Poor in Spirit, by Paul

Below are scriptures written by Paul for your study and meditation as you work on “Poor in Spirit.”  

First, let me tell you about Paul. 

Paul was a Jewish bible scholar whose mother named him after Israel’s first king: Saul.  He was on the fast track to be among the finest scholars in history, and he was on fire with zeal for God – he was a very, very good man.  In his zeal to protect Israel from false teaching, he worked for the high council as an enforcer – like one of the Catholics in the Inquisition; he arrested, tortured and murdered to further his beliefs.  On the road one day Jesus appeared to him, and he changed from a murderer of Jesus’ disciples – and instead became one.  Much of the New Testament was written by Paul.  Letters to churches and preachers, from Romans to Philemon … Paul was “the man.” 

The excerpts below should reveal to you Paul’s Poverty of Spirit.  Notice that when he says “we” or “I,” he’s not talking about us, but himself and his fellow missionaries. 

“…in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.   He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us…”  (2 Corinthians 1.9-10)

If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Torah, found blameless.  

But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Torah, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”  (Philippians 3:4-11)

And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.  (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)  

To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenlies. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are your glory. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father.  (Ephesians 3:8-14)   

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (1 Timothy 1:12-17)

I charge you in the presence of God (who gives life to all things) and of Christ Jesus … that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He will bring about at the proper time—  

He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion!

Amen. 

Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed. O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith.  (1 Timothy 6:13-21)