Poor in Spirit | The Beatitudes | Pastor Rodney Thrift
THE BEATITUDES
The Poor in Spirit…
Matthew 5:1-12 (NIV) 1Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them. He said: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- These statements reveal where true happiness can be found.
- These statements show the potential of what can be ours.
- Each statement includes a pronouncement of a blessing, a description of the ones considered as blessed, and an explanation for the blessing.
- These statements are not multiple choice.
SOUL TATTOO: Follow Jesus, no matter what the cost.
The Beatitudes: #1 = Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Philippians 2:3-5 (NLT) 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. 5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” C.S. Lewis
SOUL TATTOO: I am POOR IN SPIRIT, when I recognize that I have an absolute need for God.
Matthew 5:3 (NIV) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
Blessed are the Poor in Spirit:
Matthew 5:3 (NIV) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed is the person who realizes they are completely destitute, utterly helpless, one who realizes their absolute need for God.”
Matthew 5:3 (NLT) “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.”
Matthew 5:3 (GW) “Blessed are those who recognize they are spiritually helpless. The kingdom of heaven belongs to them.”
Matthew 5:3 (NCV) “Those people who know they have great spiritual needs are happy, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.”
“We will never depend on something we don’t think we need.” Pastor Chris Hodges
Revelation 3:15-17 (NIV) I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.
THE GREAT NEED FOR GOD:
KNOW GOD:
- If I don’t have Jesus, I pay for my own sins.
Romans 3:23 (NIV) For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 6:23 (NIV) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
- When I accept Jesus, I have the free gift of salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life.
Ephesians 2:1-5 (NIV) As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world… All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
BUILD COMMUNITY:
- If I don’t have Jesus, I can only manage through my pain and my identity.
Jeremiah 6:14 (NLT) They offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace.
- If I accept Jesus, I have the power to be healed and transformed.
1 Peter 2:24-25 (NIV) “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
DISCOVER YOUR PURPOSE:
- If I don’t have Jesus, I’ll always be trying to discover or design my own life.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
- If I accept Jesus, I have the power to know who I am and what my life is created for.
Acts 17:26-28 (NIV) From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. “For in him we live and move and have our being.”
MAKE A DIFFERENCE:
- If I don’t have Jesus, I am alive and moving for pleasures that wither away.
1 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV) Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.
- When I accept Jesus, I can have His joy in my life and give glory to God and influences others.
John 15:8-11 (NIV) “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples… I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”
Matthew 5:3 (GW) “Blessed are those who recognize they are spiritually helpless. The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them.”
- Jesus, I need you.
SOUL TATTOO: I am POOR IN SPIRIT, when I recognize that I have an absolute need for God.
Make It Practical:
1.) Go to Jesus for salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life.
2.) Go to Jesus for the power to be healed and transformed.
3.) Go to Jesus to find out who you are and what your life is all about.
4.) Go to Jesus to experience the joy of living a life that glorifies God and impacts others.
SOUL TATTOO: I am POOR IN SPIRIT, when I recognize that I have an absolute need for God.