Episode Transcript  

One

Poor in Spirit

The Sermon on the Mount is the core of Jesus’ moral teaching. It’s where we get the essence of the Christian life. Jesus opens with the words, “Blessed are the Poor in Spirit, the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.” We should take that really seriously. This is the very first step in Jesus’ program for salvation, for happiness. It’s to be poor in Spirit.

Now, being poor in spirit doesn’t actually mean being materially poor. Being poor in spirit means being humble. That’s the first step to blessedness. And there can be wealthy, powerful people who are really humble. And there can be poor people who are really arrogant and self-righteous and basically just full of themselves. That said, we have to admit that there is some connection between being poor in spirit and being materially poor. And there’s some connection between being materially well-off and being proud. Which is why being wealthy is spiritually dangerous. 

Two

Warnings about Money

Scripture constantly warns us about the spiritual dangers of money. Judas betrays Christ for money. Jesus says, “You cannot serve both God and money.” And the Bible tells us, “The love of money is the root of all evil.”

Jesus never said, “How hard it is for a poor person to enter the kingdom of heaven.” But He did say, “How hard it is for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven.” So, there’s a clear contrast when it comes to the Kingdom of Heaven, between being poor in spirit and being rich.

“Blessed are the poor in Spirit the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” Contrast that with, “How hard it is for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Why is that? Why does material wealth make it harder to enter the kingdom of heaven? Or, put it this way: Why does material wealth make it harder to be poor in spirit?

Three

The Validation of Money

Like it or not, we instinctively take money as a sign of validation. Some people treat money like the scoreboard of life. The more they have, the more they think they’re winning. They measure success, intelligence, and even self-worth by how much they own. In this mindset, money isn’t just useful; it’s how you prove you're better, smarter, or more important than others. 

But that’s a lie. Money can measure achievements or possessions, but it can’t measure character. God doesn’t care who’s “winning” by the world’s standards. In His eyes, the true victory is love, humility, and trust in Him. The real scoreboard is in heaven and only God keeps the score.

More importantly, money can make us feel as though we’ve earned our value, and that now we are entitled to respect and to have people do what we want, because we have the money to pay them. In other words, money makes it really, really hard not to feel important and self-sufficient. Which is the exact opposite of being poor in spirit. 

And the truth is, relative to the rest of the globe, and certainly to the rest of humanity historically speaking, we’re all pretty darn rich. Which means it’s going to be that much harder for all of us to be poor in spirit. And that means it’s going to be that much harder for all of us to enter the kingdom of heaven. So what should we do?

Four

Practice Poverty

The truth is, you can’t be poor in spirit unless you show that you’re willing to be poor in terms of wealth. And you show that willingness by giving your wealth away generously. Sometimes people will say, “It’s okay to have a lot of possessions and money; you just can’t be attached to it.” But, of course, the only way you know you’re not attached to your wealth and possessions is when you actually detach yourself from a significant chunk of it. 

So, when was the last time you practiced not being attached to your money? When was the last time you took initiative in giving a good chunk of your wealth away? When was the last time a large unforeseen expense came up and you didn’t complain about it, stress out about it, or get mad at anyone about it?

Again, if our identity is bound up in our wealth, as it is for practically all of us at some level, letting go of money will be hard. So we need to practice it until it gets easier. We need to practice more and more material poverty, so we can get to the point of spiritual poverty. And then the Kingdom of Heaven will be ours.

Five

Freely You Have Received; Freely Give

Again, the greatest danger in this whole world, in our entire lives, is pride. Where we think we are the ones responsible for our blessings, we are the ones responsible for our gifts, and we are the ones responsible for getting ourselves out of any difficulties, personal or practical, that come our way. That is the biggest threat to our salvation, and it’s a threat that’s terribly amplified by money.

The antidote is to be poor in spirit, to recognize that all of our blessings, including our material wealth, and any talent or energy or initiative or insight that helped us get it, it all comes from God. Jesus said to His apostles in Matthew 10, “Freely you have received; freely you are to give.”

Generosity of giving, of letting go of our money, shows that we realize it didn’t come from us in the first place. It’s a gift from God. And passing on His gifts to others is the surest way of opening ourselves to receiving the greatest gift He holds, the Kingdom of Heaven.

So, as a practical resolution, let’s assess our charitable giving. Are we giving away 10%? Or have we overspent and now we can’t? What practical change do we need to make? And how can we support the Church or organizations of evangelization today, because reducing the spiritual poverty of not knowing Christ is the most important poverty to overcome?  

Suggested Resolutions:

Choose one resolution for today to help you grow closer to God, or create your own. Here are some ideas to inspire you. 

• Assess your charitable giving. Are you giving away 10%? Or have you overspent and now you can’t? What practical change do you need to make?

• Think about how you talk about money to others: do you brag about the things you’ve bought, do you place your identity in the things you can buy?

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