Gasping for Breath (Matthew 5:3)

Scripture
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." 
Matthew 5:3

Take Aways
  • Blessed can also be interpreted as happy or fortunate
  • Poor literally means a beggar, one who lacks all
  • Spirit is the Greek word pneuma which we interpret as air, or a breath.
  • So a more literal translation could be "Fortunate are those who are begging for breath, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
APPLICATION
  • I believe that what Jesus is talking about here is that those in the most desperate need are the ones that are the most likely to earnestly reach out to God. 
  • Throughout this sermon and His ministry, Jesus will point to the idea that He did not come for the righteous, but for sinners. In fact, He did not even come for those who are somewhat okay. He came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10), to heal those in need of a physician (Mark 2:17), and to gather even one lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7). Jesus came to bring redemption from Hell. He came for those begging for breath.
  • Gasping for air alone is not the answer. It is the desperation of the soul that then is reaching out to Jesus for help that matters.
  • Sometimes, when we are in a situation that causes desperation, we need to understand that perhaps this is God opening a door to heaven. I think this goes against so much of modern psychology, thought, and preaching.
  • Surrender, repentance, admitting defeat, call it what you will, Jesus came for those who recognize their need for a Savior and are willing to submit their lives to Him completely, and not just fix their problems, as only one who is gasping for breath would do. 

PRAYER
It seems strange and even difficult to pray for struggle, to pray for trials and/or tribulation. But if that is what it takes for me to be brought to my knees so that I may enter the kingdom of heaven, then I pray that I am fortunate enough to be given those struggles. But I also pray that in those struggles, the result is to inherit the kingdom of God. I pray for others who struggle too. I pray that they will find God in those times. 

Bonus

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Joy in the Mourning - (Matthew 5:4)

Image
Scripture "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."   Matthew 5:4 Take Aways The question is, what is being mourned? I think you have to go back to the previous verse for the answer. If a good interpretation of 5:3 could be, "Fortunate are those who are begging for breath, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs," then perhaps this indicates what is being mourned. Conversion requires repentance, not just an acknowledgment that God exists. It is a change of heart, a change of life, not just a desire to be fixed or healed. Those who are desperate for a change are most apt to truly embrace it.  It is not enough just to want change, you must embrace it.  This, in my opinion, is where the mourning comes in.  So what exactly are we mourning? I am not sure, but I have some thoughts. First, perhaps we are mourning the time we wasted in our previous way of life. Not that I believe that Jesus would promote the idea of living in past regret, but I think a certain
Read more

You See Poverty, We See Grace (Matthew 5:5)

Image
Scripture "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."   Matthew 5:5 Blessed  (Fortunate) are the  meek  (humble), for they  shall inherit  (will obtain through inheritance)  the earth  (from among those of the earth). TAKE AWAYS This is a great passage for those who preach the prosperity gospel, if you don't mind ignoring the life and message of Jesus. He is not talking about material possessions here. Blessed , yes, but in peace and contentment rather than in stuff, even good stuff! Translating it as "fortunate" also conveys the idea that it is not our effort that is bringing this about, but it is God's.  Also, translating  meek  as "humble" seems appropriate.  Often when we think of the idea of meek, we connect it to weakness. I don't think we need to be weak to be meek or humble, in fact, I believe it takes great strength to be humble.  Jesus has so much to say about humility. He was humble. ( Matthew 21:5 ) I don't ever se
Read more