05.02. The Key to the Kingdom
II THE KEY TO THE KINGDOM
Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."-- Matthew 5:3. HAD Salome and her sons remembered this beatitude, they would never have asked Christ to make them sit, one on His right, and the other on His left in His kingdom. They would have seen that it was not for Christ to give thrones by an act of His royal prerogative, but that places of power were conditioned by the preparation of heart in those who aspired to hold them. The throne is given to those for whom it is prepared; but they must previously have been prepared, and the preparation of heart involves the poverty in spirit from which the golden ladder of beatitudes climbs upward to blessedness.
Earthly thrones are generally built with steps up to them; the remarkable thing about the thrones of the eternal kingdom is that the steps are all down to them. We must descend if we would reign, stoop if we would rise, gird ourselves to wash the feet of the disciples as a common slave in order to share the royalty of our Divine Master.
WHAT IS THIS POVERTY OF SPIRIT?
I. We must distinguish between poverty of spirit and mean-spiritedness.--None so poor in spirit as Jesus, yet, in all His bearing, with Pharisee, and Scribe, and Sanhedrin, there was an heroic bearing, a strength and intrepidity of spirit, a royalty of mien, which filled them with astonishment, and compelled the involuntary homage of his foes. " Behold a man!" said Pilate, as He came forth from the cruel scourging which was enough to take the manhood out of its victims, but in this case had left His majesty undiminished. " Perceive ye not," said the Pharisees among themselves, " how we prevail nothing? Behold, the world is gone after Him." And this trait has always characterized the followers of Christ. They have counted themselves poor, weak, the offscouring of all things, but they have never been deficient in those brave, strong, nobler qualities of the soul which have enabled them to stand unmoved amid the hatred of their fellows, as some gaunt rock amid the ceaseless buffeting of the waves.
2. We must distinguish between poverty of spirit and circumstances.--Many have turned away from what is fair and beautiful and right in nature, art, intellectual attainment, and the acquisition of property. They have said to themselves, Let us fling away the wealth and treasure of our life, so shall we be poor in spirit. But, surely, a man may strip himself of all his belonging; his heart atrophied for want of objects to love; his mind wasting for want of knowledge; his imagination starved for want of nourishment; his life shortened for want of the necessaries of physical existence, and yet he may be as far as possible from true poverty of spirit.
Bethink Thee, Lord, while Thou and all the saints Enjoy themselves in heaven; and men on earth House in the shade of comfortable roofs,
Sit with their wives by fires, eat wholesome food, And wear warm clothes, and even beasts have stalls, I, ’tween the spring and downfall of the light, Bow down one thousand and two hundred times To Christ, the Virgin Mother, and the saints; Or in the night, after a little sleep, I wake; the chill stars sparkle; I am wet With drenching dews, or stiff with crackling frost, I wear an undrest goat-skin on my back; A grazing iron collar grinds my neck; And in my weak, lean arms, I lift the cross." That is the boast of a man who has failed to discriminate between the voluntary poverty of circumstances and the humility of the spirit. All through such a life, the proud self asserts its vehemence, demanding recognition, and bringing, not the blood of the Lamb, but the firstfruits of its toil. You may bestow all your goods to feed the poor, and give your body to be burned, and yet not come within a thousand miles of true poverty of spirit; whilst, on the other hand, you may be rich in this world’s goods, your heart warm with human love, and your mind, " like storied windows richly dight," receiving the many-colored light of truth, and yet carry ever the poverty of spirit which is as much the habit and girdle of the soul as the horsehair tunic which some of the greatest of the popes have worn next their skin beneath the splendid pontifical attire.
3. We must also distinguish between poverty of spirit and self-depreciation,--There are people, most objectionable, as I think, who are always saying, I am nothing and nobody. They insist on taking the back seats, and declaring that they are not worth your notice. And yet you feel that they are as proud and desirous of the first places, as those who in the Lord’s parable took the best positions at the feast. Indeed, the pride that apes humility is more detestable than that which casts off all disguise. We sometimes act humbly because we are proud of a reputation of humility. We sit near the door that we may have the pleasure of being asked to the front. We assume a seraphic smile when most annoyed, because we are so eager to pass muster with the saints. Oh, for the humility which does not count itself humble! for the face which shines and we wist it not! for the simplicity of the little child that does not turn back with admiration on itself! For true poverty of spirit we must turn to our blessed Lord, who, though He was rich, yet, for our sakes, became poor. In His case the spring of his action was altogether outside His own lovely and glorious nature, and was found in His Father. He did not forego the use of marvellous power, or the flow of unrivalled language, or that wealth of a noble nature with which He was endowed by the very constitution of His being. But all was held subservient to the will of His Father. No ambition lured Him forward, no fear held Him back, no desire to win power apart from the paths marked out by the Father was allowed to divert Him from the chosen track of obedience. May we dare to say that Christ as man denied the exercise of His Divine attributes, that He might speak the words the Father gave. Him, do the works that the Father wrought through Him, and fulfil the plan of life which the Father unfolded step by step. In absolute poverty of spirit, He received from God the impulse, power, and grace of daily living.
Poverty of spirit, therefore, is probably indicated by two characteristics. It has no pride of possession, and it is unconscious of ability to meet the demands made on it by the exigencies of its ministry.
