*Matthew 5:3, "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."* (KJV)
You know, the first statement a person makes when giving a lecture or a speech or a presentation is very important. Mostly, these statements lay the foundation and everything else that would be spoken is built around that first statement. Therefore, when, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven", is Jesus' first statement, it should also tell you that most likely, that, whatever else He spoke after that statement might as well have been an explanation of sorts of what being spiritually poor really is.
But as usual, we like taking scripture and isolating every piece to stand on its own and make it mean what we want it to mean. But I would challenge someone to again go to Matthew five and read from verse three to eleven, but this time round, do not read like every verse is its own boss, read it like every verse is trying to explain what verse number five means. And see how much more revelation you will capture from the script.
Ask yourself, Who mourns more than the poor? Who's more meek than the poor? Who hungers and thirsts more than the poor? Who claims to have mercy or need mercy application than the poor? If a poor man and a rich man were set before you and you were asked to vote for who you think has the purest heart, who would you vote for? A poor man knows that if he starts a fight he will lose, so, who would want to make peace with everybody more than a poor man? And lastly, who is more persecuted than the poor man?
That aside, yesterday we finished at a point where we agreed that spiritual poverty has nothing to do with physical poverty or material poverty. Material poverty is a choice and or is caused by poor choices. Some once told me that *POOR: means Passing Over Opportunities Repeatedly*.
I gave a story some years back of two ladies I helped, each with a thousand Kenya Shillings. One went home and gave her family a meal of a lifetime from the thousand, the other cooked as usual, then woke up early the following morning with the over eight hundred remaining, she went and bought second hand clothes and started hawking them. Soon, from the one thousand that the other ate in one sitting, she was making income and needed not to beg anymore. She actually even started tithing back to me that had given her the thousand. Do you see the difference?
Solomon says this about poverty, "A little slumber, a little folding of hands and the poverty will fall on you like a thief and your being in want like an armed robber. (Prov 6:10&11, 24:33&34)."
Which means that the opposite is true, poverty is chased out by agreeing to sleep less and putting your hands into something more.
Today I wanted us to speak about shelter. We said that poverty is characterised by lack of or insufficiency of four things:food, clothes, shelter and education. We have talked about food, we have touched on clothing and today we talk of shelter.
The bible tells us that Jesus is the firstborn, we are daily conforming into His image so that He may be a firstborn amongst many brethren. Adam was also born of God, hence Adam is the younger son.
Jesus while on earth gave a story of Him and His brother Adam. He said that a father had two sons, then the younger son came to his father and said, "give me what belongs to me". The father divided his estate into two and gave his younger son his portion. Not many days later the younger son sold everything and left for a far away country where he extravagantly spent his fortune in careless living. Soon, he had nothing and had to seek a job as a swine caretaker. The employer neglected him so much so, that he started eating what the pigs were eating.
Then one day, the LORD said, *"the man came back to his senses"*. And he said, I will go back to my father and into his house and tell him I am ready to work even as a slave for I have sinned.
I wish I have time and space to explain this story piece by piece and how it reflects Jesus and Adam. But the Holy Spirit will guide you into all knowledge if you read it and in every place you see the older son, see Jesus, where you see the younger son, see Adam and wherever you see the father, see God the Father.
My emphasis is on going back to the father and to his house. Because we are talking about shelter or lack of it for Adam.
Adam sold everything that was given to him as an inheritance, and left. After all that extravagance, he now has nothing. And his employer ... the devil, who has employed him to take care of his swines ... swines here represent sin ... for a wage .... the wage is death, has neglected him until he now eats what the swines eat. As Paul says, "The wages (salary after taking care) of sin (the pigs or swine) is death..."
Therefore, man has to come back to his senses and remember that he has a Father. And the Father did not give him everything. He only gave him half of the estate, there is still another estate that the Father is managing together with the Firstborn Son.
He must be ready to go and work as a servant or a slave in his Father's house. *This is why we are called servants of God* or as Paul says, *"Slaves to Christ"*.
Jesus said, "There is no other way (for Adam) to the Father except through me". This is so because, whatever the Father owns now is rightfully Jesus' possession. Adam already squandered his portion of inheritance. What remains belongs to Jesus to inherit.
Jesus also said, "Whatever you ask from the Father, you must ask *IN MY NAME* if you want to receive."
Praying in the Name of Jesus is not just about mentioning His Name at the end of your prayer. It is acknowledging that unless Jesus allows God to give you anything, you will get nothing.
Look at how the Firstborn son tells the father when he comes home only to find part of his inheritance was slaughtered without his knowledge. Even the father had to talk to him to calm him down, the father had to explain to the son why it was necessary to slaughter that bull. And the Firstborn Son has to agree to understand that it was necessary.
Remember the second born son has nothing, therefore, even this house he is living in is not his. And it is not his Father's. Everything now is owned by Jesus Christ.
This is why Jesus said, "Everything that the Father has, has been given to me".
Hence, when Jesus is telling Adam, "Blessed are the poor in the spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven", He is actually telling Adam, "The only way you will access what Father has now given to me is by accepting that YOU HAVE NOTHING".
Jesus is the King of kings, and after he takes the world from the current reigning king called Lucifer, everything that belonged both to Adam and to Him wi be His by right.
But He is good, in that He has agreed to make Adam a co-heir with Him.
Co-heir means everybody owns everything. It is not a 50/50 arrangement, it means that what Jesus owns you also own. But that is then, after Jesus has come back. So, relax and come back to now.
Now means, that if you need anything from the Father, you have to ask for it through the name of Jesus.
It is equivalent to two children. Each is given a glass of milk. They are told to take good care of it and drink at will. The younger son, spills his milk and is left with an empty glass.
Now, praying in the name of Jesus, is equivalent to that, even if the parent would want to give the younger son part of the older son's milk, the older son must agree first. Therefore, if the younger son wants it, he must tell the parent, that the older son has agreed to share his milk with him.
Praying in the name of Jesus is not just saying, "in Jesus' Name". Some people say it like it is some sort of code. There must be an agreement first between you and Jesus. Then you go to the Father and tell Him, Jesus has agreed that you give me that car. I stand before you Father to request you give me that house. The Father wi ask, "How can I give you, it belongs to Jesus?" And you will say, "Jesus has agreed to give it to me". God will have no option but to give it to you. That is the real meaning of *Praying in Jesus' Name.* If you go to my father asking to take my car, my father will ask you how and why he should give you. There, you must ask for it in my name, by showing prove that I allow you to take it... hope you got it.
Let's continue tomorrow.
Shalom and keep the faith.
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