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"Teaching God's Word to God's World"

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The Poverty of Christ

George L. Faull

 

 

II Corinthians 8:9

“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”

 

He became poor.  The songwriters recognize this truth. “Out of the Ivory Palaces”, “He Left the Splendor of Heaven”.

 

He became poor.  Look what He had to borrow:

1.                          He was born in a borrowed manger.

    V        Luke 2:7

 

2.                          He had to borrow a boat to travel to teach.

    V        Luke 5:3

 

3.                          He borrowed a cup for a drink from a Samaritan woman.

    V        John 4:7, 11

 

4.                          He borrowed a Roman coin for an illustration.

    V        Matthew 22:19-21

 

5.                          He borrowed a house to stay.

    V        John 12:1-2

 

6.                          He borrowed a colt, the foal of an ass for His triumphal entry.

    V        Matthew 21:2-3

 

7.                          He borrowed a room to institute His memorial Supper.

    V        Luke 22:11-12

 

8.                          He had to borrow a tomb for three days to await His resurrection.

    V        Mark 15:46, John 19:40-42

 

He became poor.  Look what is said of Him:

1.                          He had no where to lay His head.

    V        Luke 9:58

 

    V        John 7:53 op to 8:1

 

2.                          He was supported by women!  Imagine that in the First Century!

    V        Luke 8:2-3

 

3.                          He had to pay taxes with a coin from the mouth of a fish.

    V        Matthew 17:27

 

4.                          He had only a seamless garment to His name.

    V        John 19:23

 

5.                          He had to leave His mother to the care of a disciple. 

    V        John 19:26

 

6.                          He walked everywhere except on His triumphal entry.

 

He became poor.  He did not even do what great men usually do.

1.                          He never attended school.

    V        John 7:15

 

2.                          He never wrote a song.

 

3.                          He never played sports.

 

4.                          He never waged a war.

 

5.                          He never held a political office.

 

6.                          He never invented an invention.

 

The only thing He ever wrote was written in the sand.  Yet no person has ever affected the world like Jesus!

 

So what lessons can we learn from this?

 

His poverty did not keep Him from:

1.                          Showing His love for others.

    V        II Corinthians 8:8-21

 

2.                          Being humble.

    V        Philippians 2:4-17

 

3.                          Being content.

    V        Philippians 4:11

 

    V        Hebrews 13:5

 

    V        I Timothy 6:6-11

 

    V        Luke 3:14

 

4.                          Submitting to the Will of God.

 

5.                          His ability to do the work of God.

 

6.                          Worshipping God.

 

7.                          Being happy.

 

8.                          Living the Beatitudes.

    V        Matthew 5

 

9.                          Having optimism and faith.

 

10.                   Being a soul winner.

Think, too, of the conversions in Acts.  Did these require money?

    Ø       Pentecost

    Ø       Lydia

    Ø       The Philippian jailer

    Ø       Cornelius

    Ø       Samaritans

    Ø       Eunuch

 

CONCLUSION:

 

Christ became poor that we may be rich.

 

Our poverty should never be an excuse for us not demonstrating these same attributes.