Poverty of spirit has no pride in its possessions. --At the beginning of the Christian life, we earnestly endeavor after the acquisition of certain virtues and graces. We have read of them, or seen them exemplified in others, until they have cast over us the spell of their fascination. We strive for them, and sometimes congratulate ourselves on their partial attainment. Surely, the soul says to itself, as it compares the present with the past, I am purer, humbler, gentler than I was! There is an arraying of the soul in treasures and jewels, as when the young girl takes from her drawer one ornament after another, which has been given by admirers and friends. Full often this self-complacency is shattered by some terrible fall, or by repeated failure, till we come to see that we have no more claim to possess goodness than a room to possess light. These things are not our own, but received from Jesus, and enjoyed only in proportion as we abide in Him, and He in us. I am not good, but Jesus is in me the source of goodness; I am not humble, but Jesus dwells within me, bringing every proud thought and imagination into captivity to Himself. I am not strong, but I receive Him who is made unto me wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. In absolute dependence upon the Saviour for the constant supply of His own nature through the Holy Ghost, we exemplify that growing sense of need which is one of the sure signs of the humble and contrite heart which God will not despise.
Poverty of spirit is unconscious of ability to meet the demands made on it by the exigencies of its ministry.--Men come smitten by a great need. "I am in mental perplexity--explain my difficulty." "I am bound hand and foot by the devil--loose me." "I am needing more of the Holy Ghost--teach me." " My child is grievously vexed with a devil--deliver her." In reply the poor in spirit say, " We have nothing which will suffice for needs like yours. Silver and gold have we none, but there is one thing we can do, we can pray, we can put you in union with God, we are willing to become the channel through which God can meet your need." Was not this precisely the attitude of the apostle who said, that he held the treasure of God in an earthen vessel; though sorrowful, he was always rejoicing; though poor, he made many rich; though he had nothing, yet he possessed all things?
HOW MAY WE BECOME POOR IN SPIRIT?
First, never look on any virtue as inherent to your character, but attribute each gift and grace to the dower of the Almighty. Be content to be a branch. If the fruit hangs ripe and full. magnify the properties of the root to which it must be attributed. Live by the Son, as He by the Father. The light that shines on sea and shore might rather be credited to the earth which is made beautiful by it, than that any grace of the Christian character should be credited to you or me, as though it were in any sense our own. What hast thou that thou hast not received?
Secondly, contrast yourself not with those below you, but with God above. We are too prone to compare our white robes with the stained garments of others, rather than with those robes which were whiter than a fuller could white them.
Thirdly, look on all the good in your neighbors. There is much more than we sometimes suppose, even in those who do not profess to be religious. Look not every man on his own things, but on the things of others. Let each account the other better than himself. There may be reasons why others, have fallen short of the highest attainment, which if they had operated in our case would have dragged us to a lower depth; whilst, if others had had our advantage they would almost certainly have stood far in advance of anything that we have attained.
Fourthly, consider yourself a trustee of God for others, so that whenever any demand is made on you for help, teaching, deliverance, you may confess before God your utter incompetence, and humbly claim that He should pass through your hand the wealth of bread which the poor traveller, who has come to your house, craves. AND WHAT IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN? When Jesus spoke-and the same holds still--the kingdom was in mystery. It had not been manifested, nor, indeed, will it be until our King, now in hiding, is crowned King of the world. It consists not in meat and drink, but in righteousness, joy, and peace in the Holy Ghost.
It is the synonym of dignity, for those who have the kingdom must be the children of the King. They are sons, heirs of God the Father, joint-heirs with the King Himself.
It is the condition of great influence, for the kingdom of God means peace on earth, goodwill toward men. To our Lord, the throne meant a greater ability to bless men, and that is the only reason why men should desire to sit on the right or left of His throne. To seek the kingdom for purposes of ostentation, self-emolument, and pride, were a vain and worthless ambition, despicable and contemptible, but to desire it that men may be rightly influenced, that the laws of right and healthy living should be laid down and maintained, that the poor should be avenged, and the wronged vindicated, this were a purpose worthy of God Himself. This is why the poor in spirit long for the royalties of the kingdom.
Lastly, it is the equivalent of large wealth. A kingdom in liquidation is an anomaly. We are wont to associate with the ideal king wealth like that of Solomon, of whom it is said, that in his days silver was as stones, and cedars as sycamore trees, and that he exceeded all the kings of the earth in wealth. Abundance! Largeness! Unbounded resource! Inexhaust-fineness! Such are the words that characterize the ideal kingdom. So in the spiritual life.
We find Madame Guyon saying: " This vastness, or enlargedness, which is not bounded by anything, increases every day; so that my soul, partaking of the qualities of her spouse, seems also to partake of His immensity." And Thomas a Kempis in the Imitation: "They that willingly and freely serve Me shall receive grace for grace. And if heavenly grace and true charity, there will be no envy, nor narrowness of heart, neither will self-love busy itself. For Divine Love overcometh all things, and enlargeth all the powers of the soul." This is very wonderful. " Not after the manner of men." The soul which is ever seeking to aggrandize itself, and augment its stores, will miss the true royalty of life, the treasures by which men are enriched. But he who in the utter abnegation of the self-life shall cast himself as a broken and emptied vessel before God, will learn to say with Hannah-- The bows of the mighty men are broken. And they that stumbled are girded with strength, They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; And they that were hungry have rest. The Lord raiseth up the poor out of the dust, He lifteth up the needy from the dunghill, To make them sit with princes, And inherit the throne of glory."
Thou, O Lord, didst become poor that through Thy poverty we might be made rich: enrich me, pray Thee, with this same poverty of spirit, that I may be a joint-beir with Thee in Thy kingdom.