DRAWING NEAR
April 4
Being Poor in Spirit
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven" (Matt. 5:3).
The Puritan writer Thomas Watson listed seven ways to determine if
you are poor in spirit (The Beatitudes [Edinburgh: The Banner of
Truth Trust, 1971], pp. 45-48):
1.You will be weaned from self--Psalm 131:2 says, "Like a weaned
child rests against his mother, my soul is like a weaned child
within me." When you are poor in spirit you will focus not on
yourself but on glorifying God and ministering to others.
2.You will focus on Christ--Second Corinthians 3:18 says that
believers are "beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord,
[and] are being transformed into the same image from glory to
glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit." When you are poor in
spirit, the wonder of Christ captivates you. To be like Him is
your highest goal.
3.You will never complain--If you are poor in spirit you accept
God's sovereign control over your circumstances, knowing you
deserve nothing anyway. Yet the greater your needs, the more
abundantly He provides.
4.You will see good in others--A person who is poor in spirit
recognizes his own weaknesses and appreciates the strengths of
others.
5.You will spend time in prayer--It is characteristic of beggars
to beg. Therefore you will constantly be in God's presence seeking
His strength and blessing.
6.You will take Christ on His terms--Those who are poor in spirit
will give up anything to please Christ, whereas the proud sinner
wants simply to add Christ to his sinful lifestyle.
7.You will praise and thank God--When you are poor in spirit, you
will be filled with praise and thanks for the wonder of God's
grace, which He lavishes on you through Christ (Eph. 1:6).
Do those principles characterize your life? If so, you are poor in
spirit and the kingdom of heaven is yours (Matt. 5:3). If not, you
must seek God's forgiveness and begin to live as His humble child.
Suggestions for Prayer:
Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart, revealing any attitudes or
motives that displease Him. Seek His grace in changing them.
For Further Study:
Read 3 John. Would you characterize Gaius as poor in spirit?
Diotrephes? Explain.
Drawing Near, Copyright c 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
Ephesians 1:6 (NKJV)
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us
accepted in the Beloved.
3 John
3 John 1:1 THE ELDER, To the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth:
2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in
health, just as your soul prospers.
3 For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the
truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth.
4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
5 Beloved, you do faithfully whatever you do for the brethren and
for strangers,
6 who have borne witness of your love before the church. If you send
them forward on their journey in a manner worthy of God, you will do
well,
7 because they went forth for His name's sake, taking nothing from
the Gentiles.
8 We therefore ought to receive such, that we may become fellow
workers for the truth.
9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the
preeminence among them, does not receive us.
10 Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he
does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with
that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who
wish to, putting them out of the church.
11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who
does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God.
12 Demetrius has a good testimony from all, and from the truth
itself. And we also bear witness, and you know that our testimony is
true.
13 I had many things to write, but I do not wish to write to you
with pen and ink;
14 but I hope to see you shortly, and we shall speak face to face.
Peace to you. Our friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.
~~~
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
You can hear John MacArthur daily via the Internet by visiting:
http://www2.oneplace.com/Ministries/Grace_to_You/
and
http://www.gty.org.uk/
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In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase1@wideopenwest.com
http://www.gty.org/Gospel/
http://www.nwbible.org/
To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and to discover that the prisoner was you. -Alistair Begg
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