Spiritual Poverty

povertyLiving in the Spirit
November 20, 2014

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 1:15-23

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.— Ephesians 1:17-19

This part of our scripture for today seems to be a three point sermon in a prayer. Paul was good at that. He never missed an opportunity to teach about Christ. The three points he wants us to fully grasp are simple:

  1. We are called to hope
  2. We are assured a glorious inheritance along with all the other saints
  3. We serve One with immeasurable power

Paul seems to be speaking from experience as his faith had surely grown as he grew to know Jesus Christ more intimately.

I once heard a wise speaker note that the only difference between being poor and living in poverty was the absence of hope in the latter state. While we most often think of the words “poor” and “poverty” in relationship to economic status, they also apply to spiritual lives. ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’ (Matthew 5:3) speaks to the presence of hope in someone caught in situations that seem hopeless. One wonders if economic poverty results from succumbing to spiritual hopelessness.

The inheritance we are promised is the kingdom of heaven when we live with God as the center of our universe in a world where wholeness, oneness, and justice are the norms. Our call as Disciples of Christ is to work in partnership with him toward the realization of that kingdom with every breath we take. And while from time to time that seems very much a pipe dream and thus hopeless, we do indeed serve a risen Savior who empowers and guides us and whose power is mightier than all other powers.

Prayer: Lord of Hope and Power, feed our hope and undergird us with your strength as we serve as your partners in bringing wholeness, oneness, and justice into reality. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.