In this sermon, Steve Hopkins discusses the importance of being poor in spirit, as mentioned in the Sermon on the Mount. He emphasizes the need to recognize our deep spiritual poverty and our dependence on God's grace. Through the example of the Baptist Confession, he highlights the three offices of Christ (prophetic, priestly, and kingly) as essential for our spiritual well-being. He also reflects on the concept of the 'beatific vision,' which refers to the future experience of believers beholding God's unveiled glory face to face.

Two things on my heart that I wanted to bring today. The first from Matthew chapter 5, beginning with verse 3. Most of you will recognize this as being from the Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached in the history of the world. When Jesus begins, the poor in spirit, blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

A few minutes ago, Michael prayed about pride. He said, let us not be proud in the opening prayer. Let us not be proud. And then Mr. Beckler went through the Baptist Confession, chapter 8, paragraph 10, and these words kept jumping off the page at me. We need, we need, we need, we stand in need. We need his prophetic office. We need his priestly office. We need his kingly office. We need. Again, Michael prayed about pride. Those who are poor in spirit recognize their need. Our people who recognize their deep spiritual poverty and their deep spiritual need. Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

My former fellow elder, the late Don Stubblefield, used to pray every Sunday. You remember he would pray concerning the beatific vision. How many remember you saying, oh Lord, one day we would behold the beatific vision. He said every single Sunday, in every prayer Sunday. The beatific vision refers to believers' future beholding of God face to face in his unveiled glory. A thing that not a one of us can do right now in these bodies of sin.

Jesus begins, blessed, blessed. Your version might say happy, but it's really more than just what we believe or we perceive to be happiness and how it's defined in our culture. Blessed, blessed.