The Normalcy of the Spirit 407
Poor In Spirit
“Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5.3).The poor in spirit views himself as possessing nothing. A
believer’s peril lies in his having too many things in his spirit. Only
the poor in spirit can be humble. How often the experience, growth
and progress of a Christian become such precious matters to him that
he loses his lowliness. The most treacherous of all dangers for a saint
is to meditate on what he appropriates and to pay attention to what he
has experienced. Sometimes he engages in this unconsciously. What,
then, is the meaning of being poor? Poor bespeaks having nothing. If
one endlessly reflects upon the deep experience which he has passed
through, it soon shall be debased to a commodity of his spirit and
hence become a snare. An emptied spirit enables a person to lose
himself in God whereas a wealthy spirit renders him self-centered.
Full salvation delivers a believer out of himself and into God. Should
a Christian retain something for himself his spirit immediately shall
turn inward, unable to break out and be merged in God.
A Gentle Spirit
“In a spirit o f gentleness” (Gal. 6.1).Gentleness is a most necessary feature of the inner man. It is the
opposite of harshness. God requires us to cultivate a gentle spirit.
Amid the most prosperous work anyone with a gentle spirit can
instantly stop on short notice from God, just as Philip did when sent
from Samaria to the desert. A gentle spirit turns easily in God’s hand
however He wills. It knows not how to resist God nor how to follow
its own will. God needs such a yielding spirit to accomplish His
purpose.
A gentle spirit is no less important in human relationships. It is the
spirit of a lamb which characterizes the spirit of the cross. “When he
was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not