your heart in every hard moment of life, and to let it lift your worship higher as you experience God’s blessings. If you are a child of God, your future is much different than when you were lost, so your life now can be much different as you live as a citizen of this wonderful Kingdom.
The poor in spirit are blessed in the right-side up Kingdom of Jesus. That is very good news.
——
To learn more about Recovery at Summit, visit www.recoveryatsummit.com