BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT.

 

APRIL 11.
Blessed are the poor in spirit.
Matthew 5:3
 

WE are all spiritually poor,
  but all are not poor in the spirit.
 
To be poor in the spirit is to be stripped of pride,
  to be humbled before God,
  to see and feel our numerous wants, and
  to yield without objection or
     hesitation to God's plan of saving
       and relieving the poor.
 
Man's heart by nature is full of pride,
  it strives with its Maker,
   refuses to yield to God's method, and
  rejects the invitations of redeeming love.
 
The poor in spirit visit God's throne,
  hope in God's mercy,
  gladly embrace God's unspeakable gift,
  yield to God's requirements, and
  bow with submission to the dispensation of God's providence.
 
The poor in spirit are blessed with faith in Christ,
  acceptance with God,
  a title to the promises,
  the teachings of the Holy Spirit, and
    the prospect of everlasting glory.
 
The poor in spirit are often poor in circumstances too,
  but they look to the Lord,
  trust in his word,
   expect his interference, and
  taste his love in temporals as well as in spirituals.
 
The poor in spirit gladly receive Christ, and
  live upon him as their everlasting portion.
 
 O to be poor in spirit !
 

Jesus, on me the want bestow,

Which all who feel shall surely know

Their sins on earth forgiven;

Give me to prove the kingdom mine,

And taste in holiness divine,

The happiness of heaven.

 
James Smith 1849