“The Spirit
of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent
me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the
oppressed free,
to proclaim the
year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)
Why does the Scripture consistently say that salvation is
for the poor, the prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed? Why does the
Scripture consistently say that salvation is for the humble not for the proud? Does
it mean that Christians should not have any confidence at all? Of course not. It’s
exactly the opposite that Christians should be confident and assured in life.
Yes, Christians can tell what we humans really are because we have the mind of
Christ.
“The person
with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not
subject to merely human judgments, for,
'Who has
known the mind of the Lord
so as to
instruct him?'
But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:15-16)
The mind of Christ is diabolically against the wisdom of the
world. When Paul came to Corinth alone he was in great fear and trembling for
he resolved not to know anything but Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
“And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to
you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the
testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except
Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and
trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words,
but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not
rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)
That’s where God wants us to be all the time, complete
bankruptcy in spirit or poor in spirit. When we fully and completely surrender
ourselves to Jesus Christ, deeply admitting the fact that we have nothing to
show off and contribute to the Lord God, God can use our bodies for the
advancement of His cause. One of these days, God will destroy all the human
boastings, achievements, self-esteem, high and lofty minds, and the
philosophies of the world.
“For it is
written:
‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the
intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.’” (1 Corinthians 1:19)
Our confidence is not coming from within us, but coming from
without in heaven, precisely Jesus Christ the Lord. He is the way, the truth,
and the life. In Him, there is no darkness nor confusion at all. In Him, there
is full of light, love, joy, peace, life, and hope now and forevermore.
As soon as we pass this boundary in life, we cannot but
experience the absence of life, death. We remain to be poor in spirit
continually and live, or we die. That’s the good news to all race, class,
color, age, and all. Our God is eternally faithful and consistent in keeping His
promise to save the poor in spirit.
One thing He requires us to do is to repent and obey Him. We
cannot fool Him because He is holy. We can be holy and blameless not by our own
merits but by the dependence on the works of another for He is faithful and
just to hear our cries of help.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will
forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
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