Day 6 | Luke 6
Looking at His Disciples He said: Blessed are you who are poor, for Yours is the kingdom of God. (Luke 6:20 NIV)
It occurred to me, as I read this, that the disciples were not pursuing wealth at this time, they were pursuing God. They believed Jesus was who He said He was and it so inspired them that they were willing to lay down a pursuit of normal wages and pour their energy into Him. In other words: they bought a share in the kingdom. That is why they were poor, because they had invested in God’s plan and they believed that it would pay out one day.
Even as Christians we struggle to understand what is truly valuable. I can come up with all kinds of reasons to have money and to make sure to have enough to care for myself because “that is what a good steward would do.” But I don’t think that this is what the Bible teaches. Jesus tells us: not to worry, to give generously, to care for orphans and widows, and to give to people who cannot return the favor. In all honesty, God gives us some pretty bad business advice. But that’s only because we are looking at worldly business. Heaven’s business isn’t anything like our business.
I can’t help but think of the time the woman poured out her wealth on Jesus’ feet. It wasn’t looked on with grace by many but Jesus saw her generous gift of love and, I believe, it looked like His own. He praises her for it and defends her actions, which, to us, seem foolish. But that woman poured out her earthly wealth because she had gained Heavenly blessing.
In what way can you pour out your earthly wealth and trade it for Heavenly blessing? How can you become poor?
